Tea Blog

Writing articles for The English Tea Store online tea retailer and blog and publishing a tea site of my own means I spend a fair amount of time researching tea. While I’ve learned quite a bit over the years, the more technical aspects of tea science are a reminder of just how much there is still to understand.

It should come as no surprise that China has made substantial contributions to tea research. As the birthplace of tea cultivation and one of the world’s leading producers, the country has invested heavily in studying tea from both agricultural and scientific perspectives.

One example is the long-running Journal of Tea Science, which has been publishing research since at least 1964. You can explore recent issues of the Journal of Tea Science covering agricultural, chemical, and sensory studies through its online archive.

As expected, many of the articles in such journals are highly technical. Titles such as Establishment of Predictive Model for Quantitative Analysis of Major Components in Jasmine Tea by Near Infrared Spectroscopy or Dynamic Variation of Chemical Pattern Related to Aroma Constituents during the Quality Formation of Fresh Scent-Flavor Oolong Tea are more suited to specialists than casual readers.

That said, some papers may be more accessible to general audiences, including those examining practical topics like the effects of storage, processing, or consumer behavior. Others may appeal to readers interested in more unusual or experimental approaches, such as research highlighted in this collection of unusual or unconventional scientific studies related to tea.

One limitation of academic publishing is access. In many cases, only abstracts are freely available online, while full articles require subscriptions or institutional access. Even when links are provided, access to full text may vary.

For those looking to explore additional scholarly research, the Journal of Tea Science Research featuring peer-reviewed studies on tea cultivation, chemistry, and processing offers another collection of technical papers.

See more of William I. Lengeman’s articles in this archive of tea-related writing by the author.

© Online Stores, Inc., and The English Tea Store Blog. Unauthorized use is prohibited. Excerpts allowed with proper credit.