Tea-n-age

 https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/green-specialty-teas-emerging-trends-indian-urban-consumers-verma The Indian tea industry is estimated to be at a whopping Rs 22000 crore annually (US $ 3.35 billion) and is steadily increasing. Indians are continuously seeking changes in their lifestyles and food habits and experimenting with cuisines and beverages. Green tea is now a brand in itself . It has established a segment of tea drinkers, who are more health-conscious, and also those who lead a lifestyle where a routine diet cannot be followed. India stands third in the global tea industry in terms of retail volumes & traditional styles of tea consumption are gradually changing in Metro’s & A Class cities. Consumers are looking for unique tea varieties and tea-drinking experience & Specialty teas is the fastest growing segment in the industry. Current Trends in Specialty Tea in India are defined by : Shifting Demographics, Affluence, Education, youth, health consc...

Here is an email I received from my friend James Dingnan in Tianjin , China . He and his wife run a family business on blooming teas . I found it rather interesting and definitely worth a read : Flowering tea or blooming tea   consist each of a bundle of dried tea leaves wrapped around one or more dried flowers . These are made by binding tea leaves and flowers together into a bulb and are then set to dry. When steeped, the bundle expands and unfurls in a process that emulates a blooming flower, while the flowers inside emerge as the centerpiece. Typically they are sourced from the Yunnan province of China . Flowers commonly used in flowering teas include globe amaranth , chrysanthemum , jasmine , lily , hibiscus , and osmanthus . It remains uncertain whether flowering tea was developed in the 1980s or was a much older invention of China . Flowering tea is generally served in containers made of glass, or other transparent material, so that the flowering eff...