Earlier this year we brought in one of our first ever Yellow teas, something we had tried over the years but never purchased. It is certainly one of the lesser known categories of tea but it’s great to be able to offer one now and it has been very well-received so far!
Yellows teas are lightly oxidized and fall between green and white teas (see the chart below for a simplified look at the full spectrum). Typically sourced from early spring buds, the process for making yellow tea is rather difficult and requires a lot of extra time and labour, part of the reason they aren’t better known and more readily available.
Upon arrival at the tea processing factory, the leaves undergo an initial step of withering before they are heated in order to halt oxidization. While this process of “fixation” is also used in green tea production, yellow teas require an extra step called smothering where small batches are wrapped in cloth and left to cool down. This post-oxidization stage is repeated multiple times over a period of up to three or four days gently oxidizing the leaves and encouraging the reabsorption of their precious aromatics.
The results are a uniquely flavoured, yellow-hued tea with a mature character that is less grassy than green tea and has an increased sweetness in the taste of the finished leaf.
From World of Tea
Check out our Yellow tea offering here, it’s definitely worth trying!
Whatever your taste, enjoy your tea!
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