Greetings,

Every spring time I order a couple of hundred grams of different fresh green
teas from China. They arrive in 50g sealed silver foil bags which I keep in
the freezer for several months, sometimes for up to one year. This way I
only have a small amount of tea opened and I believe - but might be wrong -
that the unopened bags keep the scent and the flavour of the tea virtually
as fresh as they were when I received them. BTW I keep the opened bags in
the freezer, too.

Are there any arguments against this way of storing tea? Might be that
temperatures below freezing point, as well as regularly taking out and
putting back the already opened bags, even only for a few minutes, can harm
the tea in any ways? - Generally, what are the opinions about keeping tea in
the freezer?

Thank you for any input,
Gyorgy

On Jul 6, 1:26 pm, "Gyorgy Sajo" > wrote:
> Greetings,
>
> Every spring time I order a couple of hundred grams of different fresh green
> teas from China. They arrive in 50g sealed silver foil bags which I keep in
> the freezer for several months, sometimes for up to one year. This way I
> only have a small amount of tea opened and I believe - but might be wrong -
> that the unopened bags keep the scent and the flavour of the tea virtually
> as fresh as they were when I received them. BTW I keep the opened bags in
> the freezer, too.
>
> Are there any arguments against this way of storing tea? Might be that
> temperatures below freezing point, as well as regularly taking out and
> putting back the already opened bags, even only for a few minutes, can harm
> the tea in any ways? - Generally, what are the opinions about keeping tea in
> the freezer?
>
> Thank you for any input,
> Gyorgy

I was advised by a Japanese vendor (very good one) that it would be
okay to freeze Japanese greens; however, I am sure that the radical
drop in temperature will affect the theaflavins and chlorophyll
levels. Residual moisture and humidity, I would surmise, would also
affect the delicate nature of flavours and aromas. Frankly, I think it
would ruin a good pu-erh.
In other words, I wouldn't do it.
Shen

I think the general wisdom is that keeping your unopened, sealed bags
of tea in a refrigerator is the best way to store them. However,
there are a couple things to be aware of.

Make sure you let your tea return to room temp. before opening the bag
for the first time, otherwise atmospheric water vapor may condense on
the leaves, which can cause problems with storage.

Also, don't return an open bag to the refrigerator, unless you are
*certain* it is airtight (which is difficult unless you have equipment
designed specifically for the task). You will likely pick up odors
and moisture if you put an open bag back into the fridge.

I imagine storing tea in a freezer is even riskier than storing it in
a refrigerator, and you have the added danger of freezer burn.

-Brent

On Jul 7, 6:28 am, Brent > wrote:
> I think the general wisdom is that keeping your unopened, sealed bags
> of tea in a refrigerator is the best way to store them. However,
> there are a couple things to be aware of.
>
> Make sure you let your tea return to room temp. before opening the bag
> for the first time, otherwise atmospheric water vapor may condense on
> the leaves, which can cause problems with storage.
>
> Also, don't return an open bag to the refrigerator, unless you are
> *certain* it is airtight (which is difficult unless you have equipment
> designed specifically for the task). You will likely pick up odors
> and moisture if you put an open bag back into the fridge.
>
> I imagine storing tea in a freezer is even riskier than storing it in
> a refrigerator, and you have the added danger of freezer burn.
>
> -Brent

green tea ,pressurized it .

> Are there any arguments against this way of storing tea? Might be that
> temperatures below freezing point, as well as regularly taking out and
> putting back the already opened bags, even only for a few minutes, can harm
> the tea in any ways? - Generally, what are the opinions about keeping tea in
> the freezer?

Many Chinese vendors, especially those peddling TGY, keep their teas
in a freezer or some kind of cooling unit. I have asked numerous
times about what kind of fridge they use and I usually get a response
like, "any fridge will do as long as there is no strong smell that
could get into the tea". I tried this with a low quality fridge on
some excellent TGY in 05, when I still drank TGY, and it left a freon
smell in the leaves even though I had put 2 or 3 plastic bags around
the little baggies the tea was in.

I say, do it at your own risk. With greens and "qing" tea (TGY), it
could be ok, just make sure your fridge is up to snuff.

Gyorgy Sajo wrote:
> Every spring time I order a couple of hundred grams of different
> fresh green teas from China. They arrive in 50g sealed silver foil
> bags which I keep in the freezer ... BTW I keep the opened bags in
> the freezer, too. ... Generally, what are the opinions about keeping
> tea in the freezer?

Cooling alone will have no adverse effect on the chemical constituents
of tea - or much of anything else, for that matter, except perhaps
metallic tin.

IMO, chilling is a great idea for expensive and fragile green teas. (I
also do it with some oolongs.) Aside from the obvious issue of aroma
uptake from stuff in the fridge, the biggest issue is probably moisture
management, in two senses:

- Condensation onto cold tea when opened. Solution here is simple: don't
open the bag until it reaches room temperature.

- Condensation within the bag. This is very common and not easy to
avoid. As the bag cools, the outside is colder than the bulk tea.
Moisture moves rapidly, even at very low temperatures - why snow
disappears even at forty below. The immediate result is ice crystals
around the edges of the bag. No problem, until it melts, and soaks the tea.

Probably the best way to handle the latter issue is to keep the tea as
dry as possible (e.g., using desiccant bags) and refrigerate instead of
freezing. This will slow some key staling reactions dramatically,
perhaps enough for a year. (BTW, another desiccant sometimes used by
chemists is ordinary cotton, baked very dry in the oven.)

If you want to get fancy, flushing the tea with dry nitrogen before
chilling will remove some moisture and most of the oxygen, thus
eliminating many adverse chemical reactions. Mike Petro's Pu-erh.net
site has a handy description of how to do this.

-DM

Make sure they are hermetically sealed. Nothing gets in, nothing gets
out. Don't take them out till ready to use. Don't refreeze. I think
a better solution than hot humidity storage over the long haul. Make
sure freezer is frost free. I would also use additional freezer wrap
to make sure. Blanched vegetables hold up forever in a freezer. You
can consider green teas in particular as blanched. Freezing versus
zero is just a function of utility bills.

Jim

Gyorgy Sajo wrote:
> Greetings,
>
> Every spring time I order a couple of hundred grams of different fresh green
> teas from China. They arrive in 50g sealed silver foil bags which I keep in
> the freezer for several months, sometimes for up to one year. This way I
> only have a small amount of tea opened and I believe - but might be wrong -
> that the unopened bags keep the scent and the flavour of the tea virtually
> as fresh as they were when I received them. BTW I keep the opened bags in
> the freezer, too.
>
> Are there any arguments against this way of storing tea? Might be that
> temperatures below freezing point, as well as regularly taking out and
> putting back the already opened bags, even only for a few minutes, can harm
> the tea in any ways? - Generally, what are the opinions about keeping tea in
> the freezer?
>
> Thank you for any input,
> Gyorgy

Hey all

Excellent tips all round. Just to add my cents with some tips gleamed
directly from Nigel (teacraft.com) from his earlier posts:

Generally it is advisable to seal your tea into useable chunks - so
your 50 grams are fine. If you drink your green infrequently, try to
pack them into smaller bags.

Some specific answers to your fridge versus freezer dilemma:

1. It's best to use freezer than fridge. The lower the temperature,
the slower the degradation. Industrial freezing is uses minus 18
degrees.

2. Chest freezer is better than stand up version as cold air stays
below.

3. If left in fridge or freezer, minimize the number of times it is
opened to keep the temperature constant. So a freezer might be
preferable as it's opened less frequently.

4. Condensation within the packet is a problem with freezer (your
sealed packet might contain small amount of moisture that crystallise
at below freezing point). It depends on how good your packers are.

My experience with 50 grams (that has been freezed at minus 5 degrees)
is that they keep well.

5. Do not re-freeze after you open you packets. Keep the opened packet
in a small air tight container in a cool cupboard or something.

Hope it helps

Julian
http://www.amazing-green-tea.com

Thanks for everyone for the very helpful answers. My greatest concern was
whether the vital chemical components of the tea - vitamins, clorophyll,
theaflavins - will be negatively affected, but according to DogMa there is
no risk for that.

Interestingly I have not yet had problems with condensation, not even with
the already opened packs that I frequently - once or twice a day - take out
from the freezer. Maybe during the few minutes while they are at room
temperature they do not have the time to collect condense water.

Thanks again,
Gyorgy

Gyorgy

If your tea tastes good, then chances are that its nutrients are kept
intact.

Key nutrients of green tea such as theanine, catechins are easily
oxidised away by moistures. They also contribute greatly to tea
flavors. If the tea continues to taste great, chances are other
nutrients such as vitamin C has not yet been corrupted by moisture.

For some green such as longjing, the leaves should be so dry that if
you rub it with your fingers the leaves simply turn into powder.

I am glad we help to put your mind at ease.



Julian

http://www.amazing-green-tea.com

Gyorgy Sajo wrote:
> Interestingly I have not yet had problems with condensation, not even with
> the already opened packs that I frequently - once or twice a day - take out
> from the freezer. Maybe during the few minutes while they are at room
> temperature they do not have the time to collect condense water.

Possibly, especially if it's very dry where you are. If there's no
visible condensation on the packaging, you're probably OK. But
condensation won't be visible on the leaf until it's soaking wet. Long
before that, there will be enough extra moisture in the tea to cause
frost problems. Again, I think the issue is mainly formation of liquid
water when frost forms and thaws, which both starts cold-brewing the tea
and also ruptures cell walls. I believe that tea is supposed to be
packed at around 6% moisture, and could probably be more than 50% wet
without looking any different.

Since cooling and re-warming shouldn't affect the tea, it would be safer
to let the container warm to room temperature before opening.

-DM