On 2006-09-13, Dominic T. > wrote:
> Umm, not to be a dick but even in the link you provided you can clearly
> see that Silver Needles is lower than the other whites and many of the
> greens just as I said... it is an inbetween and a good choice for
> someone caring about caffiene as the OP.

That statement is surely referring to buds v. older leaves in the same
plant. I think their numbers show well that across varietals, growing
regions, processing styles, etc., generalizations are not particularly
feasible.

Another possibility: Dog Ma has opined here in the past that since
caffeine is highly water soluble, steeping the leaves in room temp
water for a while (and discarding it) before brewing them in hot might
leave a satisfactory flavor with less caffeine.

Since the interesting thing to be measured isn't exact caffeine levels
in the cup so much as the OP's response to it in specific brewed tea,
I agree that trying different teas, discarding initial steeps, etc.,
seems like a good things to try.


N.