Know Your Tea

The Caffeine in Your Cup of Tea

  • The two main varietals of the plant are Camellia sinensis var. sinensis which is originally from China and Camellia sinensis var. assamica which is originally from India, with the former having lower caffeine content than the latter.
  • Teas harvested in spring tend to have higher caffeine content, especially silver-tip teas.
  • Shade-grown teas have more caffeine due to the stress response induced by the shading process.
  • Processing methods like cutting, crushing, or tearing the tea leaves produce a more concentrated cup of tea with higher caffeine levels.
  • Hot water also increases the caffeine content, with black teas having more caffeine than green or white teas that require cooler water.
  • Longer steeping time leads to higher caffeine levels, with black and pu-erh teas having more caffeine than white, green, or oolong teas.
  • Using more tea leaves results in a higher caffeine level while using fewer tea leaves leads to a weaker cup with lower caffeine content.

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