TEA

Leaves, buds — Origin: Asia

Camellia sinensis or Thea sinensis

LEAF BY LEAF

In the wild, depending on the variety, this evergreen shrub can reach heights of between sixteen and fifty feet. Like many tropical species, Camellia sinensis alternates between periods of intense growth and periods of rest. Only the vegetative part of the plant—the bud and the two leaves that are attached to it—is harvested. When it comes to growing tea, the name of the game is to avoid the beautiful, white, and fragrant blossoming of the tree, so as to maintain it in a permanent state of vegetative growth. Cultivating it requires a warm, even climate: it thrives more readily in elevated equatorial regions. One tea leaf contains more caffeine than a coffee bean. Nowadays, tea is the most widely consumed drink in the world, after water.

TEACHINGS FROM TIME IMMEMORIAL

A 6th-century legend says that a Hindu monk, Bodhidharma, who had come to China to preach the Chan school of Buddhism, had vowed not to sleep for nine years. Yet after a few years, he fell asleep at the foot of a tree. Angry with himself, he cut off his eyelids and buried them. At this exact spot, a plant named tch’a, whose leaves looked like eyelids, took root. Consuming it enabled him to stay awake. . . . China prides itself on owning the world’s oldest tea trees. It is said that tea originates from Xishuangbanna, a region in Yunnan Province, where a famed tea tree named Bada is reportedly 1,700 years old. Drinking tea as an infusion, which in China goes back to the 8th century BC, is elaborated upon in the Shijing, the Book of Songs. Tea clarifies the spirit, eases digestion, and neutralizes toxins, according to Chinese medicine. In Japan, where beauty is tackled holistically—with an emphasis on the outside appearance reflecting inner well-being—the “Way of Tea” is the name of a way of being, an aesthetic, almost an art, connected to the tea ceremony. Tea was introduced in Europe by the Portuguese in the 16th century. It became popular a century later through its trade by the French East India Company.

ON COLLECTING TEA

Tea cultivation is a perennial affair: the leaves are plucked periodically throughout the year, at varying intervals depending on the region and season. In Darjeeling, India, one of the world’s most celebrated tea-growing regions, the leaves are harvested more than forty times a year. The first harvest of the new year, after winter has allowed the leaves to get highly concentrated in essential oils, is the most highly prized. The harvest is performed manually, often with no other tool than the tea picker’s fingers. In order to keep the tea green, natural oxidation is arrested through quick heat-drying. In Japan, the leaves are steamed, which is the surest way to preserve their vitamins. For black tea, the leaves are left to wilt for about twenty hours, and are then rolled to hasten oxidation. Once the proper level of oxidation has been reached, the leaves are exposed to an elevated temperature so as to stop the process.

THE BENEFITS

With its high concentration of polyphenols, including highly effective epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), green tea is a potent antioxidant. The presence of tannins further enhances this action. Its high caffeine content makes it an efficient booster in slimming treatments.

A FEW PINCHES

Prepare the most effective of radiance-boosting treatments: a teaspoon of powdered green tea (matcha), emulsified in your preferred vegetable oil (wheat germ is ideal for lifeless complexions . . .). Compresses soaked with warm tea will soothe and decongest weary eyes.

TEA-BASED RECIPES

from Officine universelle

MIZUDASHI LOTION

Why make anything more complicated than it has to be? Combine the pleasures and the vitamin-rich virtues of iced green tea—both as a drink and a lotion.

Preserve the properties of green tea thanks to the cold extraction of a handful of sencha tea leaves in two cups of mineral water. Allow to infuse in the fridge for at least two hours. Drink a glass of this iced tea while running a tea-soaked cotton pad over your face.

A refreshing radiance booster, to be enjoyed as often as is necessary during heat waves.

GREEN TEA BATH SALT

For those who swear by bathing in the morning, this highly invigorating bath salt will make it easier to face the day.

Into a glass or ceramic bowl, pour a level tablespoon of powdered green tea, known as “matcha,” and three level tablespoons of unrefined coarse sea salt, and mix thoroughly after adding three drops of the natural oil of your choice. Pour this mixture under the stream of hot water, allow to melt and infuse for three minutes, stirring the water, then step into the tub.

GO GREEN

In the privacy of your bathroom, transform yourself into a little green man under this preventive mask, which alleviates the noxious effects of “oxidative stress”—whether from the weather, the office environment, or pollution peaks.

In a glass or ceramic bowl, mix 2¹/₂ teaspoons of powdered green tea (matcha), one tablespoon of superfine Pascalite clay, and one tablespoon of lemon balm hydrolate. Gently apply to the face. Leave on for about ten minutes, then rinse with fresh water.

SLIMMING BODY SCRUB

No miracle here: only regular exfoliation and massage of the most sensitive areas will improve the skin’s appearance. And to that end, tea is a stalwart ally!

In a glass or ceramic bowl, mix one tablespoon of green tea, one teaspoon of organic brown sugar, and one tablespoon of daisy macerate. Rub this mixture over the body, focusing on the belly, upper thighs, arms, legs, and ankles. Finish this treatment by showering the whole body with fresh water, being careful not to slip.