Oolong Tea, Wu Long Tea, Wulong Tea, Herbal Tea-What is the Difference!?

July 23rd, 2008 jason Posted in wu long tea |

 

With tea becoming all of the rage in more of the Western cultures and more specifically the US, the different uses of tea names for the same types of tea has everyone a bit confused!  Is it wu long tea or wulong tea? And what is the difference from oolong tea?! Further, what is considered to be real tea and what is considered to be herbal tea?  This has most people guessing what to drink to get the most out of the classic beverage. 

 

Pay attention, it may get complicated….

 

Lately, there’s been a growing buzz about the wulong, wu long or wu-yi tea and its ability to help with weight loss so we decided to find out what all of the different spellings are about.  The first lesson of tea and the various names of tea is to understand what is real tea and what is considered to be herbal tea. To begin, wu long, wulong, wu-yi, are all really oolong teas, which is similar to green tea.  The name wu long tea is another pronunciation of oolong that began within the different Chinese cultures and thus different pronunciations.  Wulong tea is another variation of this same type of tea, but it is all considered to be oolong tea. Oolong tea or wulong tea comes from the same plant as green tea, white tea and black tea, the camellia sinensis plant.  Teas from this plant are all real teas and are not considered herbal teas.  Wu-Yi tea is also wulong or oolong tea, it just comes from the Wu-Yi Moutains in China. 

 

How are we doing so far?

 

The difference from oolong tea (wu-long tea), green tea, black tea, and white tea is the amount of fermentation or oxidation of the camellia sinensis plant leaves.  White tea is not fermented at all while green tea is semi-fermented, oolong tea or wulong tea is fermented a bit more and then black tea is fermented the most.  Oolong tea or Wu Long tea is considered to be fermented right in the middle of this oxidation scale.  Because oolong tea (wulong tea) is fermented right in the middle it retains high amounts of polyphenols which are the fat burning ingredients in oolong tea (wu long tea) that has made it so popular for weight loss.  It fermented a bit more than green tea so it loses some of the powerful antioxidants of green tea so it is somewhat a tradeoff.  More powerful fat burners (oolong tea) or healthy antioxidants (green tea)?  The popular Wu-Yi Oolong tea has attributes of both green and oolong tea so it is a happy medium.

 

Almost there, stay with me…..

 

Herbal teas are just teas made from different plants other than the camellia sinensis plant and do not have the same long term health benefits as real tea.  Most herbal teas are used for their immediate medicinal side effects such as to relax or for loosening the bowel or even to help with allergies.  Examples of herbal tea are ginger tea, kombucha tea, or senna tea.  Teas from the camelia sinensis plant are known to have great long term health benefits due to the high levels of antioxidants that fight diseases and promote overall good health. 

 

So drink up your wulong wu-long oolong tea from the camelia sinensis plant and start finding out what all of the hype is about!

 

You can find great Wu-Yi Oolong Tea at www.Wu-Yi.comWith tea becoming all of the rage in more of the Western cultures and more specifically the US, the different uses of tea names for the same types of tea has everyone a bit confused!  And further what is considered to be real tea and what is considered herbal tea?  Is it wu long tea or wulong tea? And what is the difference from oolong tea?!  Lately, there’s been a growing buzz about the wulong, wu long tea and its ability to help with weight loss so we decided to find out what all of the different spellings are about. To begin, it is all really oolong tea, which is similar to green tea.  The name Wu Long tea is another pronunciation that began with the different Chinese cultures and thus different pronunciations.  Wulong tea is another variation of this same type of tea, but is all considered to be oolong tea. 

The first lesson of tea and the various names of tea is to understand what is real tea and what is considered herbal tea.  Oolong tea or wulong tea comes from the same plant as green tea, white tea and black tea, the camellia sinensis plant.  Teas from this plant are all real teas and not considered herbal teas.  The difference from oolong tea (wu-long tea), green tea, black tea, and white tea is the amount of fermentation or oxidation of the camellia sinensis plant leaves.  White tea is not fermented at all while green tea is semi-fermented, oolong tea or wulong tea is fermented a bit more and then black tea is fermented the most.  Oolong tea or Wu Long tea is considered to be fermented right in the middle of this grid.  Because oolong tea (wulong tea) is fermented right in the middle it retains high amounts of polyphenols which are the fat burning ingredients in Wulong tea/ oolong tea that has made it so popular for weight loss support.  Herbal teas are just teas from different plants other than the camellia sinensis plant and do not have the same health benefits as real tea.  Oolong tea wulong tea has these great health benefits due to the high levels of antioxidants that fight diseases and promote overall good health. 

So drink up your wulong wu-long oolong tea and start finding out what all of the hype is about!

You can find great Wu-Yi Oolong Tea at www.Wu-Yi.com