One of the most exquisite, rare, and most expensive teas in the world, White Tea is made from the hand-plucked fresh silver tea buds of the tea trees grown in the tea growing regions in high altitudes ranging from 2200m to 2500m.White tea produces a very light brew with citrus and honey flavour and is usually consumed without sugar, honey, or milk. The unique flavour and colour of Ceylon White Tea are mainly due to the unique harvesting and manufacturing process it undergoes in the hands of the expert tea makers
CEYLON WHITE TEA TYPES
Celebrated for its light honey colour and fruit flavour, White Tea is categorised into two categories namely; Ceylon Silver Tips and Golden Tips.
CEYLON SILVER TIPS
Silver Tips is made of leaves that are small and unopened, which is known as the imperial pluck. They are of silver mixed white in colour, with subtle hairs. Plucked before sunrise, generally, 5 kg of buds go into the making of 1kg of Ceylon Silver Tips.
CEYLON GOLDEN TIPS
Usually grown in higher altitudes in Sri Lanka, Ceylon Golden Tips is very similar to the celebrated silver needles tea but is of white golden colour. Made of the leaves that are small and unopened only a very small amount of golden tips is manufactured annually.
MANUFACTURING PROCESS
Harvested just once a year, manufacturing of Ceylon White Tea involves a special process that includes hand-harvesting the tea and slow processing of the plucked tea leaves.
HARVESTING THE TEA LEAVES
Selection and hand plucking the perfect tips or the tea leaf buds is the first step in making a perfect cup of Ceylon White Tea. Only slightly curved tea buds, just over 2.5 cm, covered with silver or golden hair goes into the making of Ceylon White Tea. As these types of fresh leaves are comparatively scarce amidst the tea plantations in Sri Lanka, it usually takes a tea plucker a comparatively longer time to search for white silver or gold buds.
WITHERING
The hand-plucked fresh tea buds are then rolled by hand to create the curved thin silver buds that are left to wither and dry in the shaded sun.
DRYING
As the last step hand-rolled tea leaves are left to dry in the shaded sun to prevent oxidation of tea leaves and maintain their flavour naturally as much as possible. As Ceylon White Tea is the least processed of Ceylon Black, Green, and White Tea they retain a higher percentage of polyphenols that are naturally found in tea (Camellia sinensis) leaves.
While the process of Ceylon White Tea production is costlier in comparison to the processing of black tea, the country’s white tea fetches a premium price in the global tea market. Sri Lankan white tea manufacturers have also developed specialised products like Virgin White Tea, and organic white tea for the global markets, where they are celebrated for their flavour, fragrance and multitude of benefits.
BENEFITS OF CEYLON WHITE TEA
- Has a higher percentage of polyphenols, which offers antioxidant and antimicrobial qualities
- A higher presence of Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) reduces inflammation, aids weight loss, and helps prevent heart and neurodegenerative diseases.
- Polyphenols in white tea reduce signs of early ageing
PRODUCTION IN SRI LANKA
Ceylon Tea production in Sri Lanka is done mainly under orthodox methods. Although the country’s export of White Tea is comparatively insignificant at the moment, the country follows the same stringent quality certifications that apply to Ceylon Black Tea and Ceylon Green Tea.
The Sri Lanka Tea Board (SLTB) is responsible for the monitoring of quality standards of tea at the point of sale, pre-shipments as well as inspection of warehouses of brokers, blenders and exporters. Ceylon Tea Board provides advisory services on hygienic blending and storing. Additionally, it regulates, controls and directs all institutions and organizations engaged in the management of tea estates and in the production and marketing of tea.
