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Tea is a universal beverage. It contains caffeine -- a mild ___1___
-- and tannin. The tea bush is thought to be a native of Assam
in India, and of China. It became
___2___ in Europe in the
seventeenth century. Tea grows best in hot, moist climate,
especially in hilly areas. Although the tea plant is a small
tree, it is ___3___
to grow as a shrub to a height of 0.9 to 1.20 meters. This is to
make it easy to harvest the tender shoot tips, which yield the
best tea.
___4___ or cutting back
of the growth gives constant regrowth of the shoots. White or
pinkish flowers are produced between the leaf and the stems, and
are followed by fruits.
New trees are grown from seeds. The leaves are usually ___5___
hand. The preparation of tea from the fresh leaves is done in
various ways, depending on the type of tea required. But, all
tea is first dried in the sun and then ___6___
heavy rollers. The leaves used for making black tea, the most
familiar tea, is fermented under humid conditions. Those for
green tea are not fermented. The tea leaves are sorted and
graded in foil-lined tea chests to protect the contents and ___7___
the flavor. Different aromas and flavors are produced by adding
sweet-scented flowers such as jasmine and chrysanthemum. The
Arabs ___8___ their tea with
mint. However, the characteristic taste of tea is due to the
oils in the leaf.
The tea leaf is also used in other ways. in Myanmar, it is
used as a vegetable or pickle. In Japan and China, Buddhists eat
it during meditation as part of the religious ceremonial
rituals. In Thailand, the leaves are ___9___
some villagers. In Mongolia, tea is stewed with water until soft
and then eaten with stale butter.
Tea has also been credited with medicinal ___10___.
At one time, it was believed that the rare incidence of heart
disease in China is due to tea-drinking. |
