Buying loose leaves generally gives you a higher quality of tea than the inexpensive green tea bags purchased in grocery stores. Well, cultivated in China s West Lake region, is considered on of the highest quality green teas. Gunpowder and Sliver Tip are also flavorful Chinese green teas readily found in the West. Tea companies such as The Republic of Tea and Tazo make delicious blends of green tea leaves and other herbs. Black tea, such as Lipton, English Breakfast and Earl Gray are more common in Western cultures than are green or oolong teas.
Black teas contain more caffeine than green.
Black, oolong and green teas come from the same plant, Camellia sinenis . The difference is that to make black tea, the leaves are dried, crushed and fermented. Crushing releases enzymes that oxidize the leaves, leaving them black. Oolong teas, such as jasmine, are oxidized for a shorter period of time, leaving them lighter in color, sometimes even red. Green tea leaves are steamed, rolled and then dried.