1. Why
   1. Feel-Good Reasons
      1. The pleasant aroma of various flavors
      2. Holding onto a hot tea mug warms the hands on a cold winter morning
      3. It's relaxing!
      4. Ice Tea is refreshing!
   2. Health Benefits
      1. Tea contains antioxidants
      2. Tea has less caffeine than coffee
      3. Tea may reduce your risk of heart attack and stroke
      4. Tea protects your bones
      5. Tea gives you a sweet smile
      6. Tea bolsters your immune defenses
      7. Tea protects against cancer
      8. Tea helps keep you hydrated
      9. Tea is calorie-free
      10. Tea increases your metabolism
   3. Coffee vs. Tea
      1. Both contain antioxidents
      2. Too much coffee has been known to be bad for your heart, but tea actually relaxes your arteries and lowers your blood pressure.
      3. While both drinks have caffeine, tea has two to three times less.
      4. Coffee stains the teeth, Tea without sugar is good for teeth
      5. coffee has been linked as a contributing factor to osteoporosis, tea keeps bones strong
      6. You can use a tea bag to make a cup of tea, then reuse the tea bag to make another cup. Ground coffee, meanwhile, can only be brewed once.
      7. Tea costs less for an individual to produce than coffee.
      8. Most teas have a pleasant flavor and require no sweetening. Straight coffee tastes bitter and most drinkers need to sweeten it with cream and sugar to make it drinkable.
      9. Tea's elements reduce cholesterol absorption, while coffee contains cafestrol, a fatty chemical that actually increases cholesterol levels.
      10. Tea has a higher concentration of water than coffee, keeping a drinker better hydrated while still flushing the system of impurities as a diuretic. Coffee simply dehydrates the drinker.
2. When in History?
   1. long and complex history. spreading across multiple cultures over the span of thousands of years
      1. no one is sure of its exact origins
3. Originated in southeast asia. Specifically in the area where the lands converge around northeast India, north Burma, southwest China and Tibet
   1. Then introduced to 52 other countries
   2. China considered to have the earliest records of tea consumption ( dating back to the 10th century BC. )
4. Spreading to the world
   1. Early 17th century, a ship of the Dutch East India Company brought the first green tea leaves to Amsterdam from China.
   2. Tea was known in France by 1636
   3. In 1689, tea was regularly imported from China to Russia via a caravan of hundreds of camels traveling for a whole year. It was a precious commodity
   4. Tea was used by German physicians by 1657 but never gained in popularity except in coastal areas
   5. Didn't appear officially in England until the 1650s, where it was introduced through coffee houses. From there it was introduced to British colonies in America and elsewhere.
5. One popular Chinese legend: Shennong, the legendary Emperor of China, inventor of agriculture and Chinese medicine was drinking a bowl of boiled water some time around 2737 BC when a few leaves were blown from a nearby tree into his water, changing the color. The emperor took a sip and surprised by its flavor and restorative properties
6. Where is it?
   1. Most tea is grown in tropical/subtropical climates
      1. Largest producers of tea
         1. China
         2. India
         3. Kenya
         4. Sri Lanka
         5. Turkey
      2. Certain varieties, however, can be grown in marine climates
         1. Pembrokeshire, UK
         2. Washington, US
   2. Top annual per capita consumption of tea
      1. Turkey
      2. Ireland
      3. United Kingdom
      4. Iran
      5. Morocco
7. What is it?
   1. Leaves or bulbs that have come from the Camellia Sinensis Plant
      1. Also known as the tea plant
   2. Hot or cold beverage depending on how it is prepared
      1. To become a tea, the leaves or bulbs must be crushed and infused in water, typically done by boiling
   3. Types of tea are named based on the way they were processed
      1. White Tea: Wilted and unoxidized
      2. Yellow Tea: Unwilted and unoxidized but allowed to yellow
      3. Green Tea: Unwilted and unoxidized
      4. Oolong: Wilted, bruised and partially oxidized
      5. Black Tea: Wilted, somtimes crushed, and fully oxidized
      6. Post fermented Tea: Green tea that has been allowed to ferment/compost