Tea With Rae: The Power of White

Without a doubt white has always been the color to symbolize purity, sacred, freshness, cleanliness and for the most part all things good. And without a doubt, this describes white tea. And while that sounds all good, in my mind white foods are always bland and sometimes boring. I mean take white rice, I don't know about you, but good Lord, it needs salt, sugar, butter, or a wonderful sauce to stimulate my pallet.

For that reason alone I never paid much attention to white teas. I'm such a black tea lover that white seems so opposite from black. For one, I love the strong bold taste of black and I assumed that a white tea could never compare to black, so what would be the point? But as I broaden my horizon's on this tea journey, I'm learning to never judge a tea by it's color.

So for the very first time, I tried a white tea last week. Well, I tried two white teas last week and I'm on a mission to find more. I'll tell you about the taste after I tell you a little about white tea and it's power. Looking at this picture of a camellia sinensis plant you can see it's natural beauty. And believe it or not, it's the same plant that harvests black, green and oolong teas. For Real. But there are a few differences. For one, white tea comes from the more delicate buds and younger leaves of the plant.

But the real difference is in the process to make this tea. After being picked, the buds are placed in natural sunlight to wither before they are lightly processed. This is done to prevent further oxidation and/or fermentation. In this scheme of things, this process preserves the color, the light delicate taste, and most of the antioxidants that give us health benefits from white tea.

And the health benefits are off the freaking chain! The thing that stuck out the most was the benefit for depression and for me that is important. It is no secret that I struggle with depression. I mean, shoot, if some of you lived one day in my shoes, it would be enough to send you over the edge. For Real. But depression is very common in people with HIV. That's why I have always been a big advocate of therapy and anti-depressants if needed. Meaning, if the physical effects of depression are present that may be a route one needs to consider.

But shoot, isn't it great to know that something as simple as tea can also help you on this journey. And don't act like it's just me. The winter months alone make us sad and decreases the serotonin in our brain. The shorter days with less sunlight has an effect on EVERYONE! I aint gonna bore you with all the details but here is a snapshot. White tea contains a compound called L-theanine. It's an amino acid that enters the brain and has shown to reduce different types of stress. It's a natural compound that works much like antidepressants by increasing the serotonin, dopamine, and gamma aminobutyric acid levels in the brain. And guess what, you can drink as much as you want, it's harmless. So when you are feeling blue, put that darn bottom down and have a cup of white tea!


Now to the good part. Did I like it? Yes! Yes! Yes! It was a much milder taste than black tea for sure. And if you are looking for that caffeine boost, look another way. It has about 1% caffeine. Sorry. But I tried  Pai Mu Tan from ESP Emporium. This particular tea is a sub category of white tea and comes from the plant white peony.

It's a light airy tea with a very mild spice taste. I always add a half packet of Splenda to boost the flavor. It will be a great tea after a long day at work. The color is more amber which throws the black tea drinker off a bit. The impulse is to brew longer, but please don't. Also, the hot water for white tea should not be as hot. Once you turn the tea kettle off, give it a minute or two. If the water is too hot it will scorch the tea leaves altering the taste.

I also had a blended white/green tea from ESP Emporium which was a tad more exciting. It's Pai Mu Tan: green tea, cinnamon rods and apple pieces. Snowflake reminded me of cinnamon, spice and the holidays. I also think those who find Chai Tea, like me, too overbearing with the spices, will find that they enjoy this blend of sweet caramel and spice. ESP Emporium have a host of blended white teas, I'm hoping they will let me try them to report back to you.

The thing about a white tea such as Pai Mu Tan is that the taste is so mild that you can mix it with another tea to get a bolder taste, or more caffeine and still have the health benefits! And did I say white tea boosts your metabolism and that's great for weight loss, lowers your cholesterol, lowers your blood pressure, has free-radicals that fight cancer, boosts your energy, and it has fluoride, huh? Yes, to help your teeth, relieves stress and the list goes on and on. Enuf Said!!!

ESP Emporium offers all my readers a 10% discount. The coupon code is TeaWithRae. Give them a try. They have one of the largest online tea selections I have ever seen. The teas are fresh and customer service is great!