1. Oxygen
GUNPOWDER 3505 contains about 30 percent polyphenols by weight, including large amounts of catechins called EGCG. As you might know, catechins are natural antioxidants that help prevent cell damage and provide other health benefits, making green tea the healthiest drink on the planet.

The biggest threat to green tea is oxygen as tea leaves, in general, continues to oxidize over time with gradual exposure to oxygen in the air. It causes tea liquor to turn red or darker.

Most importantly, this oxidation process deteriorates catechins and vitamin C, reducing its health benefits.

Tea-Was
Photo by The Creative Exchange / Unsplash
You should store your loose tea in an airtight storage container. While that should be sufficient, there are a few airtight containers made specifically for coffee or tea. AirScape is the best choice to store tea leaves or even coffee beans as they share some similarities. AirScape allows you to remove the air in the storage and locks out air to preserve and protect freshness.

2. Moisture / Humidity
Moisture content in tea is an important indicator of quality and shelf life. Hence, moisture is the number 1 cause of quality loss.

Storing tea in the freezer or refrigerator will slow down the oxidation process significantly, making freezer the preferred option. It also helps the moisture to condense and freeze. Taking one step further, you should pack the tea leaves in a sealable bag and remove as much air out of it before you seal the bag.

Take extra caution when you store tea leaves in the freezer or refrigerator. You SHOULDN'T open the sealed bags right away in a room temperature. When you take out the tea from the freezer, the tea is cold. Cause of that, the tea will suck humidity from the air and produce condensation.

A couple of recommendations are packed your tea in a smaller pack so you could only take out what you need and keep the rest fresh. When you take out the tea storage container from the freezer, let it warm up for a few hours till the temperature of the tea are closer to room temperature before you open the bag to prevent any further condensation that will occur.

3. Temperature / Heat
Heat speeds up oxidation. In a nutshell, high temperature would decompose some substances contained in the tea such as amino acids, carbohydrates, and vitamins.

Low temperature slows down the oxidation reactions. The best storage temperature for green tea is 0-5 Celcius degree. If you live in a hot and humid place, it's best to store green tea in the freezer or refrigerator.

Don't keep your tea storage anywhere near direct sunlight or other heat sources such as ovens and stoves. These heat sources would damage the tea leaves over time and make it bad.

As mentioned before, the most important thing to remember when storing your tea in the freezer is when you take out the tea from the freezer, don't open it until it reaches the room temperature.

4. Light (UV-rays)
Light stimulates the decomposition of Chlorophyll, a green pigment responsible for the color of the tea, in green tea. Exposure to light would turn tea yellowish brown and dissipate its aroma.

Keep your tea container in a cabinet or drawer away from direct light exposure. Loose tea leaves are kept best in a stainless steel container such as Airscape, it would prevent harmful UV-rays to reach its content.

If you don't have a stainless steel container, go for a colored glass. It would prevent your tea from being exposed to light. Try to avoid using a clear glass container or transparent plastic bag.

5. Strong Odor
While heat and humidity would turn green tea stale, another thing to avoid is a strong odor. Green tea leaves absorb not only moist from the air but also any odors present. In fact, green teas are very good at absorbing smells from the surrounding objects.

Be extra careful when storing your tea in the kitchen or freezer as green tea would quickly absorb the smell of your food. You don't want your tea leaves to smell like corn soup or meatball.

To prevent green tea from absorbing these strong smells, store your green tea in multiple layers of airtight protection.

CHUNMEE 9371 is one of our products, welcome to your come and purchase!