Yellow teas

Yellow tea is also called imperial tea because it used to be reserved only for the royal court in China. It is obtained by non-enzymatic oxidation of top buds and young leaves of Camellia sinensis var. sinensis. Immediately after harvesting, the leaves are dried and then heated with steam, or on sheets, less often in woks to about 65 degrees C to stop oxidation and then cooled. Later, the so-called yellowing (Men huan), which can be described as pickling (after "Tea" by Anna Brożyna). This involves applying gentle steam to the leaves, which are then wrapped tightly in a damp cloth for 5-10 hours. In this way, the leaves heat up slightly and oxidation takes place. Again the leaves are released and heated to stop the oxidation. This process is repeated up to three times in two or three days. In this way, the drought becomes greenish-yellow. Straw-colored infusions of yellow teas are slightly tart with a sweet aftertaste and a clear, refreshing aroma.

There is less theine in them than in green teas. But we will also find a lot of minerals (potassium, magnesium, calcium, iron, fluorine), vitamins, polyphenols (catechins).

In Europe, yellow tea is brewed for 2-3 minutes at a temperature of 70-80 degrees C, most often using 1g of tea per 100ml of water. In Asia, they brew briefly for a minute, but larger amounts of leaves per 100ml, i.e. about 3-5g.