I think you've heard oolong tea before, through a good friend, Television show or maybe magazine, and you may somehow know that oolong tea could benefit your well-being; however, you are not that positive with it. Thus, if you're a newcomer to oolong, this article is for you.

What Is Oolong Tea?

Tea is gaining quite a lot of traction lately outside of China, particularly western nations. It has three major groups: green tea, oolong tea, and black tea. And oolong tea is really special, which is a semi-fermented tea. But you might try to ask, what on earth is semi-fermented tea? Mainly because, the producing process is quite intricate, I'm going to put in such a way that you may understand very easily (I'll discuss more info later on this page):

You must try green tea before, which is intensely well-liked worldwide, perfect for weight loss. The green tea will never be fermented in any way, which implies right after the tea leaves are reaped, they will be roasted right away, retaining the ingredients of tea as it is.

The black tea is actually quite the opposite, 100 % fermented, which means that chemical changes have taken place for quite some time, then the fundamental compounds have most certainly became a new form so that the flavor of black tea is totally different to green tea. However, the oolong tea wouldn't go that far. It is somewhere between green tea and black tea, having a highly distinct flavors and some bonus health benefits.

Etymology of Oolong Tea

This Chinese tea was actually originally known as Beiyuan Tea, which was a tribute tea. What was a tribute tea? It was a specific tea given to royals or an emperor, like a tribute to them.In fact, Beiyuan is a place within the north area of Fujian province (home of oolong tea). Then the tea farmers of An-xi county, south part of Fujian, considerably improved the typical tea making techniques, for that reason the Beiyuan Tea was developed into a whole new category. It is known that the name of first person who accidentally obtained this specific tea producing skill was pronounced as "oolong", and so in order to memorize him, this later popular tea was termed as "oolong tea".

In several places, oolong tea is also translated as "Wu long", the identical enunciation, having said that I have to explain here because it confuses many people. The explanation for the various spelling is because of 2 different spelling methods: the Wades Giles system gives us Oolong, and the Chinese Pinyin method gives us Wu long. But sometimes(rarely), oolong tea has some other names, such as brown tea(named after its color) and rock tea(some varieties of premium oolong tea actually grow on the rocks/cliffs).

So, when you read this far, you might get the idea of oolong tea now. But I am not going to stop here. Like I said, I'll uncover the production process, which is more interesting and revealing, so you're able to understand this tea much more deeply. So, please bear with me.

Producing Routine In Depth

This rather complex manufacturing process has 7 important steps.

1. The Withering Step - Leaves are unfolded, typically under the sun, with the purpose of drawing out dampness, softening the leaf cell wall and starting the natural enzymatic fermentation.

2. The Turning Over Step - Specifically created machines are utilized to disintegrate the leaves, increasing oxidation and allowing the chemical components, found within the stems, to mix with the leaves. This step contributes a good deal to the balance of tastes in the end product.

3. The Oxidization Step - The leaves are now given time to rest as organic fermentation process keeps going. Throughout this step, leaves will change color, usually to darker green as the cell structure further disintegrates. And now the tea is increasing an intensive flavor.

4. The Kill Green Step - This step will stop the natural fermentation process while allowing the leaves unchanged.

5. The Rolling Step - To improve the entire amazing flavor and give shape to the leaves, cold or hot rollers (occasionally both) are employed break down the leaves.

6. The Drying Step - Techniques, which include hot air, sun or pan drying, are employed at this point. The flavor and scent are further intensified, whilst the step also serves the purpose of preventing the growth of mildew and getting rid of any grassy taste that remains.

7. The Firing Step - At last, to provide the needed smoky flavor the leaves will be roasted.

Locations Oolong Tea Grows

Oolong tea grows primarily in northern Fujian Province, southern Fujian Province (the best place producing one of the best oolong, i.e. An-xi county), Canton and Taiwan. The 4 major areas yield the most of oolong tea in China, if not in the entire world.

Moreover, oolong tea has been found transplanted out of China, which include Thailand and India.

How Can You Reap The Benefits Of Having Oolong Tea?

You may be fed up with water (like me), perhaps you are tired with green tea (much like me before sick and tired with water) or some other kinds of tea, maybe your friend informed you that oolong tea could be very good to your well being due to its substantial poly-phenol antioxidant properties; however, you might still have suspicions in mind, that's OK.

There's no need to push yourself, just click the web links at the bottom of the article, go directly into the subject which causes you to wonder if you need to give oolong tea a go or not. Right now, I'll just include the benefits here.

-Skyrocket Weight Reduction

-Deal with the Signs of Getting old

-Minimize Chance of Heart Related Illnesses

-Avoid Most cancers

-Maintain Diabetic issues

-Reduce Emotional stress

-Minimize Soreness

-Help reduces Cholesterol