Where to Buy and Taste Tea in Shanghai: Your Guide To Chinese Tea

In China, the saying goes, “You can study tea all of your life and still not learn the names of all the different kinds.” But there’s better time to start than when you’re traveling in Shanghai or other Chinese cities.

As popular as tea is, don’t expect to be served a free pot when seated as in Chinese restaurants in the West. Most mid-level establishments and above will have a range of teas on hand to order by the pot or glass, and hole-in-the-wall establishments only serve bottled sugary varieties, “tea water” (茶水 cháshui) or incredibly diluted cheap, no-name tea.

If you are purchasing tea leaves or wares anywhere near tourist areas, be prepared to bargain heavily and don’t expect the best quality. And NEVER EVER follow anyone from the street who engages you in conversation and tries to lead you to a tea shop; this is the well-known tea scam.

WHITE TEA (白茶 BÁICHÁ)

White tea is made of the youngest buds plucked from the bush for only a two-day period in early spring, hence the sky-high price. The leaves are actually green, but have silver hairs in them, earning the “white” moniker.

Processing: White tea is lightly steamed to stop the oxidization process, making it the least processed of any tea.

Serving: The delicate young leaves should be served with boiled water that has been allowed to cool for a few minutes. Glass or ceramic tea cups and pots are best.

Health Benefits: Since it undergoes very little processing, it retains the most antioxidants, including cancer- fighting flavonoids and cholesterol-lowering polyphenols. It’s been shown to lower blood pressure and decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease and also has antibacterial and antiviral properties.

GREEN TEA (绿茶 LÙCHÁ)

While white tea leaves only have a two day season, green tea’s picking period stretches over a month, half before Tomb-Sweeping Festival in early April and the remaining half after. The first pickings are the most valued, often used to grease the palms of government officials with prices reaching into the thousands of yuan per jin (500 grams). The most famous of the Chinese green teas is the “Dragon Well” (龙 井 lóngjing) variety, grown in a village of the same name outside of Hangzhou.

Processing: Green tea leaves are steamed, then “ red”, meaning either pan- fried in a wok or dried with hot air.

Serving: Boiled water should be allowed to cool to 70 degrees Celsius before being added to the leaves, which can be steeped for several minutes. Glass or ceramic teaware is best.

Health Benefits: Studies have shown green tea drinkers are at a lower risk of viral infections, bacterial infections, cardiovascular disease, cancer, kidney disease, stroke, periodontal disease and osteoporosis. In addition, green tea lowers cholesterol and blood pressure, promotes fat loss, prevents cognitive diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s and improves insulin stability in Type II diabetics.

OOLONG TEA (乌龙茶 WŪLÓNGCHÁ)

In Chinese, oolong translates to “ebony dragon”, but the tea is considered “blue” because its processing falls somewhere in between green and red teas. One of the most impressive teas in China, oolong is considered kung fu (which in reality means something dif cult to master, rather than simply a martial art) and has the most variety in avors. The most famous oolong teas are iron Buddha (铁观音 tiěguānyīn) and red robe (大红袍 dàhóngpáo), both from Fujian province and Taiwan.

Processing: Partially dried through a variety of processes (including withering in the sun and heating in a tumbler), the oxidization level of the remaining leaves ranges from 15 to 75 percent, depending on which variety you are trying.

Serving: The processing makes oolong teas heartier than green and white varieties, so near boiling water can be used for steeping. Porcelain and glass tea wares pair with oolong.

Health benefits: The antioxidants in oolong tea are at their most effective when paired with digestive enzymes, so it’s best to drink after a meal. This corresponds with Traditional Chinese Medicine thinking that it aids digestion and helps cleanse the body. It’s also been shown to sharpen critical thinking skills and improve overall mental alertness, due to its caffeine properties.

BLACK TEA (红茶 HÓNGCHÁ)

This fully oxidized tea is considered “red” in Chinese, although Westerners would consider it “black”. Pu’er tea (普洱) from Yunnan province is the most famous varietal.

Processing: Initially treated like green tea, “raw” pu’er tea undergoes pan-frying then sun-drying before being compressed into cakes. The cakes are then allowed to “ferment” for months, and sometimes years, where microbes become a part of the process, making it a “living tea”. Aged pu’er is like a ne wine in China – the older it is, the more valuable. The process for making “cooked” pu’er is sped up, achieving similar results in 40 days.

Serving: Black tea can withstand near boiling temperatures and should be served in a clay pot made of purple clay that absorbs and rereleases flavors over the years of use.

Health benefits: Because it has living bacteria in it, pu’er has similar health bene ts to other “fermented” foods like yogurt and kefir. It’s widely marketed as a weight loss aid and is often consumed after heavy meals or a night of excessive drinking to help break down waste and eliminate toxins. It has also been shown to improve cardiovascular health and decrease the risk of stroke by reducing cholesterol.