If you have purchased elite Chinese tea or received it as a gift, be sure to pay attention to the rules for storing dry tea. If stored incorrectly, tea will lose all its positive properties and taste.
Brewing Chinese tea correctly is not enough - it is also important to store it properly. Improper storage can deteriorate the taste of tea, and it can also lose some of its beneficial properties. In addition, do not forget that any tea has an expiration date. Unlike alcoholic beverages and some types of pu-erh, which only get better with aging, most green and white teas deteriorate from long-term storage. The normal shelf life for green tea is 1 to 2 years.
The main enemy of any tea is dampness. Dampness causes the tea to grow moldy and acquire an unpleasant sour smell. If the tea in the storage container is damp, you can safely throw it away. Likewise, tea loses its beneficial properties if stored in a too dry place, being hermetically sealed. The tea must "breathe".
Avoid places that are too hot for storing tea bags. Never place boxes of tea near a radiator or on a windowsill: the heat from direct sunlight or central heating appliances dries up the tea leaves, making them lifeless. The heat spoils ordinary green tea, oolong tea, and pu-erh tea. The best way to keep tea as long as possible is to store it in a dry and dark place with air access at room temperature not exceeding 20 degrees.
Despite the fact that the packaging should not be airtight, no foreign odors should penetrate into it. Tea absorbs any odors very quickly, so it should not be kept open. As for the packaging material, it is strictly forbidden to store dry tea in plastic, plastic, cardboard or paper containers. It is also not recommended to store tea in low-quality cans. Tea can be stored in glass jars for a relatively short time, and their transparency impairs its properties, since the tea leaf does not tolerate direct sunlight.
Best of all, various varieties of Chinese tea are stored in natural wood boxes. They provide a natural microclimate, "breathe", maintain an optimal level of humidity. Ceramic and clay jars with lids are also traditional packaging for tea. Tin cans, in which tea is often sold in stores, are suitable for short-term storage.
