If you want the best flavor and green tea benefits, there are two important things to keep in mind.
As stated on another great informational tea site, Learn-About-Tea.com, freshness is key. And I agree!
I have many varieties of green tea as well as other types in my cupboard (mostly sample sizes), and each one came in a sealed container.
Fresh loose leaf green tea will stay for about a year if kept in a cool dry place, but after that it will grow old and you will lose your flavor along with your green tea benefits.
To avoid spoiling and extending shelf life, there are things some people do like refrigerating or freezing. However, I recommend against this for a BIG reason!
If you do this, you will do more harm then good, and here is why. Tea, like coffee grains and baking soda, will naturally absorb any odors in your refrigerator. Can you imagine how that brew will taste then? Yuck!
Now of course you can always seal it really good, but you will still compromise flavor. Even though sealing will help protect against odor abortion, you still won't get a fresh-tasting cup after time...I've tried it.
So, to get the most green tea benefits and green tea flavor, enjoy your tea within the first year (or six months if purchased in the middle of the year), and carefully follow the brewing instructions and my brewing tips.
Loose leaf is king!
If you want to obtain the most green tea benefits and flavor, I have another tip...loose leaf!
Brewing green tea by the tea bags found on supermarket selves is always inferior compared to brewing loose leaf. You will get a bitter more grassier cup, and fewer benefits.
Whole leaf is the only way to enjoy green tea, as well as appearing quite impressive when you bring out that freshly brewed pot in front of family or friends.
Just keep these few tips in mind and you will gain many tasteful cups loaded with the most benefits!
