http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ Seven Cups Tea Forum Topic: Tea Chemistry en Thu, 20 Nov 2008 13:05:30 +0000 http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/7#post-48 Fri, 02 Mar 2007 16:14:53 +0000 lucas 48@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>Green tea has less caffeine per steep than black tea, because you brew it in cooler water. For black tea, almost all the caffeine will dissolve in the first cup. For green, it will come out more slowly as the same leaves are brewed multiple times. Since all the caffeine hits you at once for black tea, the effect feels stronger. </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/7#post-47 Fri, 02 Mar 2007 09:06:43 +0000 Colin 47@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>I seem to remember reading somewhere (unfortunately I can't remember how credible the source) that the first leaves on the plant near the bud tended to have slightly more caffeine than leaves further down. Since typically these are used in higher quality teas, it seems like that means high quality teas have a little more caffeine on average. Maybe someone more knowledgeable on the matter can confirm or deny...</p> <p>I've wondered why it is that people have the notion that green tea has less caffeine than black -- that in general less oxidation means less caffeine. One hypothesis might be that the caffeine in less oxidized teas is released more slowly, spread out more over infusions, where black tea releases its caffeine more in the first infusion. I don't know if this is true, but if it were, it would mean less caffeine in the first infusion of green tea than black tea.</p> <p>Another possibility is that maybe there's more theanine in low oxidation tea... it's been suggested that that amino acid can mitigate some of the effects of caffeine.</p> <p>Anyone else have any insight? </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/7#post-46 Thu, 01 Mar 2007 22:35:25 +0000 admin 46@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>It is a myth that caffeine increases because of processing. The is however a change in the tea polyphenals and well as amino acids. I don't know about some of the other chemicals. According to Chinese medicine the less oxidation the more cooling, the greater the oxidation the more warming. You could think of cooling affecting inflammation types of disorders and warming affect metabolism disorders. Tea in general is concidered to be the perfect herb because it is the only one that can be used daily, and is important as a preventive medicine. The Chinese feel that tea is effective at addressing 20,000 issues. (In Chinese Culture, that's a lot)<br /> Austin<br /> Austin </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/7#post-26 Wed, 28 Feb 2007 04:46:55 +0000 andrew 26@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>What factors affect a tea’s antioxidant and caffeine content? Are there any reliable guidelines in estimating these chemical qualities in a particular a tea? In specific, how much of an impact does cellular oxidation have on a tea’s overall chemical qualities and health benefit? </p>