Jasmine tea is the most popular flavored tea in the world. Chinese tea gardeners have been producing this delicacy for at least 700 years. Though jasmine tea is already considered a blend, it is often used as the base for additional blends because of the popularity of the jasmine tea base. Jasmine tea is mild and slightly sweet, making it perfect for combining with other flavors, like vanilla.
Jasmine tea is created by plucking the jasmine blossoms just as they are beginning to bloom and adding them to the tea leaves at night to ensure the best infusion of the aroma and fragrance. In most cases, green tea is used as the base for jasmine tea. To make vanilla jasmine tea, the tea is infused with vanilla bean or vanilla flavoring after the infusion of the jasmine blossoms. While vanilla jasmine tea is most often made using green tea, it can be found in black, white and oolong tea varieties, too. The type of jasmine tea used for the base will affect the flavor, caffeine content and health benefits of the vanilla jasmine tea.
While China is still the largest producer of jasmine tea, in part because the Chinese are such large consumers of all varieties of jasmine tea, you can find vanilla jasmine and other jasmine teas produced in nearly every tea producing country in the world. There are Formosa vanilla jasmine teas from Taiwan, Darjeeling and Assam vanilla jasmine teas from India and Ceylon vanilla jasmine teas from Sri Lanka.
Black Vanilla Jasmine Tea - Vanilla jasmine tea made from a black tea base will have a bold flavor and produce a rich liquor. You’ll find this tea to be complex in flavor, with many variances, depending upon the variety of black tea used as the tea base. This is a sweet blend of tea, perfect for serving with dessert. Black vanilla jasmine tea will have the most caffeine of any vanilla jasmine blend.
Green Vanilla Jasmine Tea - Vanilla jasmine tea made from green tea will produce a much lighter liquor, often pale amber or green in color. This tea will be milder in flavor with a very natural taste. Because of the lightness of the tea, the vanilla and jasmine flavors will be much more prominent. The region of the world in which the green tea is grown will affect the flavor of the tea. Green vanilla jasmine tea will have less caffeine than black vanilla jasmine tea and will offer many health benefits.
Green tea is a very powerful source of anti-oxidants, which are important to our health because they combat free radicals in our bodies. Free radicals are created as a by-product of our digestive processes. While they are naturally occurring, they are oxygen containing molecules that have the power to damage our cells and DNA. However, a diet rich in anti-oxidants, like those found in green and white tea, help rid our bodies of these free radicals before they can damage our bodies. For many years, Asian cultures, where green tea is a staple beverage, have shown far lower incidences of serious illnesses like heart disease and many forms of cancer. This led to research on green tea’s health benefits. Since then, much research has shown a strong connection with lifelong green tea consumption and a longer and healthier life.
White Vanilla Jasmine Tea- This is the sweetest variety of vanilla jasmine tea you’ll find and likely the most refreshing. White tea, because it is plucked before the tea buds have even opened, and because it is left unfermented, is the mildest and sweetest of all tea varieties. When it is paired with fragrant jasmine and sweet vanilla, it creates a delicious tea that has very little caffeine and could probably serve as all the dessert you need after a fine meal. This tea is equally delicious whether enjoyed iced or hot. In addition, it contains all the health benefits of green tea.
Oolong Vanilla Jasmine Tea - Oolong teas are semi-fermented, meaning that they do go through a fermentation process, but one that is much shorter than that of black tea. A vanilla jasmine oolong tea will be complex in flavor, with fruity notes and a sweet finish. You’ll find it bolder than a green or white blend, but never bitter or strong. The flavor will be significantly affected by how long the oolong tea leaves are fermented and by the country in which the tea was grown. Oolong vanilla jasmine tea will also be a larger leaf tea than the other varieties.
There are nearly endless possibilities in the varieties and flavors you can find in vanilla jasmine tea. Each variety of tea will have its own unique flavors based on where it is grown, how it is processed and the quality of the tea. In addition, the quality and type of the jasmine blossoms and vanilla used to flavor the tea will impact its flavor. Vanilla is grown in several areas of the world, with each area producing a slightly different flavor. Jasmine is also grown in many parts of the world, and the jasmine blossoms are slightly affected by the soil of the growing region.
So, you see, vanilla jasmine tea can have many subtleties and nuances. However, it is easily one of the most fragrant and pleasing teas, in any form. The combination of familiar and comforting vanilla paired with fragrant jasmine can make any variety of tea pleasing to nearly any palate.
Copyright: Copyright © 2008 Jon M. Stout
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