Drinks

Tea

Citation Formats

General Reference

Food and Drink Atlas. "Tea." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://food.interactiveatlas.org/drinks/tea.

APA Style

Food and Drink Atlas. (n.d.). Tea. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://food.interactiveatlas.org/drinks/tea

BibTeX

@misc{foodanddrinkatlas-tea,
  author = {Food and Drink Atlas},
  title = {Tea},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://food.interactiveatlas.org/drinks/tea},
  note = {Accessed August 30, 2026}
}

An infusion of the processed leaves of Camellia sinensis, native to the borderlands of southwestern China, northern Myanmar and northeastern India, and the base of green, black, oolong and other tea styles depending on how the leaf is oxidized after picking. Chinese legend credits the legendary Emperor Shennong with discovering it by accident around 2737 BCE when leaves blew into his boiling water; this is a founding legend rather than an attested date, and the earliest solid archaeological evidence for tea drinking comes from tombs of the Han dynasty.

Facts

Origin Period, From (Year)

200 BCE to 200 CE 1

Origin Region

The borderlands of southwestern China (Yunnan), northern Myanmar and northeastern India, the native range of Camellia sinensis 2

Cross-Tradition Connections

Associated With

Masala Chai

Masala chai is prepared from the same Camellia sinensis plant Tea covers generically, with a distinct spiced milk-tea preparation and history of its own.

Source Is Chai Tea Redundant? (Encyclopaedia Britannica)

Matcha

Matcha is prepared from the same Camellia sinensis plant Tea covers generically, whisked as a powder rather than steeped as a leaf.

Source Matcha (Encyclopaedia Britannica)