It is rich in antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and amino acids. And it also gives a lot of energy, is very refreshing and is delicious. Why should we stop drinking tea just because the temperatures are rising? We take a tour of the best varieties of tea in the world, pointing out the most original ideas and blends on the market to continue drinking them all summer. Of course, with a lot of ice.
Black tea
It is the best known and most consumed tea in the West, representing more than 70% of the tea that is marketed. The best chinese black tea of the world is the Yunnan, which is produced in the Chinese province with the same name. Unlike green tea, the leaf from which black tea is obtained is allowed to ferment completely, giving rise to an intense reddish-brown infusion. In Teashop we can find two very summery blends of black tea to drink cold: Vital Mango, with apple, candied mango, safflower petals, sunflower, calendula and amaranth grains and Tropical colada, with apple, lemongrass, coconut and pineapple.
Darjeeling
El Darjeeling It is the champagne of teas. A black tea grown in the foothills of the Himalayas at an altitude of between 1.000 and 2.300 meters. This generally means a superior quality tea. If it is also a first-crop tea (first flush), that is, harvested in spring, its quality will be even higher. A good Darjeeling (not a mixture) is recognized if it carries as “last name” the name of the plantation from which it comes and whether it is whole, broken or shredded leaves. It can be taken with milk or with lemon, but being so extraordinary it is better to take it alone and warm. If we want to enjoy it in summer, in the Madrid store Spicy Yuli you can buy a Darjeeling with lotus flower designed to take cold.
Ceylon
Although if we are looking for a perfect option for an iced tea, the Ceylon Is the best option. Apparently the first iced tea was a Ceylon (Sri-Lankan) tea. These are black teas that are grown at an altitude between 600 and 2.300 meters, the highest being “High” (called high-grown) the most precious. The best leaves are collected between February and May and between August and September. Lemon is a blend of Ceylon teas flavored with lemon. It is forbidden to take it with milk, but with a lot, a lot of ice.
Oolong
They say that Edith Piaf I was passionate about oolong tea o blue tea. The leaves from which this kind of tea comes undergo a partial fermentation process. It is a highly valued quality, inside and outside of China, a country in which it boasts centuries of history. Apart from being rich in antioxidants, this tea would be an excellent natural remedy against various diseases and would also help to counteract allergies. In the Barcelona store and online El Jade Elephant You can buy a mixture of oolong tea with a tropical touch designed to drink cold.
Pu-erh
It is another variety of semi-fermented tea which is produced in the Chinese province of Yunnan from large, thick, dark-colored leaves covered by white hair. The infusion of these leaves gives rise to a reddish drink, hence its name. It is always taken alone and this rule is valid both hot and cold. In the Angelica Café online store you can buy the Capricho de Flores mix Pu-erh, with petals, cornflower flowers, raisins, apricot and mango. In Spicy Yuli, a mixture with grapefruit and orange ideal to drink cold.
White tea
In China, during the Song dynasty, the White tea it was a luxury exclusively enjoyed by the emperor. Made from the most tender buds of the plant, before they open, this variety of tea is one of the most expensive in the world. Some consider it a variety of green tea, others a category apart. It is produced in China on a very limited scale, by letting the buds wither and then drying them. In Teashop stores, white tea is the base of the White Daiquiri, a mix of white teas with apple, coconut, pineapple and blackberry and Fresh Lemon, white tea and green tea with pineapple, apple, melon and coconut.
fragrant tees
The one of the flavored teas It is one of the six classes in which the teas are distributed. These are green and black teas mixed with flowers, fruit and essences, essential oils or aromas. The magic word in this case is equilibrium: in the mouth, the tea and the flavor that is added to it must be recognizable and harmonized at the same time. The famous Earl Gray, black tea from China with Darjeeling flavored with bergamot oil, and Chinese jasmine tea are two of the most famous varieties of scented tea. There are also rose, magnolia, chrysanthemum, lychee … In the Casa Ruiz stores, you can buy a semi-fermented green tea with jasmine flowers for € 3.70 per 100 gr.
Green Tea
Green tea does not undergo the fermentation process that black, blue or red teas undergo and this contributes to its characteristic color and flavor, apart from safeguarding all those properties that make it so beneficial for health. A curiosity: the most prized and refined variety of Japanese green tea is called Gyokuro and its fine green leaves are harvested in spring. Its price can touch lot 25 € / 50 gr. To drink cold, it is better to opt for a slightly inferior variety or even better for a mixture with flowers and citrus that enhance the properties of green tea.
Matcha tea
El matcha green tea it is rich in antioxidants, provides energy and calm at the same time. Its complex cultivation and production process makes each sip a true luxury. As if that weren’t enough, it is the variety that is used in the elegant Japanese tea ceremony. Half a tablespoon of this deep green powder in 200 ml of water, lime, honey and mint juice and a few ice cubes make this tea a perfect drink also for the summer.
It has pearl
For some it is one of the best green teas That’s right. For starters, it is a first-crop tea. The leaves are carefully selected and then rolled into balls ranging in size from the head of a pin (Pin Head) up to about 3 mm in diameter, reaching an appearance similar to gunpowder (Gunpowder). The Gunpowder It is the base of the famous mixture known as Moorish tea, the mint tea that is drunk in Morocco, perfect to also drink cold. In China, where this tea is produced, more than with gunpowder, they prefer to see the resemblance to pearls, hence its name in Chinese is Choo-cha, pearl tea. A real gem.