Steamed Green Tea

Steamed Green Tea

　　Steamed green tea refers to finished green tea produced using a tea fixation process that employs steam.

　　The birthplace of steamed green tea is China. It is one of the earliest types of tea invented by the Han people in ancient China, predating pan-fired green tea. According to the "Tea Sage" Lu Yu's *Classic of Tea*, its production method is described as: “On sunny days, pick the leaves. Steam them, pound them, pat them, bake them, thread them, seal them—the tea is then dried.” In other words, freshly picked tea leaves are softened by steaming or briefly boiling ("blanching"), then rolled, dried, pressed, and shaped.

　　The new processing techniques for steamed green tea preserve more internal components such as chlorophyll, proteins, amino acids, and aromatic substances. This results in the quality characteristics known as "three greens and one freshness"—namely, emerald green color, tender green liquor, and jade-green leaves; the tea has a fresh, sweet, and mellow taste with a seaweed-like flavor reminiscent of mung bean or chestnut aroma.