What kind of tea do I buy for making Kombucha???  (to buy kombuchas in my ebay store Click here )

• I recommend that kombucha cultures only ever be grown in green,white or black tea or mixture of these three tea.Only use teas you have researched thoroughly.I do highly recommend you to only use the 3 teas listed here for the health of you & the K-tea/cultures as other teas & herbal teas can permanently weaken the Kombucha culture or even kill it.
• Never use Decaff or caffeine free tea or tea with any added flavors, only buy plain white,green or black teas.(white tea may take longer on 1st batch)
  

So what kind of tea to buy for making Kombucha? What tea is right for you? White,Green or Black tea? These 3 teas are all the same tea in different stages of growth & processing.( you can mix any combination of the 3 teas together for kombucha tea if desired) tea info below.

White Tea

• White Tea the youngest & most delicate of the 3 teas. Picked just as the first buds become fully mature & open. White tea makes a light flavored tea.Of the 3 teas used for making kombucha tea(White,Green or Black) White tea has the least caffeine, While it does work to make kombucha it does produce thinner babies sometimes & a less fizzy tea.Some batches made with white tea need longer fermentation before done.

Green Tea

• Green tea is further along in growth & strength. It tends to have a slightly stronger taste than White tea. Kombucha tea made from green tea tends to be milder in taste & less murky in color than when made with black tea. Green tea being the perfect balance between White & Black teas seems to be the most preferred by Kombucha drinkers & the Kombucha culture itself. It is in the middle on strength, taste, color & caffeine.Taste can vary depending on the brand of green tea you choose. Green tea also tends to produce the best looking babies & fizz content in the kombucha tea.

Black Tea

• Black tea is made from tea leaves that have been fully grown/aged. It is the strongest of the 3 teas, its taste is stronger & its color makes a darker kombucha tea.It also has the most amount of caffeine. & though it does still produce nice looking babies mostly, they can have more holes from gas, & tea can be murky sometimes.It also has a tendency to produce a less fizzy kombucha tea.

  
  

Oolong Tea

• Oolong tea kinda mix of the in between point of green tea & black tea (a forth tea if you will), Most refer to it as a black tea. Since this tea is not as strong as a full blown black tea it also has just slightly less caffeine. Many prefer this tea over any of the others. It is harder to find without extra flavors unless you order it in bulk.

*New info for buyers to read*
Caffeine content in Kombucha tea

• After you ferment kombucha tea there will still be small amounts of natural caffeine in the tea. Black tea will have the highest amount, Green tea will have less & White tea will have the least.
  How to safely remove caffeine before making Kombucha tea.
  Do not buy decaff tea! Get your pot of water for your sweet tea boiling, at the same time get a small pot of water boiling, when small pot starts a rolling boil drop all your tea bags in it. Wait 30 seconds and carefully remove the tea bags and drop them in your larger sweet tea pot. Now dump out the smaller pot of hot tea water. This works well for "most" people since almost all caffeine is released in the first 20+ seconds of boiling. Small amounts of caffeine can remain behind after this method, but the amount will still be the same or less than decaff tea.Decaff teas you buy are anywhere from 95% to 99% caffeine free so they still have caffeine. The process most companys use to make the decaff tea decaff does not work well with Kombucha, So again do not buy decaff or caffeine free teas.
  

Teas to not ever use

• Don't use teas like Earl Grey that use a essential oil of Bergamot to add flavor. This can kill the kombucha culture. Smoked teas like Lasang Suchong are to not be used for kombucha. Herb teas are not be used as they cause many issues among them mold. Do not use any teas with fruits, Oils, herbs, spices or added flavors.
  

Other kinds of Teas:

• Though its best to ever ferment kombucha with white, green or black teas, there are many teas to choose from that can be added after fermentation before drinking (make sure these extra teas never get in your starter teas or on or near cultures or fermenting batches).
  Here are 2 teas I do not recommend you use until you are established, But can be used from time to time then switch back to White,Green or black teas to keep kombucha healthy.Pu-erh Tea & Sencha Green Tea
  

So what brand of tea do I buy & where?

• Wal-mart (as well as some other stores) Sells Uncle Lees Organic green tea
• Most grocery stores sell Salada,Best Choice,Senica,Celestial Seasonings, Bigalow, Numi, Harney & Sons,Republic of tea as well as others.
• Publix is one of the few store that so far I have heard no complaints about the store brand.
• Health-food stores sell many great natural & Organic brands such as NOW brand.
• If buying loose leaf the best rule is to buy Fresh cut China green or black in bulk.
• There are lots of brands that work fine just make sure its plain Black or Green tea (or mixture of both). Many can be found at small groceries, Asian Markets Chinese Markets,CO-Ops Specialty tea stores & some local coffee tea shops/stores

Info I found online

Green & Black tea

For over 4,000 years the people in the East have looked on Green Tea as a miracle drink due to it's countless medicinal and health benefits. In the West, both alternative health practitioners and scientists are discovering these benefits and the general public no longer looks on it as just a drink to round off a Chinese meal.

Green, black and oolong tea all come from the Camellia Sinensis plant. Black tea and oolong tea are rolled, fermented and dried where as green tea is heat-treated and rapidly dried and then rolled. It is not fermented. This different process is said to preserve all the antioxidant and other properties in the green tea.

The tea contains catechin polyphenols, particularly epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), which is said to be the reason why green tea has so many health benefits. Green tea also contains the amino acid theanine, chlorophyll, and lignin. Research has shown that these excellent properties help to: increase metabolism and optimize weight loss, inhibit growth of cancer cells without harming healthy cells, lower cholesterol levels, stops abnormal clots forming and therefore helps prevent strokes and heart attacks, and promote cell regeneration. Green tea also has bacteria destroying properties.

On going studies are being done on it, as it is said that the tea's powerful antioxidants can fight the free-radical damage to brain nerves, as seen in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.

Do not throw away left over tea and the tea leaves. Left over tea is excellent for the skin due to it's antioxidant content and being an anti-inflammatory. It also has an inhibitory action on collagenase in which the collagen is broken down, results show firmer, more elastic skin. Wonderful on your hair as well as it make it shine and improves the strength of hair.The tea leaves can be dried and used to deodorize the fridge and also deodorize the cat-box when mixed with the sand.

There are very many different views on how many cups of green tea should be drunk, but on average they say a minimum of three cups daily.
And don't forget always buy organic!

White tea Benefits

White Tea
Delicate, smooth, sweet and fresh… these are the words typically used to describe White teas, the most rare and sought after teas on the market today.

While all teas come from the same source, the way the tea is processed determines the final product. In the case of White tea, very little processing occurs, resulting in the most delicate of all teas. White tea is potent, with three times the antioxidant properties of other types of teas.

White tea is technically the oldest form of tea because it is really the first tea ever consumed and, the least processed. Other processing techniques later led to the production of other teas. 

Because White tea is made of leaves and buds that are "less processed" than for other types of tea, the health benefits of white tea are greater than any other type. Rich in antioxidants, white tea has proven greater cancer-fighting ability than even green tea. White teas are known to boost the immunes system, helping to fight viruses and infection-causing bacteria. 

Of course, White tea has the added benefit of relieving stress, if consumed properly. For the Chinese, drinking tea is often a ritual and so should it be for you. Be sure to set aside a few minutes each day for your own ritual and spend a few quiet moments enjoying your tea in a relaxed setting.

Make sure to check out the links on my ME page to articles on these teas: White,Green & Black tea articles about mid way down the page.

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