Name game
Black tea, or red tea?
In China, what the West calls black tea is called red tea, for the copper color of the cup. Our Golden Yunnan's page explains it: same tea, different naming tradition.
Brewology · The Tea Field Guide
Tea gets a field guide too. Loose leaf, not leaf dust.
Coffee gets all the nerd talk. Tea deserves the same. One plant gives you white, green, oolong and black tea, and everything else on the herbal shelf is its own thing entirely. Water temperature, leaf, time and storage decide whether a good tin turns into a great cup or a bitter one.
This is the whole story in thirteen chapters: what tea actually is, how processing makes the type, where it grows, how much caffeine is really in your mug, and how to steep, ice, whisk and store it. Read it top to bottom or jump to the chapter you need. Every chapter ends with teas from our shelf that show the point. Taste, then adjust.
- Camellia sinensis makes white, green, oolong and black tea (Food Chemistry, 2019; NCCIH)
- 1 plant
- water for green and white tea, not boiling (King's Gambit steep chart)
- 175–185°F
- of loose leaf per 8 oz of water to start (King's Gambit steep chart)
- 2.5 g
- caffeine detected in the herbal teas a lab study tested (Journal of Analytical Toxicology, 2008)
- None
Chapter 1
One plant, many teas
White, green, oolong and black tea all come from the same shrub. Everything else in your mug is an infusion.
Here's the part most tea shelves skip. White, green, oolong and black tea all come from one plant, Camellia sinensis. They're prepared differently, and that's the whole difference (NCCIH; Plants, 2025). Food scientists have proved it the fun way: they took fresh leaves from the same cultivar and the same growing area and made six different tea types out of them (Food Chemistry, 2019).
So what's herbal tea?
Technically, it isn't tea. Hibiscus, rooibos, honeybush, mint, lemongrass and chamomile don't come from the tea plant. The UK Tea & Infusions Association calls them herbal and fruit infusions. The old-school word is tisane.
Some regulators are strict about it. In December 2025, India's food safety regulator told brands to stop calling herbal infusions "tea" and to save the word for products made from Camellia sinensis (Business Standard). In the US, everybody still says herbal tea, us included, because that's what people search for. Just know the difference. It tells you a lot about flavor, steeping and caffeine.
| Question | Real tea | Herbal infusion |
|---|---|---|
| Where it comes from | Leaves and buds of Camellia sinensis | Other plants: flowers, roots, bark, seeds, fruit, leaves |
| Types | White, green (including matcha), yellow, oolong, black, dark (pu-erh) | Rooibos, honeybush, hibiscus, mint, lemongrass, chamomile and more |
| Caffeine | Yes; the amount varies | Usually none; yerba mate is the big exception |
| On our shelf | White, green, oolong and black teas, plus matcha | Herbal teas and botanicals |
Blends can cross the line. Gold Rush pairs white tea with yerba mate, and Hojicha Toffee pairs roasted green tea with green rooibos. Check the ingredients on any tin.
Same plant vs. no tea plant at all
-
Green Tea
Dragonwell
From $11.00
-
Oolong Tea
Ti Kuan Yin
From $14.50
-
Black Tea
Golden Yunnan
From $9.50
-
Botanicals
Organic Honeybush
From $8.00
-
Botanicals
Organic Hibiscus
From $7.25
Three teas from Camellia sinensis (green, oolong, black), then two herbals that never touched it.
Chapter 2
Meet the types
Four main teas, one aged cousin we don't carry, and the herbal crowd that rounds out the shelf.
Tea scientists usually count six categories from the tea plant: white, green, yellow, oolong, black and dark tea, which includes pu-erh (Plants, 2025). Yellow tea is rare in the US and sits close to green. In the States, black tea is the everyday cup: about 84% of the tea Americans drank in 2021 was black and 15% was green (Tea Association of the USA, via the US Census Bureau).
| Type | How it's made | Often tastes | Our steep chart (per 8 oz) |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | Young leaves and buds, withered and dried; not rolled | Soft, sweet, floral | 175–185°F, 3–5 min (flavored: 1–3 min) |
| Green | Heated early (steamed or pan-fired) to stop oxidation, then shaped and dried | Grassy, toasty, nutty or vegetal | 175–185°F, 1–3 min |
| Oolong | Withered, bruised and partly oxidized, roughly 8% to 85% | Light and floral to rich and roasty | 195–205°F, 4–6 min |
| Black | Rolled and fully oxidized | Malty and bold; sometimes chocolatey or fruity | 195–205°F, 5–8 min (flavored: 3–6 min) |
| Dark (pu-erh) | Aged with microbes for months to years | Earthy and deep | 195–205°F, 5–8 min |
Process and oxidation range from a 2025 review in Plants. Times and temperatures are from our steep chart, using about 2.5 g of tea. We don't carry pu-erh right now, but our chart keeps a starting point for it.
Straight vs. flavored
A straight tea is just the leaf, like Dragonwell or Ti Kuan Yin. A blend adds fruit, flowers, spices or natural flavor to a base tea, like the vanilla and coconut over Shou Mei white tea in Madagascar Coconut. Flavored white and black teas get shorter steeps on our chart than their straight versions, so start at the short end and taste.
The herbal side
Rooibos, honeybush, hibiscus and mate
Rooibos comes from Aspalathus linearis, grown only in South Africa, in and around the Cederberg region, and it has held EU protected-origin status since May 2021 (SA Rooibos Council). Honeybush is a different South African plant, from the Cyclopia genus (Foods, 2022). Hibiscus is a flower that brews ruby red and tart. Yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis) is the herbal that breaks the rule: it brings its own caffeine (Nutrients, 2026).
One of each
-
White Tea
Sapphire Starlight
From $10.25
-
Green Tea
Dragonwell
From $11.00
-
Oolong Tea
Ti Kuan Yin
From $14.50
-
Black Tea
Golden Yunnan
From $9.50
-
Herbal Tea
African Rose
From $10.50
-
White Tea
Gold Rush
$10.50
White (on white peony), green, oolong, black, a rooibos and honeybush blend, and a white tea with yerba mate.
Chapter 3
How processing makes the type
Same leaf, different handling. Oxidation is the big dial, and heat is the off switch.
Fresh tea leaves start changing as soon as they're picked. Once leaf cells break, enzymes such as polyphenol oxidase get to work on the leaf's catechins, and the leaf darkens (Plants, 2025). Tea makers steer that reaction with time, bruising and heat. That's the whole game: green tea stops it almost right away, black tea lets it run, and oolong stops somewhere in between.
| Step | What happens | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Plucking | Buds and young leaves come off the bush | Leaf age, cultivar and harvest season change the chemistry from the start |
| Withering | Leaves rest and wilt, losing moisture | Softens the leaf for shaping; it's the main event for white tea |
| Rolling or bruising | Leaves are rolled, twisted, shaken or cut | Breaks cells so leaf juices meet air; sets the shape |
| Oxidation | Leaf compounds react with oxygen and darken | Moves the tea from green toward black; color and depth build |
| Fixing (kill-green) | Steam or a hot pan heats the leaf | Stops the enzymes; keeps green tea green and locks an oolong in place |
| Drying or firing | Final heat drives off moisture | Makes the leaf shelf-stable; can add toasty notes |
Not every tea uses every step, and the order changes by style. Based on reviews in Plants (2025) and Food Chemistry (2019).
Whole leaf vs. CTC
Orthodox teas are rolled and shaped as whole or large-leaf pieces. CTC (crush, tear, curl) is a machine method that cuts the leaf into small granules. Orthodox and CTC are the two main ways black tea gets made (Journal of Food Science and Technology, 2024). Our Masala Chai uses an Assam CTC base.
Myth
Black tea isn't really fermented
You'll hear black tea called fully fermented and oolong called semi-fermented. For those teas, the change is mostly enzyme-driven oxidation. Microbial fermentation is the dark-tea move: pu-erh and its cousins age with microbes for months to years (Plants, 2025).
Oolong
Why oolong sits in the middle
8–85%
That's the oxidation range a 2025 review reports for oolong, depending on the variety and how it's made. Makers wither and bruise the leaves, let them oxidize part of the way, then fix them with heat. Light oolongs drink floral and bright; heavier ones lean nutty or roasted. Our Ti Kuan Yin's tightly rolled leaves unfurl into a light, floral, pale-gold cup.
Green
Pan-fired or steamed
Green tea gets its heat early. Some greens are pan-fired: our Dragonwell is pan-fired flat, per its tea page. Matcha starts as shaded leaves that are gently steamed, dried and stone-ground (Nutrients, 2026). Different heat, different flavor.
Processing you can taste
-
Green Tea
Dragonwell
From $11.00
-
Oolong Tea
Ti Kuan Yin
From $14.50
-
Black Tea
Golden Yunnan
From $9.50
-
Black Tea
Masala Chai
From $9.50
Pan-fired green, rolled oolong, a black tea with golden buds, and a CTC Assam chai.
Chapter 4
Where tea grows
China grows about half the world's tea. Our tins come from Zhejiang to Kenya's highlands, with plenty of stops between.
The world grew about 6.7 million tonnes of tea in 2022. China produced nearly half of it and India about a fifth. Kenya is the world's top black tea exporter, and China ships more than 75% of the world's exported green tea (FAO, 2024). The plant itself started in southwest China, with Yunnan at the center of its genetic diversity (Nature Genetics, 2025; BMC Plant Biology, 2024).
| Region | Known for | Our tea from there |
|---|---|---|
| Zhejiang, China | Longjing (Dragonwell) green tea | Dragonwell |
| Yunnan, China | Where the tea plant began; black (red) teas with golden buds | Golden Yunnan (Pu'er Prefecture) |
| Anxi County in Fujian, China | Tieguanyin, the classic rolled oolong | Our Ti Kuan Yin is this style (its page lists China, not a region) |
| Assam and South India | Malty Assam; bright Nilgiri and other South Indian black teas | Masala Chai (Assam), Duchess Grey (Nilgiri), Lemonberry Mint (South Indian) |
| Murang'a County, Kenya | Purple-leaf tea | Kenyan Purple |
| Shizuoka, Japan | Green tea, especially sencha; growing into matcha | Ceremonial Organic Matcha Kakitsubata |
| South Africa | Rooibos (Cederberg) and honeybush (Eastern and Western Cape) | Organic Honeybush, African Rose, Second Wind |
| Egypt | Hibiscus and rose | Organic Hibiscus; Red Rose: Buds and Petals |
Origins for our teas come from their product pages. Blends that don't list an origin aren't on this map. Tieguanyin's home in Anxi from Toxics (2025).
Birthplace
Yunnan
SW China
Genetic studies point to southwest China as the tea plant's origin, with Yunnan holding its deepest diversity (Nature Genetics, 2025; BMC Plant Biology, 2024). Our Golden Yunnan comes from Dazhai, Yixiang, in Pu'er Prefecture: wiry leaves with golden buds, and a cup its page describes as chocolate, caramel and sweet potato.
Kenya
The purple one
No. 1
Kenya is the world's leading black tea exporter (FAO, 2024). Kenya's purple tea comes from anthocyanin-rich cultivars such as TRFK 306, whose leaves can lose their purple color in hot, dry, sunny weather (Planta, 2021). Our Kenyan Purple grows in Murang'a County near the Aberdare range, and its page describes a light-bodied cup with apricot, plum and walnut.
Japan
Shizuoka has company
2019
Shizuoka is Japan's famous tea prefecture, but Kagoshima passed it in tea production value in 2019 and in first-flush harvest volume in 2025, according to agriculture ministry figures reported by Jiji Press (2026). Our Ceremonial Organic Matcha Kakitsubata comes from Osada Seicha in Shizuoka.
Taste the map
-
Green Tea
Dragonwell
From $11.00
-
Black Tea
Golden Yunnan
From $9.50
-
Oolong Tea
Ti Kuan Yin
From $14.50
-
Black Tea
Kenyan Purple
From $16.50
-
Green Tea
Ceremonial Organic Matcha Kakitsubata
From $35.00
-
Botanicals
Organic Honeybush
From $8.00
China, Kenya, Japan and South Africa in six tins.
Chapter 5
Caffeine, honestly
Most tea has less caffeine than coffee per cup. Tea type matters less than people think. Leaf amount and steep time matter more.
An 8 oz cup of brewed black tea averages about 48 mg of caffeine, green tea about 29 mg and brewed coffee about 96 mg (Mayo Clinic). But averages hide a lot. When lab researchers tested 20 commercial teas, white, green and black teas ranged from 14 to 61 mg per serving, with no clear pattern by tea type. Steep time changed the number (Journal of Analytical Toxicology, 2008).
| Drink | Serving | Caffeine | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brewed coffee | 8 oz | about 96 mg | Mayo Clinic |
| Espresso | 1 oz | about 63 mg | Mayo Clinic |
| Brewed black tea | 8 oz | about 48 mg | Mayo Clinic |
| Brewed green tea | 8 oz | about 29 mg | Mayo Clinic |
| Decaf black tea | 8 oz | about 2 mg | Mayo Clinic |
| White, green and black teas tested | 6 or 8 oz | 14–61 mg | Journal of Analytical Toxicology, 2008 |
| Matcha | 2 g of powder | about 38–89 mg | Calculated from 18.9–44.4 mg per gram (Molecules, 2020) |
| Herbal teas tested | 6 or 8 oz | none detected | Journal of Analytical Toxicology, 2008 |
Ballparks, not promises. Leaf, harvest, blend, amount and steep time all move the number. Our steep chart uses 2.5 g per 8 oz, so don't multiply these out to our cups.
Caffeine-free picks from our shelf
These are listed as caffeine-free on our shelf: African Rose, Apple Cider Rooibos, Second Wind, Organic Honeybush, Organic Hibiscus, Organic Hibiscus Cucumber, Lemon Rose, Organic Lemon Balm, Lemon Verbena, Organic Lemongrass, Organic Turmeric Ginger, Elderbloom and Freya, plus single botanicals like Calendula, Organic Mullein Leaf and Red Rose: Buds and Petals.
Want a little caffeine, not a lot? Hojicha Toffee lists its caffeine as mild, and Kenyan Purple lists low.
Decaf and caffeine-free aren't the same thing. Decaf tea started with caffeine and had most of it removed, so a little stays behind. Herbals from caffeine-free plants never had any. We don't carry decaf tea right now.
Myth
White tea isn't automatically low-caffeine
A German study of about 30 paired white and green teas found the dry white leaf often carried more caffeine than the green, not less (Journal of Consumer Protection and Food Safety, 2007). What usually lowers the caffeine in your cup: less leaf, a shorter steep, cold brewing, or a blend where fruit and flowers take up part of the spoonful.
Limits
How much is a lot?
400 mg
The FDA says up to 400 mg a day isn't generally linked to negative effects in healthy adults, though people vary in how sensitive they are. Pregnant? ACOG advises staying under 200 mg a day. If you take medication or caffeine hits you hard, ask your doctor what makes sense for you.
Caffeine-free, still interesting
-
Herbal Tea
African Rose
From $10.50
-
Herbal Tea
Apple Cider Rooibos
From $8.50
-
Botanicals
Organic Honeybush
From $8.00
-
Herbal Tea
Lemon Rose
From $9.00
-
Botanicals
Organic Hibiscus
From $7.25
-
Botanicals
Organic Lemon Balm
From $10.00
Rooibos, honeybush, florals, hibiscus and lemon balm. Good after dinner, good any time.
Chapter 6
Steeping basics
Leaf, water temperature, time and a vessel with room to breathe. Get those right and the cup takes care of itself.
Start with our steep chart and taste. Too weak? Want it stronger? Add more tea, not more time. Long steeps pull more bitterness out of green, white, oolong and black teas, and that's the fastest way to ruin good leaf.
| Tea | Per 8 oz | Water | Steep |
|---|---|---|---|
| White tea | 2.5 g | 175–185°F | 3–5 min |
| Flavored white tea* | 2.5 g | 175–185°F | 1–3 min |
| Green tea* | 2.5 g | 175–185°F | 1–3 min |
| Flavored green tea* | 2.5 g | 175–185°F | 1–3 min |
| Oolong* | 2.5 g | 195–205°F | 4–6 min |
| Black tea* | 2.5 g | 195–205°F | 5–8 min |
| Flavored black tea* | 2.5 g | 195–205°F | 3–6 min |
| Yerba mate | 2.5 g | 205–212°F | 5–6 min |
| Rooibos | 2.5 g | 195–205°F | 5–6 min |
| Herbal | 2.5 g | 205–212°F | 5–10 min |
| Pu-erh | 2.5 g | 195–205°F | 5–8 min |
* These teas turn bitter if steeped longer than suggested. Want it stronger? Add more tea, not more time. Starting points. Taste, then adjust. Some teas list their own starting point on their page. Kenyan Purple, for one, suggests 175°F for 2 minutes.
Weigh it, at least once
A gram scale beats a spoon. Tight, rolled leaves like Ti Kuan Yin pack into a spoon. Fluffy leaves and big-flower herbal blends take up a lot more room for the same weight. Weigh your usual scoop of each tea once, and you'll know what 2.5 g looks like.
For perspective: professional tasters use 2 g of tea per 100 mL of just-boiled water for 6 minutes, per the ISO 3103 standard. That's roughly 5 g per 8 oz, built to expose flaws, not for sipping. Our ratio is lighter on purpose. Add leaf until it tastes right to you.
Before you steep
Western style
One pot, one long steep
A mug or teapot, a modest amount of leaf, and one steep timed to the chart. Simple, repeatable, and it's what our chart is built for.
Gongfu style
Small pot, lots of leaf, many short steeps
Gongfu brewing packs a small pot or gaiwan with much more leaf, then pours off quick infusions one after another. Multi-infusion brewing is a long tradition across Asia, and the flavor shifts with each round (Journal of Food Science, 2026). One study brewed the same raw pu-erh 14 times and rated the third through seventh infusions best (Foods, 2025). Oolongs are the classic gongfu tea.
Re-steeping
Your leaves aren't done yet
Many whole-leaf teas give you a second cup. It won't be a copy of the first: a 2026 study tracked green tea over three infusions and found compounds like L-theanine dropped each round as the flavor changed (Journal of Food Science). Steep a little longer each time, and taste as you go.
Steep it in glass
A glass pot lets you watch the leaves open, so you can see when they're done. These ship from our gear partners.
Bronze
Tea Infuser Basket
$16.99
Loose leaf in a mug, no teapot needed. The lid keeps it hot while it steeps.
Bronze
Side Pour Teapot, 10 oz
$30.00
A side-handled kyusu-style pot in glass, made for green tea, matcha and herbals.
Bronze
Sitka Glass Teapot
$36.00
2 sizes
A glass teapot with the filter built into the spout. Watch the loose leaf open up, then pour.
Teas that reward a second steep
-
Oolong Tea
Ti Kuan Yin
From $14.50
-
Green Tea
Dragonwell
From $11.00
-
Black Tea
Golden Yunnan
From $9.50
-
Black Tea
Kenyan Purple
From $16.50
A rolled oolong, a pan-fired green and two whole-leaf blacks. Try them Western first, then go gongfu.
Chapter 7
Water and temperature
Boiling water is great for black tea and herbals. It's rough on green and white.
Your tea is mostly water, so the water matters. So does its temperature. Hotter water pulls out more of everything, including the bitter and astringent stuff. In green tea, bitterness tracks with catechins, especially the gallated ones (Plants, 2025). Researchers who cold-brewed green tea at 4°C pulled out more than 40% less caffeine than a hot brew at 80°C, with more of the sweet, savory amino acid L-theanine (Food Chemistry, 2025).
Why green and white tea want cooler water
Green and white teas are delicate and barely oxidized. Boiling water extracts their bitter compounds fast and flattens their sweet, grassy and floral notes. That's why our chart puts both at 175–185°F and keeps the steeps short. Black teas, oolongs and herbals are sturdier. Hotter water gets their flavor out: 195–205°F for black tea, oolong and rooibos, and 205°F up to a full boil for herbals.
| Method | How | Lands near |
|---|---|---|
| Mix 4 to 1 | 4 parts just-boiled water plus 1 part cold tap water | About 180°F |
| Mix 3 to 1 | 3 parts just-boiled water plus 1 part cold tap water | About 175°F |
| Wait it out | Kettle off, lid open, a few minutes | Depends on your kettle; check it once |
| Thermometer | An instant-read probe in the kettle | Exact; use it once to learn your kettle |
Mixing numbers are simple math assuming tap water around 60°F at sea level. Your cup and kettle will pull them a few degrees lower.
Altitude
High up? Your boil is cooler
202°F
Water boils at 212°F at sea level and about 1°F lower for every 500 feet you climb, so it's about 202°F at 5,000 feet (New Mexico State University Extension). Good news for green tea. Black teas and herbals may want the long end of their steep range.
Water quality
Not too pure, not too hard
In a 2026 study, distilled and purified water pulled more catechins and caffeine from cold-brewed green tea and made it more bitter and astringent, while mineral-heavy water tasted flat. Moderate drinking water came out best (Food Chemistry: X, 2026). Another 2026 study found high bicarbonate dulled tea's aroma and brightness (Foods). Our call: spring or filtered water is best.
Teas that need the cooler pour
-
Green Tea
Dragonwell
From $11.00
-
Green Tea
Jasmine Citrus
From $9.00
-
White Tea
Organic White Peach
From $11.50
-
White Tea
Sapphire Starlight
From $10.25
Green and white teas: 175–185°F, short steeps.
Chapter 8
Matcha
You don't steep matcha. You whisk it and drink the whole leaf.
Matcha is green tea ground into a fine powder. The plants are shaded before harvest, which builds chlorophyll, L-theanine and caffeine in the leaf; then the leaves are steamed, dried and stone-ground (Nutrients, 2026). The shading and the theanine are why good matcha tastes smooth and savory instead of bitter (Molecules, 2020). Because you drink the leaf itself, matcha packs more caffeine per serving than a steeped green tea: about 38–89 mg in a 2 g serving, based on lab measurements (Molecules, 2020).
| Question | Ceremonial | Culinary |
|---|---|---|
| Made for | Whisking with water and drinking straight | Baking, smoothies, blended drinks |
| Taste goal | Smooth, savory, sweet finish | Often bolder and more astringent, to punch through milk, sugar and flour |
| How to judge it | Origin, producer, color, aroma, taste | Same, just with less at stake |
"Ceremonial" isn't an official Japanese grade. Ippodo, a long-running Kyoto tea house, says the term was invented to market matcha in the West and isn't used in Japan. Quality ranges widely (Molecules, 2026). Read it as "made for drinking straight."
How to whisk it (thin tea, or usucha)
Our matcha
Ceremonial Organic Matcha Kakitsubata
Shizuoka
Organic matcha from Osada Seicha in Shizuoka, Japan, stone-ground, with notes of whipped cream, vanilla bean and a soft floral finish, per its tea page. Whisk it straight first. Then make a latte. Our latte build: whisk 2 g with 2 oz of water at about 176°F until the top turns to fine foam, then pour it over 6 oz of steamed milk. We'd pick oat; its natural sweetness meets matcha halfway.
Matcha's roasty cousin
Hojicha
Hojicha is Japanese green tea that's been roasted. Our Hojicha Toffee describes it as warm, nutty and low in caffeine, and blends it with green rooibos, cacao nibs, toffee, caramel and cardamom. Same country, totally different mood.
Japanese green, two ways
Whisked and bright, or roasted and mellow.
The one tool you need
A bamboo chasen, carved from a single piece. It's what turns matcha and water into foam.
Chapter 9
Chai, lattes and London Fog
Milk drinks need muscle. Double the leaf, keep the time.
Milk softens tea, so a milk drink needs a stronger base. Our rule holds: add more tea, not more time. Steep double the leaf in half the water, inside the normal time window, then add milk. Over-steeping to make it stronger just makes it bitter.
Masala chai at home
Masala means spice blend. Our Masala Chai pairs Assam black tea with cardamom, star anise, cinnamon, clove, ginger and black pepper, and its page says it works the traditional way with milk and sugar, or plain.
- Steep 5 g of Masala Chai in 6 oz of water at 195–205°F for 5 minutes.
- Strain, then add 6 oz of steamed or gently simmered milk.
- Sweeten if you like. Honey and sugar both work.
-
Our latte trick
Milk mutes tea, so brew it twice as strong. Steep 5 g of Masala Chai in 4 oz of just-boiled water for 5 minutes, strain, stir in a spoon of honey while it's hot, then top with 4 oz of steamed milk. For a London Fog, do the same with Duchess Grey and swap the honey for a drop of vanilla. The double dose is the part nobody expects, and it's the whole trick.
London Fog
Duchess Grey, steamed milk, a little vanilla
A London Fog is an Earl Grey-style latte. Duchess Grey's page calls it soft enough for one: bergamot and Nilgiri black tea with a hint of vanilla. Steep 5 g in 6 oz of 195–205°F water for 5 minutes, strain, add 6 oz of steamed milk and a touch of vanilla syrup if you want it sweeter.
Matcha latte
Whisk first, then pour
Whisk 2 g of matcha into 2 oz of 176°F water until smooth, then add 6 oz of steamed or cold milk. Over ice works too.
No caffeine, still cozy
Rooibos lattes
Apple Cider Rooibos brings rooibos, cinnamon, orange peel and licorice root with no caffeine. Steep it strong, 5 g in 6 oz at 195–205°F for 5–6 minutes, and finish with steamed milk.
Built for milk
-
Black Tea
Masala Chai
From $9.50
-
Black Tea
Duchess Grey
From $10.00
-
Green Tea
Ceremonial Organic Matcha Kakitsubata
From $35.00
-
Herbal Tea
Apple Cider Rooibos
From $8.50
-
Black Tea
Golden Yunnan
From $9.50
Spiced, bergamot, whisked, caffeine-free, and a full-bodied black tea.
Chapter 10
Iced and cold-brew tea
Cold brew for smooth, flash-chill for bright, and skip the sun tea.
Loose leaf makes iced tea that tastes like the tea, not like a bottle. Three ways to get there, all of them better than leaving a jar on the porch.
| Method | How | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Cold brew | Double the leaf (5 g per 8 oz) in cold water, in the fridge 6 hours to overnight | Smooth, low-bitterness iced tea; fruit blends and greens |
| Flash-chill | Steep double-strength at the chart temperature and time, then pour over a full glass of ice | Bright, aromatic iced tea in minutes |
| Brew and chill | Steep at normal strength, cool it, then refrigerate | Pitchers; add cool water gradually to avoid cloudy tea |
Fridge timing and the cloudiness tip from Ohio State University Extension. Double the leaf is our starting point. Taste, then adjust.
-
Our iced tea move
Savannah Sunrise's page says it's especially good cold brewed. Our summer move: 20 g of Savannah Sunrise in a quart of cold water, into the fridge overnight, strained in the morning. That's the double-leaf ratio from the chart, and it's the jar we want waiting when it's 90 out.
Why cold brew tastes softer
Less bitter by design
40%+
Cold-brewing green tea at 4°C pulled out more than 40% less caffeine than a hot brew at 80°C, with a little more L-theanine. Tasters got floral aroma, savory and sweet flavor, and a greener color (Food Chemistry, 2025).
Skip the sun tea
Warm jar, happy bacteria
130°F
Sun tea doesn't get much hotter than 130°F, which isn't hot enough to kill bacteria, and it sits warm for hours (Ohio State University Extension). Cold-brew in the fridge instead, keep your gear clean, and make only what you'll drink.
Teas that love ice
-
Black Tea
Savannah Sunrise
From $8.50
-
Herbal Tea
Organic Hibiscus Cucumber
From $12.25
-
Black Tea
Lemonberry Mint
From $11.25
-
Green Tea
Jasmine Citrus
From $9.00
-
Green Tea
Strawberry Cream
From $10.50
-
Green Tea
Raspberry Mint
From $10.50
Each tea's page calls out iced or cold brew. Organic Hibiscus Cucumber is caffeine-free.
Chapter 11
Wellness teas, without the overpromise
Some herbs have decent research. Many have long tradition. A cup of tea is not medicine, and we won't pretend it is.
Here's what credible sources actually say about ingredients in our blends. We stick to the National Institutes of Health and peer-reviewed reviews, and we use the word "may" because that's what the evidence supports. Most studies use extracts or supplements at research doses. A cup of a blend is a lot less than that.
| Ingredient | What credible sources say |
|---|---|
| Green tea | Studied for cholesterol: small drops in total and LDL cholesterol showed up mostly in studies of green tea extract supplements, not brewed tea. No safety concerns have been reported for green tea as a drink for adults, though it does contain caffeine (NCCIH). |
| Hibiscus | Studied for heart health: a 2022 review of 17 small trials linked hibiscus to modestly lower systolic blood pressure, mostly in adults whose pressure was already raised, and results varied a lot between studies (Nutrition Reviews, 2022). It isn't a substitute for blood pressure care. |
| Ginger | May help with nausea and vomiting in pregnancy; studies of motion sickness mostly haven't shown a benefit, and most studies used supplements, not tea (NCCIH) |
| Turmeric | Research on turmeric and curcumin is early; there isn't enough yet to say it helps for any health purpose (NCCIH) |
| Peppermint | Most research is on enteric-coated peppermint oil capsules, not tea. There's very little research on the peppermint leaf you steep, and not enough to say it helps any health condition (NCCIH). |
| Chamomile | Traditionally used as a calming herb; studies haven't produced enough reliable evidence yet (NCCIH) |
| Lavender | Studied mostly as an oral oil product; research on lavender tea is preliminary (NCCIH) |
| Ashwagandha | Some preparations may help with stress and sleep (NCCIH) |
Benefits are about ingredients, studied at research doses. Not about any one tin.
Chapter 12
Storage and freshness
Kept dry, tea doesn't spoil fast. It fades. Heat, moisture, oxygen and light do the fading.
A 2024 review of tea storage puts it plainly: heat, moisture, oxygen and light drive the changes that wear tea down, and poor storage is one of the most overlooked ways good tea gets ruined (Trends in Food Science & Technology, 2024). The fix is boring and it works.
| Tea | Over time | So |
|---|---|---|
| Green, yellow, lightly baked oolong | Quality drops with storage time | Drink these freshest |
| Heavily baked oolong, white tea, dark tea | Can improve with good storage | No rush, if stored well |
| Black tea | Changes, but not in a straight line | Taste as you go |
Categories from Lv et al., Trends in Food Science & Technology (2024). Matcha is powdered green tea, so handle it like green tea with more surface exposed: seal it tight and use it first.
Store it right
-
Fridge or freezer?
Only if the container is truly airtight. Cold tea pulled into a warm kitchen collects condensation, and moisture is what you're avoiding. If you do it, let the sealed container come to room temperature before you open it.
Tins and refills
Buy what you'll drink
≈14 cups
That's about how many 8 oz cups a 1.25 oz tin makes at our 2.5 g ratio. Most of our teas also come in 4 oz refill pouches (about 45 cups), and many in 8 oz and 1 lb. Keep the tin in the cabinet, keep the pouch sealed, and refill the tin as you go. Our rule: buy a tin you'll finish in about two months. Greens and whites lose their brightness first; blacks, oolongs and rooibos hold on longer. If it smells flat when you pop the lid, it'll taste flat in the cup.
Everyday staples, refill sizes
-
Black Tea
Golden Yunnan
From $9.50
-
Black Tea
Masala Chai
From $9.50
-
Black Tea
Duchess Grey
From $10.00
-
Herbal Tea
African Rose
From $10.50
Each comes in a tin plus 4 oz, 8 oz and 1 lb refill pouches.
Chapter 13
Tea for coffee drinkers
Tell us your roast. We'll hand you a tea.
We roast coffee for a living, and tea is our quiet obsession. If you already know your roast, you already know a lot about what you like. Start here.
| If you drink | Try | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Embers, Stagg or Apex (dark) | Golden Yunnan, Masala Chai | Chocolate and caramel, full-bodied enough to hold its own against coffee; bold Assam with spice |
| Forge (medium) | Ti Kuan Yin, Dragonwell | Nutty, toasty, buttery, smooth |
| Bloom (light-medium) | Kenyan Purple | Clean and fruit-forward: apricot, plum, walnut |
| Navigator (decaf) | African Rose, Apple Cider Rooibos, Organic Honeybush | Caffeine-free, smooth and naturally sweet |
| Midway (half-caf) | Hojicha Toffee, Kenyan Purple | Their pages list caffeine as mild and low |
| Lattes | Masala Chai, Duchess Grey, Ceremonial Organic Matcha Kakitsubata | Built for milk; see Chapter 9 |
| Cold brew | Savannah Sunrise | Its page says it's especially good cold brewed |
| Mulligan | Second Wind | A caffeine-free reset with peppermint and cinnamon |
| Roaster's Choice | Tea Masters Choice | Two tins, our pick. Same trust, different leaf |
Tea notes come from each tea's page. Roast levels are ours.
Where coffee people start
-
Black Tea
Golden Yunnan
From $9.50
-
Black Tea
Masala Chai
From $9.50
-
Black Tea
Kenyan Purple
From $16.50
-
Green Tea
Hojicha Toffee
From $10.00
-
Black Tea
Duchess Grey
From $10.00
-
Tea Masters Choice
Tea Masters Choice
$18.00
Bold black, spiced chai, bright purple, mellow roasted green, a latte-ready grey, or let us choose.
Straight answers
Questions people ask
The stuff people search before they put the kettle on.
Is herbal tea actually tea?
No. Real tea comes from the tea plant, Camellia sinensis; herbal tea is an infusion of other plants, like rooibos, hibiscus or mint. Everyone still calls it herbal tea. Most herbals have no caffeine, though yerba mate does.
Do green, black, white and oolong tea come from the same plant?
Yes. All four come from Camellia sinensis and differ in how the leaves are processed (NCCIH; Plants, 2025). Green tea is heated early to stop oxidation, black tea is fully oxidized, and oolong is partly oxidized.
Does tea have less caffeine than coffee?
Usually, yes. An 8 oz cup of brewed black tea averages about 48 mg of caffeine and green tea about 29 mg, versus about 96 mg for brewed coffee (Mayo Clinic). Matcha can get closer to coffee, because you drink the whole leaf.
Which tea has the most caffeine?
Matcha usually tops a typical serving, at about 38–89 mg in 2 g of powder (Molecules, 2020). Among steeped teas, type is a weak predictor: a lab study found white, green and black teas all ranged from 14 to 61 mg per serving with no clear pattern (Journal of Analytical Toxicology, 2008). Leaf amount and steep time matter more.
Is white tea low in caffeine?
Not necessarily. A German study of about 30 paired white and green teas found the dry white leaf often had more caffeine than the green (Journal of Consumer Protection and Food Safety, 2007). Less leaf, a shorter steep or cold brewing will lower it more reliably than picking white tea.
Is rooibos caffeine-free?
Yes. Rooibos comes from Aspalathus linearis, a South African plant that isn't the tea plant, and herbal teas tested in a lab study had no detectable caffeine (Journal of Analytical Toxicology, 2008). Our rooibos blends list caffeine-free on their pages.
What temperature should water be for green tea?
Use 175–185°F, below boiling, and steep 1–3 minutes (King's Gambit steep chart). Boiling water pulls out more bitter compounds and flattens green tea's sweeter notes. No variable kettle? Mix 4 parts just-boiled water with 1 part cold water.
How long should I steep black tea?
Steep straight black tea 5–8 minutes and flavored black tea 3–6 minutes, at 195–205°F (King's Gambit steep chart). Go past that and it turns bitter. Want it stronger? Add more tea, not more time.
How much loose leaf tea do I use per cup?
Start with 2.5 g of tea for every 8 oz of water, about 3.75 g for a 12 oz mug (King's Gambit steep chart). Weigh it once, since fluffy leaves and flowery blends take up more room in a spoon than tightly rolled tea.
Why does my tea taste bitter?
It's usually water that's too hot or a steep that's too long, especially for green, white, oolong and flavored teas. Match your water to the tea type, set a timer, and pull the leaves on time. For a stronger cup, use more leaf rather than more time.
Can you re-steep loose leaf tea?
Yes. Many whole-leaf teas, oolongs especially, hold up to a second steep and more. Each infusion tastes a little different as compounds come out of the leaf (Journal of Food Science, 2026). Steep a little longer each round.
What's the difference between ceremonial and culinary matcha?
Ceremonial matcha is meant to be whisked with water and drunk straight; culinary matcha is meant for baking and blended drinks. "Ceremonial" isn't an official Japanese grade, so judge matcha by origin, producer, color and taste.
How do you make a London Fog?
Steep an Earl Grey-style tea strong, then add steamed milk and a little vanilla. Try 5 g of Duchess Grey in 6 oz of 195–205°F water for 5 minutes, strain, and top with 6 oz of steamed milk.
Does cold brew tea have less caffeine?
Usually. In one study, cold-brewing green tea at 4°C extracted more than 40% less caffeine than hot brewing at 80°C (Food Chemistry, 2025). It also tasted sweeter and less bitter.
Is sun tea safe?
It's not the safe way to make iced tea. Sun tea rarely gets above 130°F, which isn't hot enough to kill bacteria, and it sits warm for hours (Ohio State University Extension). Cold-brew it in the fridge instead.
How should I store loose leaf tea?
Keep it airtight, dark, cool, dry and away from strong smells. Heat, moisture, oxygen and light are what break tea down (Trends in Food Science & Technology, 2024).
Does loose leaf tea expire?
Kept dry, it fades more than it spoils. Green tea and lightly baked oolong lose quality over time, while some white, dark and heavily baked oolong teas can improve with good storage (Trends in Food Science & Technology, 2024). If it smells flat or musty, it's done.
Can I drink herbal tea while pregnant?
Ask your doctor first, because some herbs aren't recommended. NCCIH flags St. John's wort, ashwagandha and large amounts of licorice in pregnancy, and ACOG advises keeping caffeine under 200 mg a day. Several of our blends name cautions on their pages.
Glossary
Words to know
- Camellia sinensis
- The tea plant. Every white, green, yellow, oolong, black and dark tea comes from its leaves and buds.
- Tisane
- An herbal or fruit infusion made from plants other than the tea plant. What most people call herbal tea.
- Oxidation
- The browning reaction that starts when leaf cells break and enzymes meet air. More oxidation moves tea from green toward black.
- Withering
- Letting fresh leaves rest and wilt so they lose moisture and soften before shaping.
- Fixing (kill-green)
- Heating leaves with steam or a hot pan to stop oxidation. It keeps green tea green.
- Rolling
- Twisting or shaping leaves, which breaks cells and sets the leaf's final shape.
- Orthodox
- Tea rolled and shaped as whole or large pieces of leaf, the traditional way.
- CTC
- Crush, tear, curl: a machine method that turns leaf into small granules for strong, quick-brewing black tea.
- Oolong
- Partly oxidized tea that sits between green and black. Oxidation can run from about 8% to 85%.
- Dark tea
- Tea aged with microbes for months to years. Pu-erh is the best-known type.
- Red tea (hong cha)
- The Chinese name for what the West calls black tea, after the color of the cup.
- Western style
- Brewing a modest amount of leaf in a mug or pot for one longer steep. Our steep chart is built for it.
- Gongfu
- Brewing lots of leaf in a small pot or gaiwan for many quick infusions.
- Gaiwan
- A lidded bowl with a saucer, used for steeping and pouring tea, especially gongfu style.
- Infusion
- One round of steeping. Re-steeping the same leaves gives you a second, third or fourth infusion.
- Matcha
- Shade-grown Japanese green tea that's steamed, dried and stone-ground into powder, then whisked into water.
- Usucha
- Thin matcha: about 2 g whisked into 60 mL of water.
- Koicha
- Thick matcha: about 4 g stirred into 30 mL of water.
- Chasen
- The bamboo whisk used to froth matcha.
- Hojicha
- Japanese green tea that's been roasted, which makes it nutty and toasty.
- Sencha
- A common style of steamed Japanese green tea. Our Spiced Fig Preserve is built on a Chinese sencha.
- Rooibos
- Aspalathus linearis, a caffeine-free plant grown only in South Africa, in and around the Cederberg region. Also called red bush.
- Honeybush
- A caffeine-free South African plant from the Cyclopia genus, sweeter and less earthy than rooibos.
- Yerba mate
- Ilex paraguariensis, a South American holly brewed like tea. Unlike most herbals, it has caffeine.
- Masala chai
- Spiced tea. Masala means spice blend; ours is Assam black tea with cardamom, star anise, cinnamon, clove, ginger and black pepper.
- London Fog
- An Earl Grey-style latte: bergamot black tea, steamed milk and a little vanilla.
- Bergamot
- A citrus fruit whose aroma flavors Earl Grey-style teas like Duchess Grey.
- L-theanine
- An amino acid in tea that tastes savory and sweet. Shading, like matcha gets, raises it.
- Catechins
- Tea's main polyphenols. They drive much of green tea's bitterness and astringency, and they're what oxidation transforms.
Where these facts come from
- NCCIH (NIH): Green Tea (updated February 2025)
- NCCIH (NIH): Licorice Root (updated April 2025)
- NCCIH (NIH): St. John's Wort (updated May 2025)
- NCCIH (NIH): Ashwagandha
- NCCIH (NIH): Turmeric (updated April 2025)
- NCCIH (NIH): Ginger (updated February 2025)
- NCCIH (NIH): Chamomile (updated November 2024)
- NCCIH (NIH): Peppermint Oil (updated May 2025)
- NCCIH (NIH): Lavender (updated February 2025)
- NCCIH (NIH): Echinacea (updated November 2024)
- Mayo Clinic: Caffeine content for coffee, tea, soda and more
- FDA: Spilling the Beans: How Much Caffeine Is Too Much?
- ACOG Committee Opinion 462: Moderate Caffeine Consumption During Pregnancy
- Chin et al., Caffeine Content of Brewed Teas, Journal of Analytical Toxicology (2008)
- Hilal & Engelhardt, Characterisation of white tea: Comparison to green and black tea, Journal of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (2007)
- Kochman et al., Health Benefits and Chemical Composition of Matcha Green Tea: A Review, Molecules (2020)
- Matcha as a Source of Bioactive Compounds: A Review, Nutrients (2026)
- Compositional Diversity of Bioactive Compounds in Japanese Green Tea: Matcha, Sencha and Gyokuro, Molecules (2026)
- Ippodo Tea: Is Ippodo's matcha "ceremonial grade"?
- Ippodo Tea: Ummon-no-mukashi preparation guide (usucha and koicha)
- Tea aroma formation from six model manufacturing processes, Food Chemistry (2019)
- Tea Consumption and Diabetes: A Review of Black, White, Green, Oolong and Pu-erh Teas, Plants (2025)
- Comparative studies of green tea, orthodox black tea and CTC black tea, Journal of Food Science and Technology (2024)
- FAO Intergovernmental Group on Tea: Current market situation and medium-term outlook, CCP:TE/24/2 (2024)
- Genomic analysis of 1,325 Camellia accessions, Nature Genetics (2025)
- Genetic diversity of tea plants from Yunnan Province, BMC Plant Biology (2024)
- Anthocyanin discoloration in purple tea cultivar TRFK 306, Planta (2021)
- Copper in soil and tea of Tieguanyin plantations in Anxi County, China, Toxics (2025)
- Jiji Press via The Nation: Shizuoka aims to reclaim top tea status with matcha focus (February 2026)
- SA Rooibos Council: GI and PDO
- South African herbal teas and bush tea blends (rooibos, honeybush), Foods (2022)
- Ilex paraguariensis (Yerba Mate): A Narrative Review, Nutrients (2026)
- UK Tea & Infusions Association: About Herbal Infusions
- Business Standard: FSSAI asks food businesses to stop calling herbal infusions 'tea' (December 2025)
- US Census Bureau: National Hot Tea Month, citing the Tea Association of the USA Tea Fact Sheet
- ISO 3103:2019 Tea: Preparation of liquor for use in sensory tests
- New Mexico State University Extension: High-Altitude Cooking (Guide E-215)
- The chemical basis of aroma, taste and color in cold-brewed green tea, Food Chemistry (2025)
- Effects of different types of water on cold-brewed green tea, Food Chemistry: X (2026)
- Effects of bicarbonate ions in tea brewing water, Foods (2026)
- Three Successive Infusions: A Traditional Green Tea Drinking Custom, Journal of Food Science (2026)
- Sensory and chemical changes in Bingdao ancient tree tea during multiple brewing, Foods (2025)
- IARC Monographs evaluate drinking coffee, maté and very hot beverages (PAHO/WHO, 2016)
- Ohio State University Extension: Is Sun Tea Safe?
- Ellis et al., Hibiscus sabdariffa and blood pressure: systematic review and meta-analysis, Nutrition Reviews (2022)
- Lv et al., Tea storage: A not thoroughly recognized and precisely designed process, Trends in Food Science & Technology (2024)
One plant. Endless cups.
Pick a type. Heat the water to match. Weigh your leaf, set a timer, and taste. Too weak? More leaf, same time. Then go further: a second steep, a cold brew, a whisked bowl of matcha, a London Fog on a gray morning. Every cup is an opening move. Stuck on one? Bring your question to our roastery storefront.
Tea comes with a few house rules, “Reward the Grind” chief among them. Not for everyone. Probably for you.