International Tea Day: 5 types of teas you should know

Teas one of the most loved beverages worldwide. Alongside coffee and water, it’s also one of most consumed. The many types of teas and different ways it is consumed makes it a diverse and enjoyable drink.
With such a high level of popularity, a lot of research has followed looking at the effect tea has on the body. This has been joined with studies looking at the benefits tea drinking might have.

There are lots of different types of teas. These are all made from different herbs and plants.

Each one has a unique taste and unique benefits to your health.

Before looking at each of the benefits, we’ll walk through the different kinds of tea, which will help you find one that you like best based on your taste and what benefits you’re looking for.

Black tea

Black tea is a type of tea that is more oxidized than oolong, green and white teas. Black tea is generally stronger in flavour than the less oxidized teas. Black tea retains its flavour for several years.

Black tea is what most of us have grown up drinking. Full-bodied and strong, black tea tastes great alone or can be had with milk and sugar. And it makes great iced tea.

Green Tea

This tea has not been processed as much as other forms, such as black or oolong tea, and has a gentler color and taste because of it. This is also a very popular option, closely following black tea for many.

Along with following black tea in popularity, green tea also has many of the same health benefits. It even offers stronger benefits in some areas when compared against black tea.

Oolong tea

Also known as wulong tea, oolong tea has a caffeine content ranging between that of black tea and green tea. It’s extremely fragrant and refreshes you just with its aroma. It is known to increase your mental alertness, and prevent tooth decay, osteoporosis and heart diseases.

White Tea

White tea is another unique type of tea from a processing point of view. The main difference in white tea is that it is not oxidized or rolled. This creates a far milder tasting tea than the darker kinds.

But, this doesn’t mean that white tea has any fewer beneficial effects for health than the other types.

Fermented teas

Fermented tea is possibly one of the most unique and complex tea types when considering how it is made.

This tea is processed over months, or even years, by being exposed to humidity and oxygen. This creates a tea that has a strong aroma and a mild taste. It also has a much milder aftertaste than other teas.

This process also changes the chemical makeup of the tea leaves which changes the effect this tea can have in the body.