In an ideal world where we are all rational and accurate TEA is indeed
as defined by ISO Standard 6078:1982 - "derived solely and
exclusively . . from the leaves, buds and tender stems of varieties of
the species Camellia sinensis".
However a moment spent inspecting your supermarket shelves will
demonstrate the universally common usage of the word in application to
herbal mixes; even the TeaFAQ site has a page titled "Tisanes (Herbal
Teas)". And the increasing use of "Red Tea" for rooibos is I believe
deliberately misleading, done to trade on Camellia tea's percieved
health benefits. A few years ago I reported Marks and Spencer to the
UK Trading Standards Office for selling a chamomile tisane in a pack
with the word TEA about 1" high and the word chamomile about 1/4" high
- such misuse of the word tea is misleading - and teh product was
pulled.
Nevertheless, until the world universally understands that tea is only
Camellia tea, I often take the precaution of calling it "Camellia tea"
when confusion needs to be avoided.

Nigel at Teacraft


On Jan 17, 6:43*pm, Warren wrote:
Nigel wrote:
2. ONLY true Camellia tea has theanine

I want to understand
what you mean by that comment. I was under the impression that 'tea' was
all Camellia, as opposed to tisanes, which obviously are not.