Black tea and green tea originate from the same plant; however, they require different processing techniques. The next time you drink tea there are more similarities and differences that you may notice.
What is green tea?
Green tea is a general term reserved for loose-leaf tea made from the leaves and buds of the Camellia sinensis plant, produced primarily in China and consumed worldwide. Manufacturers in Japan steam the Sancha tea leaves and then hand-roll them to retain their delicate, herbal flavor. Macha is another type of green tea that producers process green tea leaves into fine powder. The customer then prepares the tea by mixing the matches in boiling water.
However, if you use very hot water while brewing green tea, you may burn or scratch the tea leaves. As a result, your tea will taste bitter and less appetizing. Compared to black tea, green tea is steeped for a short time, usually about 1-2 minutes.
What is Black Tea?
Black tea is another variant of tea made from the leaves of the same plant, Camellia sinensis. However, unlike green tea leaves, growers completely oxidize black tea leaves immediately after harvesting. The process of oxidation, unlike green tea leaves, turns the leaves into a dark brown or black shade, which retains their natural green shade.
Currently, various varieties of black tea are grown mainly in India and China. There are some varieties of world-famous black tea like Assam, Golden Yunnan, and Darjeeling. In addition, Vietnam and Nepal are the other two largest Asian producers of black tea in the world.
Unlike green tea, when brewing black tea, we use boiling water at or around 212 degrees. Additionally, we soak black tea for about 3-5 minutes.
Black Tea vs. Green Tea: The Difference between Teas
Black tea and green tea come from the same plant, although differences in their processing lead to differences in caffeine, color, and taste.
Caffeine
One cup of green tea contains less caffeine – twenty-five to thirty milligrams – resulting in less processing time than a cup of black tea. Black tea contains about forty to fifty milligrams of caffeine per cup (still less than the amount of caffeine you get in a cup of coffee). The longer the tea bag is boiled, the higher the caffeine content.
Color
Once tea growers harvest green tea leaves, they warm them gently usually with steam which helps prevent high levels of oxidation. This process retains the green color of green tea. In the production of black tea, the leaves undergo a long period of the oxidation process, also called the tea fermentation process. This gives the black tea leaves a dark brown or black color.
Polyphenols
Since all teas are derived from plants, they contain polyphenols-organic compounds including flavonoids, tannins, and theaflavins. However, black tea and green tea have different types and amounts of polyphenols. For example, green tea contains epigallocatechin gallate, tea contains the most abundant catechins, while black tea contains more theaflavins, which contribute to the red color. Tea also contains L-theanine, an amino acid that gives green tea its broth flavor.
Taste
A shorter brewing process, in other words, a shorter oxidation process preserves and enhances the natural flavor of green tea and prevents the typical bitterness of black tea. In contrast, black tea undergoes a longer oxidation process, resulting in a stronger flavor than green tea.
The main difference between green tea and black tea is oxidation. Producers avoid oxidizing tea when processing green tea, but manufacturers generally oxidize the tea leaves used to produce black tea for a significant period. This leaves two varieties of tea as two products that differ in taste and color but with similar health benefits.