How to determine if green tea is this year's new tea? Is it still the aged tea from last year?
The method is simple and even beginners can easily learn it.
1. Look at the color of the dried tea.
New tea: emerald green, emerald green, dry tea is shiny and oily.
Aged tea: gray green, dark green, dry tea with a dull and dull surface.
2. Pinch dry tea to feel its crispness.
New tea: Low moisture content, crispy dry tea, easily crumbled when squeezed.
Aged tea: High moisture content, dry tea has sufficient toughness, leaves are not easily crushed, and tea stems are not easily broken.
3. Smell the aroma of tea leaves.
New tea: With a fresh and natural aroma, one can clearly smell different types of fragrances such as floral and fruity notes.
Aged tea: The aroma is low and vague, and the specific aroma type cannot be smelled.
4. Look at the color of the soup.
New tea: The soup color is transparent and clear.
Aged Cha: The soup is turbid in color and contains a large amount of floating debris.
5. Taste the taste.
New tea: Fresh, refreshing, and sweet after entering the mouth, with a long-lasting aroma.
Aged tea: The taste is noticeably lighter than new tea, and there is hardly any clear sweetness to be tasted. After entering, it quickly turns plain and leaves nothing behind.
Overall, green tea has a short shelf life and is prone to oxidation. Therefore, it is important to drink it as soon as possible within its shelf life to avoid wasting good tea due to prolonged storage.
