Tea Questions

Q. Can I get too much Fluoride in my diet from drinking tea? 

A. With normal-high consumption levels, 2-6 cups of tea a day, tea contains acceptable levels of fluoride and will not cause any health problems. Actually the fluoride in tea contributes to strong healthy tea and bone and greatly decreases your chances of osteoporosis.

Q. What is the difference between “tea” and “herbal tea” or tisanes?

True "teas" come from the dried leaves of the Camellia Sinensis, the tea plant, from which black, oolong, green and white teas are produced. Products labeled as “tea” without the herbal designation must contain Camellia Sinensis. Herbal teas or tisanes do not contain Camellia Sinensis and usually have no caffeine.

Q. What do all those letters behind the name mean? Like TGFOP?

The letters designate a grade of tea. TGFOP means Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe. We suggest you read “What is in a Name?” which is an article that explains all the naming and grading of tea.

Q. What is the proper way to brew my tea?

Each tea is slightly different and we have customized basic brewing instructions on every bag of tea we sell but if you want to know more you can read “The Art of Brewing” which gives you in-depth information about brewing all types of teas.

Q. How much caffeine is there in tea?

The caffeine content in tea averages about 1/3 the amount found in equal liquid quantities of coffee, about 28-44 mg of caffeine per cup. It is only a myth that green and white teas have less caffeine. The leaves contain the same amount of caffeine but you tend to brew green teas for a shorter period of time and this will lessen the amount of caffeine that ends up in the brew.

Q. Why does tea cloud when it is cooled?

Black teas will sometimes cloud when cooled. The cloudiness is caused by tannins in the tea which are released into the hot brew but can bind together when the brew cools and cause cloudy tea. Higher quality teas like Darjeeling’s and Assams tend to have more tannins and are more likely to cloud. Hard water can also cause tea to become cloudy. The cloudiness does not affect flavor just the appearance of the tea. To remove the cloudiness add a half cup of boiling water per gallon of tea and stir.

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