White tea is a traditional tea created by Chinese tea farmers, and is one of the six major tea categories in China: black tea, green tea, oolong tea (green tea), yellow tea, black tea, and white tea. It is a kind of tea that is not finished or rolled after picking, but only processed after drying or simmering.

Is white tea just green tea? On what basis?

In layman's terms, green tea means that the cell tissue inside the tea has not yet ruptured, and the enzymes in it have not had time to run out to react with oxygen, so they are killed by the process of killing, and then kneaded and dried. The tea made in this way, in terms of color, retains the characteristics of green leaves, and in terms of taste, it is also more natural and innocent, compared with high-roasted fire-fired tea, it is similar to a high realm of real water without fragrance and good tea taste. Essentially, there is less artificial intervention in tea, which is closer to the ingredients than the food. Of course, the finishing process is varied, and steam and pan-frying are the main ones.

The category of white tea is different, it is more unique, neither finished nor rolled, that is, dried, and then dried (slightly different from place to place, mainly represented by the craftsmanship of Fuding and Zhenghe). It is said to be drying, in fact, some places are mainly drying, and some places are drying first, how to do it, the majority of tea lovers actually have no need to be entangled. The drying time is the process of walking through the water, which is called withering, and in layman's terms, it is to let it dry slowly. In this process, there is a certain amount of wall-breaking oxidation, which will form a certain amount of fermentation. But the proportion is quite low. Then, the white tea can be stored for a long time, and in the process of long-term storage, some microorganisms are also involved in it, so that transformation occurs.

The basis for the classification

Of course, the names of white tea and green tea are not like Monkey King jumping out of the cracks in the stones, but are classified by tea experts based on the oxidation of tea polyphenols and the process characteristics of production. Although it cannot be said that any classification method is absolutely scientific, at present, the classification standards of green tea, yellow tea, white tea, green tea, black tea, and dark tea are still the most widely recognized.

A variant of Anji White Tea

Finally, let's talk about Anji white tea. In fact, there are also some changes in Anji white tea. In addition to Anji white tea varieties, there are also some alienated varieties such as golden leaves, golden buds, etc., which are generally similar to Anji white tea, but also have their own characteristics. For example, the golden bud has a super high amino acid content and so on. But, no matter what, they are not white teas in the basic tea category, but green teas.

It is worth mentioning that the tea properties of white tea have changed from cold to cool, so it has a comparative advantage in reducing fever and fire. Green tea, on the other hand, is more abundant in tea polyphenols and other elements, and is favored in anti-aging, weight loss, and anti-inflammatory.

In addition, there is another very important difference between white tea and green tea, and tea lovers must know it.

Green tea is expensive and is not suitable for long-term storage. Zangjiu is inevitably dark in color and light in taste, losing the freshness of green tea.

However, because the preparation method of white tea is more natural, it is not kneaded or fried, and the tea still retains great activity, and the quality transformation will occur in the long-term storage. So, in terms of long-term value, white tea is superior to green tea.