Fermented tea made from leaves of garden and wild plants (master class)

Girls, it's raining today, good for the garden, bad for construction and internet. I tried apple + pear + blackberry + currant tea. THING. I took the photos, I'm on duty 31, zn
I'll post 30. May
o just freeze, but wilted, and then freeze is better (and aroma, and color, and taste). It is wet, slippery and mosquitoes. I'm going down.

[Loksa]

Loksa, Jida, Jigida - this is a scientific narrow-leaved goose. It grows south of the middle lane, we don't have it ...

[Alla]

I report about Dzhigida

Alla, thanks for the report! Very positive for those who grow it. I thought that good tea would turn out, since wine is made from it ...

add Jigida to the list

Alla, later, in a few days. I no longer have the ability to edit. Now I'm preparing something like a table of contents in our topics with links on the first page. I will need to ask the chef to give me the opportunity to edit, at the same time I will include the jigida in the list.

[Oksana]

I can't do it with a photo, make a request in the internet "Dzhida".

Oksana, look. This is Jigida. The first photo is not yet ripe.



And this is ripe:



Alla, such leaves are small. How did you collect it?

[Linadoc]

You can just freeze, but wilted, and then freeze better (and aroma, and color, and taste).

Linadocand then a meat grinder? I haven't done that yet. And why don't you twist it in a meat grinder right away after withering? In general, the withering process is needed not only to make the rolls better. During the withering process, the amount of water in the leaves decreases, the juice becomes more concentrated, the fermentation process is better and the tea turns out to be tastier, more aromatic and darker... A couple of days ago I quoted a text from the book "Encyclopedia of Healing Tea" in this regard. I will repeat this text. Because I think that twisting frozen and not withered leaves in a meat grinder means deteriorating tea. You get a lot of juice, and fermentation is weaker:

when withering, it is the changes in moisture under the influence of a certain temperature that determine the course of biochemical processes inside the tea leaf. Water in cells is the medium in which the interaction of substances dissolved in it takes place. It is known that at high dilutions, some reactions cannot occur or take much longer to completethan it is necessary for the end of a particular production process. Therefore, the leaf must be dried to the same degree of moisture. Experiments in India have shown that the best tea is obtained when the ratio of dry matter to water is 1: 2, that is, the remaining moisture in the leaf should be 60–62%.

So your experience Linadoc, confirms this theory.

[Linadoc]

It is wet, slippery and mosquitoes. I'm going down.

Linadoc, and have not tried the antenna for the Internet? I have the same Internet without an antenna. Antenna is another matter!

Lyudmila, thanks for the answer and advice!
I understood about caffeine before, but I hoped that there was suddenly some blade of grass that would add astringency to our tea. The bird cherry really didn’t impress. I did it as part of Derevensky - I cut it - it smelled like almonds, but today I brewed it - and there was almost nothing left of either the smell of bird cherry or the smell of almonds ...
I read all your tea topics from the very beginning (in detail) - though I can't do everything right (a baby is a baby - you can't really run away with tea creativity).
My process is as follows - I picked up the leaves, left them in a loosely tied bag for a day (until we get home), then in the freezer for several days (until the time appears), defrost for 20 minutes, twist the rolls and immediately cut them (at someone also saw this method here - in general, it seems to me that it turns out to be more economical), cover it with a damp towel and a lid, put it on fermentation, then in a hot oven (I have a gas oven, so I can't set the temperature normally - "+ - kilometer ", although I set it to 100 degrees for an hour, then I decrease it, and sometimes I turn it off right away, if I feel that the tea has dried, I stir the tea with my hand during the drying process), pour it into a bag and dry it over an open window (sometimes a day, sometimes a day ), then I pour it into a box and put it in a dark place to "ripen".
I wrote in so much detail and realized that the item "fry" because of the oven turns out "where the curve will take it out" (but the tea is black, not burnt), the item "sweating" is also "maybe" (while I'm taking the leaves home - they are like steamed in bag - the smell intensifies), but I'll try to work on the duration of fermentation - I was somehow afraid that I would overexpose and the smell would go away ...
One of these days I will experiment and report!

Why is badan not on the list! ? Whoever has it would definitely vote. Very rich, healthy, tasty, one of the most spicy and strong teas you get!

You can just freeze, but wilted, and then freeze is better (both aroma, and color, and taste)

I share your opinion, for my taste tea that has passed through the refrigerator turns out to be tastier and more aromatic.
Eh, it's a pity I don't have any exoticism, I'll go look for a wild apple tree!

The best tea is obtained when the ratio of dry matter to water is 1: 2, that is, the remaining moisture in the leaf should be 60–62%.

But what about the leaves that go through the freezer? I twisted them, so it flowed right from my hands.
Here I found black chokeberry leaves in the freezer, I somehow doubted their identification ... there was a smell of a bone. I twisted it in my palms together with the leaves of tea, sausages, did not cut them. Fermented overnight, in the morning in the refrigerator, dried last night. Girls!!! mom mia !! what an amazing tea! here it is yeah !!! it was about equal shares of i-tea and black chokeberry. But I have a question - do the leaves of the black chokeberry really smell like a stone, is it not a cherry for me (I am sure that the chokeberry is 99%, but I still ask you).

[Galina Iv.]

Galina Iv., blackberry also smells like cherry, a little similar aroma of cherry + stone How long fermentation with Ivan-tea was?

fermented overnight, from 00-00 to 9-00 (for me the morning starts at 9-00)
Oksana, thanks for confirming the stone fruit aroma))

[Linga]

the point "fry" because of the oven it turns out "where the curve will take" (but the tea is black, not burnt),

Linga, not necessary! if this business is not allowed to take its course, then it will turn out very well. Some caramel smell appears. I "fry" the last few batches. I like. The Chinese use this method with might and main - tea in huge cauldrons is dried over burning wood. They also interfere with his hands.

the point "sweating" - also on "maybe" (while I'm taking the leaves home - they are like steamed in a bag - the smell intensifies),

I agree, the smell is intensifying. But I don't really like this method. And the girls are happy.

I'll try to work on the duration of fermentation - I was somehow afraid that I would overexpose and the smell would go away ...

do not be afraid ... Yesterday's tea was fermented for 25 hours. Cool smell!

what about the leaves that go through the freezer? I twisted them, so it flowed right from my hands.

Galya, we manually twist the rolls through the freezer and we won't squeeze out as much juice as through a meat grinder. This unselected juice will not and will not participate in fermentation, and then simply evaporate during drying. Here is what is written in the same book on this subject:

The main purpose of rolling a tea leaf is to break and crush the cells, during which the cell sap is released onto the leaf surface, where it is exposed to the action of air and enzymes. Leaves slightly wilted should be easily twisted, otherwise they will crumble; heavily wilted leaves, on the contrary, must be twisted strongly in order to squeeze out the juice from the cells and give it the opportunity to undergo oxidation. It is known that teas obtained with light curling give a weak infusion, while teas made from strongly curled leaves give a strong.

So no matter how we squeeze the juice from the leaves with our hands, it will still not be the same as if we twist them in a meat grinder.

[Rada-dms]

why is badan not on the list! ?

Rada-dms, sorry, I didn't remember myself! And you were away then when I put up the list for discussion. A little later I will ask the boss for permission to edit to insert links, I will definitely insert a badan.

But my question is, do the leaves of the black chokeberry really smell like a stone, is it not a cherry for me (I'm sure that the chokeberry is 99%, but I still ask you).

Galya, indeed, the blackberry smells like cherries. I wrote to the mistletoe that blackberry tea turns out like a cherry in a cube - in taste and aroma. And she and Svetlaya had something wrong with the black chokeberry - a weak color and aroma. It's good that you have confirmed a wonderful result. By the way, I also made black chokeberry with fireweed not long ago. the result is awesome!

Today I brought this tea to the office, brewed it, drank everything and said in chorus: how delicious !!!!! Thank you, Lyudochka for everything, for everything !!!

[lappl1]

lappl1, it's just amazing !!!

And here are my teas: 1-cherry, 2- blackberries, 3- strawberries (forest). When I voted, I preferred the cherry one, and today, two weeks after cooking, I opened the blackberry one and could not tear myself away, the smell was stunned !!! Tea, probably, like wine should be infused! And also in the dryer they dry up: cherry, pear, large-fruited mountain ash and hawthorn. I prepare each tea separately, and mix when I brew. Thank you very much Lyudmila for the science!

[Ilona]

it's just awesome !!!

Ilona, Thank you ! Join us! This tea is well worth making!

[Irina]

And here are my teas: 1-cherry, 2- blackberries, 3- strawberries (forest).

Irina, great tea! Glad you like it!

Tea, probably, like wine should be infused!

Well, of course ! At least a month! And the longer it costs, the better it gets! I wrote about this in the recipes.

I prepare each tea separately, and mix when I brew.

Now try making "Country Tea" by fermenting the leaves of the plants you like together. The result will be much better than mono teas.

Today I brought this tea to the office, brewed it, drank everything and said in chorus: how delicious !!!!! Thank you, Lyudochka for everything, for everything !!!

To your health, Checkmark! The peer rating is the highest grade! I am glad that the tea turns out!

[Ludmila]

Ludmila, with me on you I'm trying on. I know who will definitely appreciate this creation, it's my mother! She only leaves and brews all year round, she drinks ordinary black and green tea only unfortunately at a party)) While I'm trying to figure out what fermentation is, or rather how to do it after drying and scrolling through a meat grinder. This is in the Ivan-tea topic, I'll probably go to see

[Ilona]

Ilona, there is such a scope for creativity! My hands do not grow quite from there and then everything worked out for me, fermented and dried, and then I will continue to stock up to victory for the winter! Thanks to Lyudmila for great ideas and advice !!!

[Rada-dms]

Very rich, healthy, delicious, one of the most spicy and strong teas you get!

Rada-dms, Olya, poke me at the place where you describe the preparation of this tea ... The topic is no longer small, it is problematic to search ...Thank you in advance!

Gulnara, from your avka I laugh and mleu at the same time)))) Cool !!!

Oh, how late I caught myself, or rather noticed the Temka ((Twan had no tea. I was with my father outside Tverby, so everything is pink and purple from flowering fields !!! And I didn't know what to do, but it turns out what had to be done !!! Tea for the winter to dry !!! And now probably already gone ((
And I have a question. Luda, I have the same electric dryer as yours! Do you dry the mass in it immediately after fermentation, or do you first dry it in the oven, and then there for final drying? And at what temperature do you dry? At the lowest?

GIRLS THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE DARK. ESPECIALLY FOR A LADY. TEA IS MY WEAKNESS. I ALWAYS DRY HERBS AND FLOWERS. AND YESTERDAY I DRIED FERMENTED TEA WITH SAGE AND BLACK FRUIT. THE SMELL IS STUNNING.

[Tashenka]

poke me at the place where you describe the preparation of this tea ... The topic is no longer small, it is problematic to search ... Thanks in advance!

Tashenkawhile Rada is not in touch, look, she wrote here https://Mcooker-enn.tomathouse.com/index.php@option=com_smf&topic=389380.0

[Ilona]

I have the same electric dryer as yours! Do you dry the mass in it immediately after fermentation, or do you first dry it in the oven, and then there for final drying? And at what temperature do you dry? At the lowest?

Ilona, no, in the dryer I dry only non-fermented tea - from mint, lemon balm ... And fermented tea is dried at 100 * 1 - 1.5 hours, and then I dry it at 50 - 60 * until almost the entire mass has dried. Well, then in a bag in the air. And in the dryer the maximum temperature is 70 *. At this temperature, tea turns out different. Here is what is written about the drying temperature in a smart book about Chinese and Indian tea:

Very fast drying of tea using mainly high temperatures (above 100 ° C) does not produce good results, as well as very slow drying and very low temperatures (below 75 ° C). The use of high temperatures during drying significantly reduces the quality of tea, since its aroma is significantly reduced due to the loss of essential oils and sublimation of caffeine. However, to obtain a “shelf-stable” product, it is necessary to dry at a temperature of at least 76.7 ° C, therefore, the optimal temperatures should be considered for the first drying 90–95 C, for the second - 82–87 C.

And I generally "fry" the last batches at the beginning of drying at 150 * (about 20 minutes, stirring constantly). Then I go to 100 *, then - to 50 - 60 *, and then in a bag. This method is also described in this book. I tried it - I liked it.

[Ilona]

I know who will definitely appreciate this creation, it's my mother! She only leaves and brews all year round, she drinks ordinary black and green tea only by misfortune on a visit

Ilona, well then let mom make tea and treat you!

While I'm trying to figure out what fermentation is, or rather how to do it after drying and scrolling through a meat grinder.

Then see a brief instruction on making tea. Maybe it will be easier this way:
https://Mcooker-enn.tomathouse.com/index.php@option=com_smf&topic=389380.0 Reply # 680

Luda, thank you! And what about the oven, is it necessary or can you do with an electric dryer? I really do not want to drive the oven in the heat ... And if I go to my father, there is no oven or dryer, then what to do? If the weather is good, then no one will heat the stove in the house ... there will be no tea then, right?

[Ludmila]

Alla, these are small leaves. How did you collect it?

Ludmila, I have never seen these berries ripe, now in the fall I will have to go and see.

There were many young shoots on the tree without berries, the leaves are not as small as in the photo. I really wanted to make tea from jigida.

[Ilona]

how did I catch myself late, or rather noticed the Temko ((Twan tea, then go and no longer.

Ilona, it's a bit late, but you can still find willow tea, which does not puff. So look around.

[Alla]

I've never seen these berries ripe, now in the fall I will need to go and see.

Alla, at the same time collect them and make wine.

[Lena]

THANKS VERY MUCH FOR THE DARK.

Lena, to your health! If you love herbal teas, then this must be done!

Luda, girls, I have a lot of silver sucker on my site (I planted 1 bush, and now it is like a weed everywhere). I read about jigda, and decided to check it out. Batch test passed. I'll try a small batch of tea. Unsubscribe. Made from juniper, okay! Granules can be used for smoking, adding to the marinade and rubbing, the smell after drying and fermentation is greatly enhanced.

Luda, I can't catch it with the antenna either, in general there are defensive jammers. But we know before everyone else when what and where. About withering, and then the freezer - it happened so by chance (I didn't have time), I liked the result, and now I do it when I don't have time to scroll through the already withering sheet. I am saving up photos and data, I will publish them before duty, in a good internet. This is where I am normal, and there is a position, a title, a scientific degree and other nonsense, but it must be matched, so it takes a day for it, but there is a good Internet.

Yesterday I scored pear leaves and a handful of apple, cherry, currant, raspberry. In the evening it wilted, in the morning it began to twist, it seemed that the leaves of the pear were very dry (although after drying they lay in the refrigerator overnight in a towel). I decided to add, when scrolling, the leaves of previously collected forest and garden strawberries from the freezer. The granules came out not dry and not wet - that's it. Fermented for 6 hours, became very dark in color, almost black, dried in the oven with the door open, tomorrow I will dry a little in the dryer. The aroma is strong and pleasant, in appearance the buds are like store-bought black tea, only the granules are thicker. I'll try it in a month, before I think it makes no sense, because I only drink boiled water, and then, if I like it, I will distribute it to friends, neighbors, relatives and acquaintances. But how interesting to do!

[Linadoc]

I can't catch it with the antenna either, in general there are defensive jammers.

Got it! Yes, our people will find how to outwit the defense industry! Well done!

About withering, and then the freezer - it happened so by chance (I didn't have time), I liked the result,

I understand this method and theoretically approve of it. I will definitely try with difficult leaves such as cherry and blackberry. When the Ivan tea is over. And just frozen, not withered leaves, after a meat grinder, give bad tea - a crumb, moreover, weak in aroma, taste and color.
Thank you, Linadoc, for your reports from the pine. Always waiting for them!

[natushka]

because I drink only boiled water, and then, if I like it, I will distribute tea to friends, neighbors, relatives and acquaintances. But how interesting to do!

natushka, everything started so well in the post! And I'm sure the tea worked out! Handing out, of course, is necessary! I do it myself. But you yourself need to drink tea. it won't be bad! I speak like a man who drank one water for a long time ... Then I gave up on this case. And I don't regret it ... I continue to drink water. And a lot - 2-3 liters per day. But raw! And tea, of course, too ...

Damn ... So you don't have to go to the baht for organic tea once without an oven in any way ((Trouble ... I'll take the frozen one, so it will ferment itself later on the way back, but only it will soon become rotten for 8 hours of travel in a package

Take me, I had leaves in the bag for a day, the tea turned out to be excellent!
A small amount of tea can be dried in a cast iron pan.

[Ilona]

once without an oven

Ilona, Valentine the rights! Start drying in a skillet and finish in a tumble dryer. I wrote about this in the recipe for willow tea and tea from the leaves of garden plants (answer No. 6). I tried it myself, when the light was turned off, it works well.

ABOUT!!! Thanks for the frying pan !!! This is an idea !!!

[production of black tea from Chapter 4. Technology of tea production]

Girls boys! I continue to post excerpts from the book of Professor, Doctor of Chinese Medicine Wu Wei Xin "Encyclopedia of Healing Tea". This time - oh production of black tea from Chapter 4. Technology of tea production... The chapter is large, so I will split it into several posts, so that later it would be convenient to read and later refer to a certain part of the text. Each post covers one stage of tea production.
The full version of the book "Encyclopedia of Healing Tea" can be found here 🔗

[Production of black long tea]

Production of black long tea

WILDING

Of all types of tea, black long tea takes the leading place on the world market. Its production technology, consisting of processes withering, rolling, fermentation and drying in its sequence it is so logical that the development of another technological scheme cannot be represented without changing the type of product.
The production process of long black tea begins with withering. The purpose this process is the loss of turgor by the leaf and giving it elasticity - softness, which is necessary for the implementation of the further process of twisting. This becomes possible if the moisture in the sheet and causing the turgor of its tissues evaporates.

The best temperature for withering is 20–24 ° C at 70% relative humidity. The drier and warmer the air, the easier the leaf wilts and the shorter the drying period. However, factories in India and Sri Lanka are of the opinion that the duration of natural withering should not be less than 18 hours.
When drying it is moisture changes under the influence of a certain temperature determine the course of biochemical processes inside the tea leaf... Water in cells is the medium in which the interaction of substances dissolved in it takes place. It is known that at large dilutions, some reactions cannot occur or they take much longer to complete than is necessary to complete a particular production process.

Therefore, the leaf must be dried to the same degree of moisture.
The leaf can be wilted normally, underwired or overwrought. Relatively a heavily wilted leaf curls better and produces more good teas by the nature of the leaf than an unfinished leaf... Experiments in India have shown that the best tea is obtained when the ratio of dry matter to water is 1: 2, that is, the remaining moisture in the leaf should be 60–62%. A leaf is considered to be well wither when all flushes in the game have wither more or less evenly. However, it should be borne in mind that there is no ideal withering, since parts of the flush contain different amounts of moisture and have different evaporation rates due to the unequal density of the outer covers. In production the end of withering is determined not only by the water content in the withered leaf, but also by the subjective method, the essence of which is that the stem of a withered flush should not break under mechanical stress, and when a handful of withered leaves are strongly squeezed into a lump, it should not open.
During wilting, almost all substances in the tea leaf undergo chemical changes, although they are insignificant in their depth compared to those that occur later in the fermentation process. With the withering of the leaf, oxidative and other reactions begin to occur, softening the bitter taste of tannin, partially destroying chlorophyll and other compounds that give the leaf a taste and smell of greenery, essential oils accumulate and other aromatic substances are formed, which contribute to the appearance of a specific smell with the aromas of apples, pineapple, rose ...

[Twisting]

Twisting

home twist target tea leaf - rupture and crushing of cells, in which cell sap is released to the surface of the leaf, where it is exposed to the action of air and enzymes.

Thus, from the moment of twisting, the fermentation process begins. An important task of twisting is also to give it the required appearance, for which the withered tea leaf is rolled up in a helical manner (into a tube).
Twisting of a tea leaf is performed in a roller, in which forces arise that cause the mass of the tea leaf to move at different speeds and form friction surfaces between adjacent sections. In places of such friction, the tea leaf is rolled up in a spiral manner and the flush is split into its component parts. At the same time, the forces arising in the roller form a zone of their maximum, where, basically, the cells are crushed as a result of the pressure curve.
Leaves and stems, possessing varying tenderness and strength, are gradually torn into separate parts during rolling. For a more complete separation of the sheet into fractions, two, three and four twists are used. If the process is carried out correctly, the number of twists and the pressing force of the press should vary depending on the type and quality of the leaf, on the time of the season, and also depending on the results of the withering process, which allows you to get factory varieties of tea that are distinguished by good infusion, aroma and cleaning (appearance ).
When curling a sheet, first of all pay attention to the quality of the sheet and its grade. The duration of individual twists for a batch of sheet of double sheet flushes must be shorter than for a batch of 3 sheet flushes. In addition, on hot days, individual curls should be shorter so as not to cause a rise in temperature in the mass of the sheet.

Tea leaves that have been withered to varying juice concentrations require different rolling techniques. Leaves weakly wilted should be easily twisted, otherwise they will crumble; heavily wilted leaves, on the contrary, must be twisted strongly in order to squeeze out the juice from the cells and give it the opportunity to undergo oxidation... It is known that teas obtained with light curling give a weak infusion, while like teas made from highly curled leaves - strong... A weakly wrinkled leaf during the rolling process can restore turgor, which will lead to unwinding of the leaf. To avoid this and give the tea a good harvest (appearance), the leaf is wilted to the optimal residual moisture.

The end of the twisting is determined by the number of destroyed cells, which after the third twisting should be within 75-85%, moreover, the more cells are destroyed, the more juice appears on the leaf surface and the more extractive the teas will be. In unbroken cells, the remaining chlorophyll gives the infusion a "greenish" taste, which reduces the quality of the tea.
Biochemical changes during curling are difficult to distinguish from changes during the fermentation process. However, a significant shift in the pigment composition of the tea leaf should be noted, which is associated with a decrease in chlorophyll, the amount of which, as a result of the rolling process, reaches almost the limiting values ​​(35%), and therefore further fermentation and drying of the rolled leaf hardly change its amount in the tea sheet.

[FERMENTATION]

FERMENTATION

Fermentation is the main process in the production of black tea, which actually begins when the cells break down and the juice emerges on the leaf surface.
During fermentation, two phases must be distinguished. The first phase is closely related to the rolling process in the sense that before its completion (purely physical process), biochemical changes occur in parallel with it, which are related to the fermentation process. After twisting, biochemical changes continue and they are referred to the second phase of fermentation, in which there is no physical impact on the leaf. This division of the fermentation process is arbitrary, since from a biochemical point of view rolling and fermentation processes should be considered as a single process.
Because the fermentation takes place spontaneously, then all attention should be paid to ensure that this process takes place in favorable conditions for it. During fermentation it is necessary to: 1) lay out the leaf with an optimal layer for fermentation; 2) maintain a high relative humidity and a certain temperature in the room; ' 3) provide access to the required amount of fresh air; 4) immediately stop fermentation as soon as the leaf acquires the properties characteristic of black tea (copper-red-brown color and characteristic aroma).
The fermentation room is usually located on the north side of the factory so that direct sunlight cannot enter and can be maintained relatively low temperature and high relative humidity.
A high relative humidity must be maintained to avoid drying out of the leaf, as well as to ensure that fermentation takes place more evenly, as a result of which the tea boils down better and the infusion is brighter.

The optimal temperature for the fermentation process should be considered 22-26 ° C. Below 15 ° C, the fermentation process stops, at a temperature of 15–20 ° C, its beginning is noted, above 30 ° C, part of the soluble fermentation products, which give strength and "body" to the infusion, becomes insoluble, while the pleasant aroma of tea is also lost.
Fermentation time and quality are closely related to temperature and leaf thickness, since these parameters affect the rate of oxidative processes.
Thus, the duration of fermentation is inversely related to temperature, and a low temperature allows you to preserve a much larger amount of extractive substances and soluble tannin, provides an increase in the color of the infusion, and a high temperature reduces the process itself. Teasobtained with a short fermentation are more astringent, but weaker in infusion, while teas with a long fermentation give a stronger infusion, but have less astringency.
The thickness of the leaf layer should not impede the free penetration of air to the fermented leaf, since oxygen is necessary for oxidative fermentation processes, of which the most important is the oxidation of tannin, which causes a decrease in the astringency of the infusion and the formation of its color.

One of the external signs of fermentation is a discoloration of the leaf, which consists in the fact that the rolled leaf gradually acquires an increasingly distinct copper-red-brown hue throughout the entire fermentation period, which is explained by the oxidation of tannin. The characteristic color of black tea is given by pigments formed during fermentation - red-brown thearubigins and golden-yellow theaflavins. The intensity and color of the infusion depends on the quantitative ratio of these pigments.
The formation of the color of the infusion and its characteristic shade is also directly related to the appearance of a specific, pleasant taste observed with changes in the tannin-catechin complex, due to which the bitter taste, the smell of greenery and the green color of the infusion, characteristic of the tea leaf that has not undergone the fermentation process, disappear. The main role in all these transformations is played by tannin, which, under the influence of oxygen, not only changes itself, acquiring a pleasant taste, but also gives rise to a long series of redox processes, in which its catechins, being oxidized, oxidize, in turn, other substances with the formation pigments and aromatic compounds.
The specific aroma of black tea is one of the main indicators of its quality.... It is formed due to complex biochemical transformations of tannins, protein breakdown products, as well as transformations of tea essential oil substances. The strength of the aroma is determined by the amount of volatile aldehydes, and the fullness of the bouquet is determined by the amount of esters.
The aroma of the finished product is very different from the aroma of the tea leaf.at different stages of processing. Tea aroma especially reaches its maximum when curled and fermented. At the last trial, that is during drying, the aroma weakens significantly, since under high temperature conditions the light fractions of essential oils evaporate easily. Organoleptic the tea aroma score is based on the successful combination of two aromatic principles: the tea aroma obtained during fermentation and the aroma arising during drying, which can be characterized as Roasted flavor. Teas that do not have a "roasted" aroma are characterized by a raw and herbaceous aroma.
The fresh leaf has a green scent. In the process of withering, it acquires the smell of various fruits and flowers - apple, pineapple, rose and others, which is possible due to the deamination of the amino acids of the tea leaf, as a result of which aldehydes are formed. So, glutamic acid gives floral, phenylalanic acid - pink, and aspartic acid - apple odors.
Fermentation times vary with leaf quality and temperature conditions during the processing season. On average, this process should last no more than 4-5 hours from the start of twisting, given the fact that the accumulation of essential oils occurs especially vigorously in the first three hours after curling. With an increase in the duration of fermentation, the infusion turns out to be dark, but low-extractive, not tart enough, loses its characteristic aroma and is ranked as flat or empty teas. Therefore, prolonged fermentation is particularly unsuitable for aromatic and tart teas.
The characteristic odor and color of the leaf during fermentation are indicative of the end of the process. By the end of fermentation, the leaf should have a coppery-brown color and a pleasant aroma specific to fermented tea.

[DRYING]

DRYING

The last technological process for processing tea leaves is drying in a stream of hot air. Her the goal is to fix in the tea leaf the properties that were formed in it during fermentation, by stopping the work of enzymes under the influence of high temperature... Excess moisture is also removed during drying.
The tea leaf is usually dried twice, and the final moisture content of the sheet after the first drying corresponds to 18%, and after the second - 3–5%. The drying quality is influenced by the duration of the process, the drying temperature, the speed and amount of air in the dryer, and the thickness of the sheet layer.

When drying tea very quickly, using mainly high temperatures (above 100 ° C), good results cannot be obtained as with very slow drying and very low temperatures (below 75 ° C). The use of high temperatures during drying significantly reduces the quality of tea, since its aroma is significantly reduced due to the loss of essential oils and sublimation of caffeine. However to obtain a "stable" product, it is necessary to dry at a temperature of at least 76.7 ° C, so Optimum should be considered temperatures during the first drying 90-95 C, with the second - 82-87 C.

In the drying machine, under the influence of heat, a bouquet of tea is finally formed - its most complex flavoring complex. The most noticeable change in tea during drying is the loss of that specific odor that was acquired by the leaf during fermentation and reaches its maximum by the end of this process. Freshly dried tea is almost odorless, since during drying there is a significant loss of aromatic principles (essential oils, volatile aldehydes, etc.).

[Long green tea production]

Long green tea production

In contrast to the production of black tea, where the main technological process is the fermentation process, during which the raw material acquires new properties that determine the quality indicators of the product, in the production of green tea, enzymatic processes negatively affect the production process and the quality of the finished product. Therefore, to obtain green tea, the enzymes existing in the raw material are inactivated, which is carried out mainly by heat exposure.

Thus, the goal of green tea technology is to obtain a finished product with specific properties from delicate tea flushes, in which the valuable properties of raw materials will be preserved and improved by heat treatment and exclusion of the development of oxidative processes.This, of course, does not mean that no chemical changes occur during technological processes in the production of green tea, but the more these changes or deviations from the initial content of substances in the leaf, especially in the tanning complex, the poorer quality green teas are. However, if the tea leaf lacks or contains a small amount of valuable substances that affect the quality of the product, the technology is powerless, it cannot create these substances. The challenge for the technology is to fully exploit the potential of raw materials. As a result of the destruction of tea leaf enzymes, valuable properties of the raw material are preserved, and the thermal effect causes a number of significant quantitative and qualitative changes in the chemical composition of the raw materials, which determine the formation of new, specific taste and aromatic properties of green tea.
Green tea is made from the same raw materials as black, but in the production of green tea, instead of withering and fermentation processes, redox enzymes are inactivated under heat (roasting, steaming, fixing with hot air, etc.)

Making green teas in China, Japan and India

As the main purpose of green tea production is to fix the green leaf, which requires heat treatment, in traditionally tea-producing countries, the methods of roasting or steaming the tea leaf are more often used.
Chinese method preparation of green tea is based mainly on toasted leaf, while in Japan prefers steaming... In both cases the same goal is pursued: destruction of enzymes, fixation of green color, destruction of the smell of fresh greenery and giving the leaf some elasticity.
Toasting method consists in the fact that a freshly picked leaf is thrown into braziers (hemispherical metal boilers), heated with wood or charcoal, and quickly stirred with a stick for three minutes to prevent it from burning. When roasted, the tea leaves are heated to 80–90 ° C and the moisture content is reduced by 5–7%. During this time, the sheet becomes completely soft and decreases in volume by 2 times compared to the original. After that, the leaf is curled more strongly than in black tea production to give it a highly curled appearance.
Steaming method is that a basket filled with a sheet with a perforated bottom is placed for half a minute at some distance from the surface of boiling water. This operation should be done with caution, as insufficient steaming can affect the flavor and other properties of green tea.
Both of these methods have their positive and negative sides. However, comparative experiments on the production of green long tea by roasting (Chinese method) and by steaming (Japanese method) showed that the Chinese method of preparation is technically more difficult, but makes it possible to obtain high quality green tea.
Modern technological scheme for the production of green long tea by steaming method consists of the following sequential processes: steaming the tea leaf, drying, aging, twisting, breaking up clods, drying, sorting semi-finished products, blending and packaging.
When steamingThe tea leaf is intensely heated to a temperature of 100 ° C, as a result of which the enzymes are inactivated. In addition, the sheet becomes elastic, which is necessary for the normal operation of the subsequent rolling process. As you know, the leaf contains 80% moisture, which is removed during withering in the production of black tea.
Drying process in the production of green tea, it is similar to the drying process, but excess moisture is removed so that it is less than the residual moisture content of the withered leaf, since green tea requires highly curled leaves, which can be obtained with a residual moisture content of about 60%.Therefore, the purpose of drying a parboiled leaf is to remove excess moisture from it and bring the moisture content of the leaf to the required technological twisting rate (60–64%).
Purpose of the aging process steamed and dried leaf - uniform redistribution of moisture in the components of the flush, giving it elasticity and carrying out certain chemical transformations (destruction of chlorophyll, etc.).
After steaming, drying and aging, the tea leaf is fed into rollers for rolling. The purpose of the twisting process is the mechanical destruction of the cells of the tea leaf, the release of cell sap on the surface of the leaf, the separation of flushes into their constituent elements and giving them a characteristic curled shape. The optimal number of destroyed cells of fixed tea leaves is 45–55%. An increase in the number of destroyed cells leads to an increase in oxidative processes, a decrease - to a small release of juice on the surface of the leaf and a weakening of chemical transformations. With the correct curling of the tea leaf, the juice is adsorbed on the surface of the leaf, dries with it and then easily turns into an infusion.
In the process of rolling, the cell sap, which has emerged on the surface of the tea leaf, due to its adhesion quality, promotes adhesion of tea leaves to each other and the formation of lumps. The stickiness of the tea leaves and the amount of lumps formed depends on the chemical composition of the raw material, the fixing method, the residual moisture of the fixed leaf and the rolling method. In order to break up the clods and obtain a tea mass that is homogeneous in physical and mechanical composition, the rolled leaf is fed to a sorting machine. This operation is necessary for the normal carrying out of the processes of drying and sorting of semi-finished tea.
The purpose of the drying process is the creation of the necessary conditions for long-term storage of tea, which provides for the removal of excess moisture from the tea leaf to the limit of the technological norm (3-5%), the formation of quality indicators of tea. The quality of the finished tea depends on the correctly selected drying mode, which includes such parameters as temperature, air speed, layer thickness of the tea leaf, drying duration. The optimal drying mode is considered to be such that the rate of movement of moisture in the tea leaf is equal to the rate of its evaporation from the leaf surface.
Drying tea produced by hot air temperature 95-105 C. Under the influence of high temperature, together with the removal of moisture in the tea leaf, thermochemical processes occur, as a result of which the specific aroma, color and taste of the finished tea are finally formed. As a result of drying, the taste softens, the infusion intensifies, and the substances (chlorophyll and others) are destroyed, which negatively affect the quality of the product. The improvement in aroma is due to the increased interaction of phenolic compounds with amino acids and other substances that affect the formation of volatile aldehydes, which have a pleasant smell. At the same time, in the process of exposure, together with moisture, extractive substances diffuse to the evaporation surface, which also significantly improves the quality of tea. Violation of the optimal drying regime causes a significant decrease in the quality of tea or its complete deterioration. For example, "steaming" tea (stagnation of water vapor in the tea leaf) leads to the loss of tea extractives, and too high temperature and high air velocity cause the formation of a dry crust on the leaf surface, which further leads to moldy tea. A properly dried tea, which is called a semi-finished product, has an olive green color.
Dried tea (semi-finished product) is sorted, that is, teas are grouped according to a homogeneous appearance and a scoring of tea leaves. Thus, the purpose of sorting is to obtain from semi-finished products the factory standards of tea (leaf and broken teas, crumbs, sowing).Sorting of a semi-finished product is a purely mechanical process that is carried out in a sorting machine, which is used both in the production of green and in the production of black tea. However, unlike black teas, when sorting, they ensure that green tea yields fewer broken teas, as well as sowings and crumbs, which are considered much lower than black teas and have little consumer demand.

Modern technological scheme for the production of green long tea by fixing the tea leaf hot air consists of the following sequential processes: fixing the tea leaf, aging, twisting, breaking up lumps, drying, sorting semi-finished products, blending and packaging.
Fixing the tea leaf with hot air carried out in a fixing machine, where it is simultaneously heated and dried. Fixed Tea Leaf Extract carried out on a belt conveyor and then fed into rollers for twisting. Further technological processes are carried out in the same way as in the production of green tea by steaming. The duration of the technological cycle from the beginning of processing of raw materials to obtaining a semi-finished product of green tea by fixing with hot air is 3 hours.

Modern technological scheme for the production of green long tea frying method consists of the following sequential processes: roasting the tea leaf, cutting and twisting the fried leaf in a hot state, shortening the twisting of the cut-twisted leaf, breaking up lumps, drying, heat treatment, sorting semi-finished products, blending and packaging.
The tea leaf is roasted in a roasting drum to inactivate the enzymatic composition of the leaf, to impart the characteristic properties of long green tea to the final product and to maximize the preservation of valuable biologically active substances. The tea leaves are roasted at a drum wall temperature of 240–260 ° C for 3–5 minutes until a residual leaf moisture content of 64–68%.
Cutting and twisting of the fried sheet is carried out in a hot state at a temperature of the sheet mass itself of 75–78 ° C for 10–15 minutes. The purpose of cutting-twisting is the destruction of the tissue structure with simultaneous deformation of the fried sheet and giving it flabbiness to intensify the subsequent rolling process.
The fried cut-twisted sheet is twisted once in a roller at a sheet mass temperature of 65–75 C for 25–50 minutes. The purpose of this process is the final destruction of the tissue structure of the sheet, dismemberment of the flush into its constituent elements and giving them a curled shape.
Further technological processes are carried out in the same way as in the production of green tea by steaming and fixing with hot air.