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Omni Tea, Dragon Well Organic Green Tea

Also known as Long Jing, Dragon Well is the most renowned Chinese green tea. It’s name is derived from Dragon’s Well landmark in the West Lake area of Zhejiang, which is the origin of the tea.

A short trip outside of Shanghai, lies the tranquil city of Hongzhou with its sloping hilled terraces lined with row upon row of tea plants. On a peaceful and sunny afternoon dozens of mostly female workers can be seen hunched over the leaves, gently plucking them from the branches. This is Dragon Well tea, the most famous green tea in the world.

The harvest time for Longjing tea is a short six weeks, with the first two weeks producing the superior grade. Once picked, the leaves must be hand roasted the same day. A roaster uses his or her bare hands in order to feel both the heat and the dryness of the leaves. Once roasted, the leaves are ready for immediate consumption.

It was widely known that to achieve the best taste from Longjing, spring water from the "Hu Pao Quan" was to be used. Water is boiled then cooled to about 80 degrees Celsius before being used to brew the tea leaves. Tea experts at Xi Hu insist on using fine china or glasses to brew Longjing (minerals in porous earthenware such as Zisha may disrupt the taste of the tea).

When steeped, the tea produces a yellow-green color, a gentle, pure aroma, and a rich flavor. The tea contains Vitamin C, amino acids, and has one of the highest concentration of catechins among teas, second only to white teas.

Omni Tea, Green Tea Mint

A delicious aromatic blend of peppermint leaves and slow-roasted green tea.

Green tea is a type of tea made solely with the leaves of Camellia sinensis that has undergone minimal oxidation during processing. Green tea originates from China and has become associated with many cultures in Asia from Japan to the Middle East. Recently, it has become more widespread in the West, where black tea is traditionally consumed. Many varieties of green tea have been created in countries where it is grown. These varieties can differ substantially due to variable growing conditions, processing and harvesting time.

Peppermint flowers

Peppermint was first described by Carolus Linnaeus from specimens that had been collected in England; he treated it as a species, but it is now universally agreed to be a hybrid.

Peppermint typically occurs in moist habitats, including stream sides and drainage ditches. Being a hybrid, it is usually sterile, producing no seeds and reproducing only vegetatively, spreading by its rhizomes.

Peppermint is sometimes regarded as 'the world's oldest medicine', with archaeological evidence placing its use at least as far back as ten thousand years ago. Peppermint has a high menthol content, and is often used as a flavouring in tea, ice cream, confectionery, chewing gum, and toothpaste. The oil also contains menthone and menthyl esters, particularly menthyl acetate. It is the oldest and most popular flavour of mint-flavoured confectionery. Peppermint can also be found in some shampoos and soaps, which give the hair a minty scent and produce a cooling sensation on the skin.

In 2007, Italian investigators reported that 75% of the patients in their study who took peppermint oil capsules for four weeks had a major reduction in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) symptoms, compared with just 38% of those who took a placebo.

Omni Tea, Jasmine Green Tea

A sweet blend of fresh jasmine blossoms with organic green tea

Green tea is a type of tea made solely with the leaves of Camellia sinensis that has undergone minimal oxidation during processing. Green tea originates from China and has become associated with many cultures in Asia from Japan to the Middle East. Recently, it has become more widespread in the West, where black tea is traditionally consumed. Many varieties of green tea have been created in countries where it is grown.

Jasmine tea is consumed in China, where it is called jasmine-flower tea (茉莉花茶; pinyin: mò lì huā chá). Jasminum sambac flowers are also used to make so-called jasmine tea, which often has a base of green tea, but sometimes an Oolong base is used. Flowers and tea are "mated" in machines that control temperature and humidity. It takes four hours or so for the tea to absorb the fragrance and flavour of the jasmine blossoms, and for the highest grades, this process may be repeated as many as seven times. Because the tea has absorbed moisture from the flowers, it must be refired to prevent spoilage. The spent flowers may or may not be removed from the final product, as the flowers are completely dry and contain no aroma. Giant fans are used to blow away and remove the petals from the denser tea leaves. If present, they simply add visual appeal and are no indication of the quality of the tea.

Over the last few decades green tea has been subjected to many scientific and medical studies to determine the extent of its long-purported health benefits, with some evidence suggesting regular green tea drinkers may have lower chances of heart disease and developing certain types of cancer. Green tea has also been claimed as useful for "weight loss management" - a claim with no scientific support according to medical databases such as PubMed.

Health Benefits of Tea

Polyphenols and flavonoids

The ancient Chinese considered tea medicine. Ancient Chinese proverbs describe tea ‘as a miraculous way to prolong life.’ Today science is confirming much of what Chinese folklore has known for millennia. Studies all over the world have reported that tea, especially green and oolong tea, reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease, lowers bad cholesterol levels, prevents many of the cancers common in the modern era, lowers blood sugar levels, raises metabolism reducing body fat, and prevents tooth decay and bad breath.
Tea, especially green and oolong tea, contains large amounts of polyphenol, a naturally occurring antioxidant compound. Antioxidants work to neutralize free radicals, which are implicated in a host of chronic illnesses, including cancer and heart disease. Studies indicate that the polyphenol found in green and oolong teas have an antioxidant effect more powerful than vitamin E. Polyphenols are also known to keep the influenza virus in check.
Tea naturally contains the minerals fluoride and manganese, as well as vitamins C, B2, D and K and a number of amino acids. Clearly, tea is one of those earthly wonders, delicious and good for one’s health.

Health Benefits of Tea: Green, Black, and White Tea

From Web MD

Tea is a name given to a lot of brews, but purists consider only green tea, black tea, white tea, oolong tea, and pu-erh tea the real thing. They are all derived from the Camellia sinensis plant, a shrub native to China and India, and contain unique antioxidants called flavonoids. The most potent of these, known as ECGC, may help against free radicals that can contribute to cancer, heart disease, and clogged arteries. All these teas also have caffeine and theanine, which affect the brain and seem to heighten mental alertness.

The more processed the tea leaves, usually the less polyphenol content. Polyphenols include flavonoids. Oolong and black teas are oxidized or fermented, so they have lower concentrations of polyphenols than green tea; but their antioxidizing power is still high.

Here's what some studies have found about the potential health benefits of tea:
Green tea: Made with steamed tea leaves, it has a high concentration of EGCG and has been widely studied. Green tea’s antioxidants may interfere with the growth of bladder, breast, lung, stomach, pancreatic, and colorectal cancers; prevent clogging of the arteries, burn fat, counteract oxidative stress on the brain, reduce risk of neurological disorders like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, reduce risk of stroke, and improve cholesterol levels.

Black tea: Made with fermented tea leaves, black tea has the highest caffeine content and forms the basis for flavored teas like chai, along with some instant teas. Studies have shown that black tea may protect lungs from damage caused by exposure to cigarette smoke. It also may reduce the risk of stroke.

White tea: Uncured and unfermented. One study showed that white tea has the most potent anticancer properties compared to more processed teas.

Oolong tea: In an animal study, those given antioxidants from oolong tea were found to have lower bad cholesterol levels. One variety of oolong, Wuyi, is heavily marketed as a weight loss supplement, but science hasn’t backed the claims.

Pu-erh tea: Made from fermented and aged leaves. Considered a black tea, its leaves are pressed into cakes. One animal study showed that animals given pu-erh had less weight gain and reduced LDL cholesterol.

Can Tea Be Bad for Your Health?

from Web MD

Most teas are benign, but the FDA has issued warnings about so-called dieter’s teas that contain senna, aloe, buckthorn, and other plant-derived laxatives.
The agency also warns consumers to be wary of herb-containing supplements that claim to kill pain and fight cancer. None of the claims is backed by science and some of the herbs have led to bowel problems, liver and kidney damage, and even death.
The FDA cautions against taking supplements that include:
Comfrey
Ephedra
Willow bark
Germander
Lobelia
Chaparral
These cautions aside, nutritionists say to drink up and enjoy the health benefits of tea.
“You want to incorporate healthy beverages in your diet on a more regular basis to benefit from these health-promoting properties," says Diane L. McKay, PhD, a Tufts University scientist who studies antioxidants. "It’s not just about the foods; it’s about what you drink, as well, that can contribute to your health."