White Tea And Black Tea: What Is The Difference

It goes without saying that black tea is the most popular form of tea that is famous across the globe. At first, people only knew of black tea and from a long time it is simply referred to as ‘tea’. However, in the recent past, we can find many kinds of tea available in the local market such as white tea, green tea, oolong tea and so on. Among all kinds of tea, the one that has been gaining popularity across the world at a very quick rate is the white tea. Let us compare both white tea and black tea and understand their difference.
Manufacture

Both white tea and black tea come from the same plant called carnellia sinensis. To make white tea, only delicate and young leaves are used. Then the leaves are harvested early during the spring time. After drying it gently, they are packaged and sent. Since the white tea is shipped early, the tea is fresh and contains high antioxidant content. For making black tea, the leaves are kept for a long time on the plants. After harvesting is done, the leaves are treated are allowed to wilt by blowing air. The leaves are then oxidized which results in breakage of chlorophyll which makes the leaves turn into black color. One can understand the quality of the tea by determining the oxidation level of the leaves.
Antioxidants

From the manufacturing process, you can understand that white tea is more beneficial for the health as it contains higher amounts of antioxidants as it is least processed tea. On the other hand, the antioxidant content of black tea is quite less as compared to white tea or any other type of tea.
Flavor

The very first thing you will feel after you taste white tea is its freshness and subtleness. If you have been drinking black tea from a long time, you may feel that white tea is quite faint and watery. Black tea can be enjoyed when you add milk, sugar and cream to it whereas white tea can be enjoyed without adding anything.

Caffeine
Caffeine can greatly alter the normal functionality of the brain as it has the ability to constrict the blood vessels. It is very addictive and it functions and stimulates the brain like lethal drugs such as cocaine and heroin. Studies conducted over the years have shown that black tea has higher level of caffeine as compared to any other type of tea. In one bag of black tea, you can find 40mg of caffeine whereas there is only 15mg of caffeine in white tea.
Price

As compared to black tea, white tea is somewhat rare. While producing white tea, only young, delicate and finest leaves are used. This increases the value of the white tea. Black tea is developed in larger volumes with less effort as compared to white tea. Hence, the prices of white tea are higher than any other tea. One important fact about white tea, that you can lesser quantity of it to brew a cup of tea.
Appearance

Black tea does not look completely black in appearance. It is slightly reddish in color. Hence, it is also referred to as red tea in many countries like China. On the other hand, white appears golden and somewhat similar to white wine. Black tea lovers drink tea in any kind of cups. However, white lovers prefer to drink their tea in transparent colors so that can enjoy the golden tinge.