GMS recommends proper storage of tea.
1 d ·
Proper Storage of Different Teas
(Please support my efforts to bring proper tea culture and good tea to Singapore...
shopee.sg/akbarteasg shopee.sg/tudorteasg)
Tea is considered a dried food and it needs certain basic care in storage so that it will not be contaminated by insects and mold.
On top of that, Tea is an excellent absorbent of humidity as well as aroma, fragrance or smell/odour. Thus special care and precautions should be taken in keeping your tea from being "infused" with undesirable smell!
Different types of tea will require different storage methods. Basically, we put into three main categories based on fermentation levels.
1) Chinese Black Tea (Puer, Black tea bricks etc which needs continual slow fermentation),
2) Western Black Tea or Chinese Red tea & Oolong (fully fermented & half fermented tea) and
3) Green Tea plus White Tea (non fermented tea).
In general, all three categories of teas should
1) Avoid High humidity which will result in growing of molds
2) Avoid Direct Sunlight or high temperature which will degenerate or decompose the tea. Avoid putting too much tea in a single container as this will trap heat and raise temperature within unnecessary.
3) Keep out from strong smell or aroma or fragrance like incense, perfume, essential oil, insect repellent, mothballs, spices or herbs or green plants with strong smell etc as tea is a great absorbent of scents. Get rid of unwanted scents by putting activated charcoal in the container for a couple of days before keeping your tea in the container.
4) Keep in places with good ventilation or airy space. This will prevent dampness
5) keep out from water source, taps, washing basins etc.
The difference between the three categories lies with the requirement of keeping humidity and temperature conducive for fermentation or prevention of oxidization.
1) Chinese Black Tea Storage
Chinese Black Tea like Puer must be kept with the right humidity level so that it will not grow mold but instead helps its slow continuous fermentation process. Humidity for Puer should be kept between 60% to 75% humidity and it should not be too high. In places with seasonal change, humidity during Spring time could be extremely high at 90% while Winter time could be extremely dry.
Temperature should be kept at 25 to 30 degree Celsius for optimal fermentation condition.
Do not break up your Chinese Black Tea into pieces. They are compressed into bricks or big biscuit forms basically because it retain internal heat within the tea to help the fermentation process.
There are some traders or "tea investors" who are too eager to get fermentation done faster and they will pile up a large amount of Puer together to increase the internal temperature in the hope that the fermentation process will be hasten.
Such method is not advisable because fermentation at higher temperature will not produce that beautiful mellow taste at all. On the other hand, it may risk growth of molds as excessive moistures are trapped within the gaps between the tea.
Normally these teas come in such compact compressed form with a paper wrapped around it. Keep it under wrap as the paper will prevent excess humidity and at the same time letting the tea "breath" and oxidize.
Although tea should not be put under direct sunlight or heat, but Chinese Black will need to "see the light" in order to have best fermentation process. Thus, it is best to be stored in low lighting environment and not in total darkness.
Do not keep your Puer or black tea bricks in air tight container! This will prevent it from oxidization aka fermentation!
2) Chinese Red Tea aka English Black Tea & Oolong Tea
These fully and half fermented tea are the easiest to store. They are not afraid of oxidization and don't have any requirement for further fermentation as well.
However, taste may change if it continues to be oxidized, especially for the oolong tea. Thus, it is best to keep these teas as dry as possible and out of direct sunlight, out of strange odour etc, Keep to the standard storage measures as stated above. It is best to keep in tins or tea caddies. These containers do not need to be air tight.
3) Green Tea & White Tea
Green Tea is the DIRECT OPPOSITE of Chinese Black Tea.
In order to preserve its freshness and taste, it must avoid any condition that would result in oxidization aka fermentation.
It has much stringent criterias for storage in order to preserve its taste and freshness.
Thanks to modern technology, vaccum packaging is available and it is best kept in small packets of vacuum packed of 2g or 3g each! This is why you see some of the Chinese tea, including oolong teas, are packed in such little packs but not the Puer.
Some serious tea lovers would even use a chiller to keep their Green Tea at 15 to 22 Degree Celsius with humidity at 40%! For white tea, the temperature may be even lower. This is very similar to wine chiller storage.
Some people like to put Green Tea in the freezer for slightly longer term storage but I would not prefer to do that. Freezer is too dry and if the tea is not sealed properly, it may absorb the odour of other food stuffs stored in the fridge and it may have condensation when it is taken out of the fridge.
After the green tea is opened from the vacuum sealed package, it is best to be kept in tightly sealed opaque containers.
Serious tea lovers would consume their green tea within 2 to 6 months after breaking the sealed package.
Proper Storage methods for different tea types are important so as to preserve or even enhance the taste of the tea, in the case of Chinese Black Tea.
Once you understand the characteristics of the tea types you are consuming, you will know what's the most appropriate method to store your tea.
I hope this information will be useful for every tea lover in SG.