Are You Drinking Real Tea? | 'WHOLE' Loose Leaf Tea Explained
You may be a tea lover, but have you been drinking real tea? Most of us buy tea bags filled with small particles that look like chopped tea. These are actually dust and broken off pieces that are leftover from the sales of loose leaf tea. You've probably heard that loose leaf tea is high quality, but that's not always the case. When it comes to loose leaf tea, whole leaf is the way to go. Here's what you need to know to choose real tea.
Left to right: Jasmine, Black, Oolong loose leaf tea
What is loose leaf tea?
Loose leaf tea consists of the actual tea leaves so it steeps higher quality tea with full-bodied taste and aroma. Smaller tea particles means less flavor, aroma, and nutrients. This is why conventional tea bags blend various types of tea, herbs, and fruits to compensate for the lack of volume and flavor. While loose leaf tea is typically steeped in a tea pot, Us Two Tea has packaged loose leaf tea in convenient tea sachets.
Unfortunately, not all loose leaf tea is the same. If you want high quality loose leaf tea, you have to look at the tea leaves - are they chopped or whole?
Image: Osmanthus Oolong Tea
What is whole leaf tea?
Whole leaf is the highest quality of loose leaf tea. The goodness of tea is in the leaf and whole leaf tea preserves the tea leaves in their natural form without any chopping. This gives you the most flavor and health benefits as the leaves retain their full nutrients, natural oils, and aroma. This is why it's used for traditional tea ceremonies that focus on the tea's taste and aroma throughout multiple steeps. Us Two Tea's tea sachets are filled with whole leaf tea so you can re-steep each sachet up to three times without losing the flavor.
It's rare to come across whole leaf tea in tea sachets. Us Two Tea has added a modern twist to tradition so that you can enjoy authentic, high quality loose leaf tea on the go. Next time you shop for tea, make sure you're buying actual tea leaves, not just leftovers and dust.