Green Tea - Black Tea - Oolong Tea
- White Tea Herbal Tea - Fruit Teas
Here you will find one of the best selections of quality teas in the UK. At Aurora we specialise in Chinese tea, particularly green tea, but you will also find excellent teas from Japan, Taiwan and India. Green tea is of special interest as, not only is it a delicious beverage, but it also has many health benefits. Japanese and Chinese studies have shown that green tea can help prevent many serious conditions, including certain cancers. Pu-erh tea is an excellent aid to slimming.
Although all green teas are from the same plant, camellia sinensis, there is a multitude of different flavours to enjoy. We urge you to experiment with different green tea varieties and delight your taste buds. Drink at least 5 cups of green tea daily and enhance your quality of life.
black tea
Black teas are fully oxidised and have a rich, full flavour. Leaves can normally be used just once. Pu-erh tea can help with slimming and can be found in this section.
rooibos tea
South African rooibos teas are world renowned for both their delightful flavour and health-giving properties.
green tea
Green tea has minimal processing
to preserve the fresh flavour and the health-giving polyphenols. Drink 5 cups of green tea per day.
scented tea
Beside the well-known jasmine teas, we have some beautiful teas scented with other fragrant flowers such as osmanthus, rose and orange blossom. Why not treat yourself?
oolong tea
Oolong teas are semi-oxidised and have the greatest quantity of polyphenols of all teas. Drink Oolong tea to help with weight loss .
white tea
White tea is so called because of the white downy coating present on the leaves and buds of the best examples.
fruit tea
Delicious blends of dried fruits, berries and natural flavourings. Totally caffeine-free.
herbal tea
All of the herbal teas in this section are organically grown for maximum flavour and health benefits.
wellness tea
Carefully blended herbs, fruits and green teas for fitness and healthy living.
selection boxes
Introduce a friend to Aurora fine teas with our carefully chosen selection boxes. A quality gift for the discerning tea lover.
tea accessories
Here you will find items to enhance and simplify your enjoyment of leaf teas. Beautiful ceramic, earthenware and cast iron teapots plus infusers of all shapes and sizes.
Tea
A Brief History of Tea
The practice of tea drinking began in China almost 5000 years ago, although in that country its consumption was more for religious and health reasons than as a social drink. Buddhist monks derived great benefits from tea, particularly increased mental alertness and serenity during meditation. The first definitive book on tea, the Ch’a Ching, was written in 800 AD by a Chinese orphan named Lu Yu. This book was based on Lu Yu’s observations over many years and laid the foundation of the tea culture which exists to this day.
In the ninth century the Buddhist monks brought tea from China to Japan, where it soon became the most important social drink among the aristocracy and the royal court. The monks took tea wherever they travelled, which is why it has such a strong association with Zen Buddhism. Today in Japan, tea is regarded as an art form, celebrated by the ritual Tea Ceremony, first performed by Zen Buddhists in the 15th Century. Although it takes years of training to perform this ceremony, all it really consists of is the serving of a cup of tea!
Although tea had been consumed in the Orient for centuries, it was completely unknown in Europe until the mid 16th Century, and was not widely available there until a century later. Although the British are often referred to as ‘a nation of tea drinkers’, we were one of the last European countries to discover it. The first samples of tea arrived on these shores between 1652 and 1654 and it soon supplanted ale as the national drink.
Varieties of Tea
Black Tea
Black tea constitutes by far the largest proportion of the total world tea production. It undergoes a full fermentation (oxidation), which turns the leaves black and gives the tea its rich taste. After picking the leaves are allowed to wither until they become soft enough to roll. Rolling breaks open the membranes containing the bitter juices, which then coat the leaves. The subsequent oxidation process mellows the juices and dries them on the surface of the leaves. The final step is to dry the tea in large ovens. During production many leaves are broken or fragmented. These must be sorted into full leaves, broken leaves and fragments (fannings) as they will require varying infusion times. Fannings are usually used in tea bags and the cheaper loose teas.
Green Tea
Green tea undergoes minimal processing in order to preserve the natural fresh flavour and health giving substances (a cup of green tea contains more Vitamin C than a glass of fresh orange juice!) . After hand picking, the green leaves are spread out and allowed to wither. In China the leaves are then pan fried to prevent oxidation. The Japanese prefer deep-steaming as this tends to reduce bitterness.
Oolong Tea
Oolong teas are often referred to as ‘semi fermented’, placing them somewhere between green and black. To produce Oolong, green tea is allowed to partially oxidise by being spread out and allowed to dry in the shade. When the desired degree of oxidisation has been achieved, the leaves are pan fried as with green tea. Oolongs are produced almost exclusively in China and Taiwan, the latter having the most highly prized.
White Tea
White tea is the most delicate of all teas. Produced mainly in China, primarily in Fujian province, white tea is made entirely from leaf buds that are covered with silvery hairs. The new buds are plucked before they open in early spring, then withered and dried slowly at low temperatures. Unlike other tea processing methods, the leaf buds are not rolled and only slightly oxidized. The result of this processing is a tea with a mild flavor and natural sweetness, with little of the grassy undertones sometimes associated with green tea.
Scented Tea
The tradition of adding fragrances to tea goes back centuries. Whole flowers, petals, seeds and oils are used to produce elegant teas of great complexity. Although green, oolong and even white teas are sometimes scented, strongly flavoured black teas are normally used to prevent the fragrances from dominating.
Tea and Health
Most of the research into the health benefits of tea has been conducted in China and Japan, so is based mainly on green tea. There can be little doubt, however, that black tea also has many of these benefits.
By far the most important research is in the field of cancer. In Japan, and subsequently by the FDA in America, it was found that green tea contains an antioxidant known as EGCg which was shown to inhibit the enzyme responsible of the formation of cancerous tumours. Tests on black tea revealed that EGCg was not present. It is believed, therefore, that the oxidation process destroys this valuable constituent. It can now be seen that it is no coincidence that incidences of certain cancers are so much lower in green tea drinking areas.
Other antioxidants are present in green tea which are thought to counteract cancer spreading free radicals in the body, lower cholesterol levels, regulate blood pressure, help prevent blood clotting and provide a natural antibiotic function. Caffeine, although harmful in large doses, is a natural stimulant, which excites the central nervous system, strengthens the heart, eases asthma and improves the metabolism. Vitamin C is available in large quantities in green tea. It is a powerful antioxidant and helps prevent heart disease as well as some cancers. Also worthy of note is the presence of flavenoids, these help prevent heart disease and lower bodily aromas, particularly bad breath. There are many other minor constituents of green tea that also contribute benefits e.g. carotene, fluoride, zinc, selenium, manganese, potassium, niacin and folic acid.
It is believed that by drinking up to five cups of green tea per day, people will be providing their bodies with some pretty powerful ammunition to fight the organisms that bring disease. It is, of course, imperative that the tea is fresh and of the best possible quality. At Aurora we sell only the very best quality teas with full flavour and maximum health benefits. The difference is in the cup.
WARNING. DRINKING TEA CAN SERIOUSLY IMPROVE YOUR HEALTH.
