Today there are several white tea productions, originating from different countries. But the true origin of this refreshing and subtle nectar in taste comes from the Yunnan provinces in China, where it is hand-picked from Camellia Sinensis tea plants. Unlike other teas like red tea, green tea or black tea, white tea is solely made up of silver buds and some young shoots. This choice makes it a rare and expensive tea, but also richer in antioxidants, active ingredients with beneficial effects for the body. The buds and leaves don't go through oxidation or fermentation, nor roasting like black tea for example. Only withering and desiccation are necessary for white tea.
Loose tea, tea bags, powdered tea, cake tea: how to choose your white tea?
If you ask white tea connoisseurs which white tea to choose? They will tell you without hesitation: you should choose loose white tea. Although you can find white tea in bags and even in powder form on the market, the nobility of this white tea doesn't deserve to be reduced to dust. However, for people who appreciate tea with an original and slightly sweet taste, the organic Wuliangshan Yue Guang Bai white tea which means "White Moonlight" is an excellent white tea that is more or less aged and compressed into a cake like Pu Erh. You can also find organic white tea in bags undoubtedly of very good quality, but it really takes away the charm of traditional tea preparation, which invites you on a journey with each tasting. You can opt for grand cru white tea such as Yin Zhen or Silver Needles, Bai Mu Dan, also called Pai Mu Tan which means White Peony, or for very fine white teas scented with jasmine, rose or flowers and fruits.
Natural white tea or flavored white tea, which white tea to choose?
Organic white tea tasters are unanimous: they will advise you to opt for a grand cru and taste it. It's all about finesse and taste. The ultimate rare tea to discover is Yin Zhen "White Tips." Composed solely of unopened buds covered with white down, this white tea with floral flavors and a light chestnut taste will seduce you with its freshness, delicacy, and lack of bitterness. Pai Mu Tan "White Peony" is a clever blend of silver buds and the first two leaves. These are just withered and dried, to keep all the authenticity of the fresh tea plant leaves. Its color is slightly amber and its fruity taste is discreetly herbaceous. You can also choose Jasmine Dragon Pearl white tea. Made of young hand-picked leaves, this tea highlights jasmine flowers that are put in contact for several days to perfume the tea, then delicately removed manually. The leaves are then gently rolled into balls. The beverage color is golden, its taste is slightly floral. The Nanmei wild buds is, as its name suggests, made of wild buds that have the particularity of containing no theine. Its lemon licorice taste is slightly acidic. There are quite a few other flavored white teas, but make sure to check the true origin of the tea and whether it doesn't contain other teas like green tea for example.
Which white tea to choose: Chinese white tea, Japanese white tea or white tea from another country?
Organic white tea, as we know, originates from China, from the Fujian region more precisely. It's in this region that you find the best white teas, cultivated, picked, and handled with the greatest attention and in an artisanal way. However, many other countries have started white tea cultivation and are trying to reach as much as possible the quality of white tea from their Chinese counterparts. We can find Yuzu white tea coming directly from Japan. It's a flavored white tea with a Japanese citrus, Yuzu (wild mandarin married with Ichang lemon). Nepal offers an organic white tea similar to Pai Mu Tan. The same goes for India, in Darjeeling more precisely, where you can find Royal Glenburn, white tea made from buds and young shoots. Sri Lanka offers Sri Lanka gold, similar to Yin Zhen. If you really want to taste a white tea, opt for purely traditional Chinese white tea.
How to properly store your organic white tea?
Now you know which white tea to choose, and you decide to go for loose tea. But how best to store this precious, delicate and fragile treasure, which is quite expensive? White tea must be stored away from light and moisture. Even though white tea has been dried, it must maintain its 3% moisture content and no more. Light oxidizes tea while white tea has the particularity of being very little oxidized, which gives it its particular flavor and low astringency. The tea box remains the best container for storing tea. Although you can find all kinds of tea boxes (glass, porcelain, wood), the metal tea box remains preferred. If possible, choose a double-lid tea box, this will help preserve the tea from moisture and surrounding odors. Store your tea in a room other than the kitchen, again to avoid odors, and in a rather cool place, to avoid drying out the tea. White tea can be stored for more than a year under such conditions.