ABSTRACT
Tea-The prepared leaves and leaf buds of Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze (family Theaceae), a large shrub with evergreen leaves native to eastern Asia and extensively cultivated there. Black tea is prepared by an initial slow drying of the fresh leaves that allows them to begin to ferment. For green tea, a less popular beverage in the United States, the leaves are quickly dried. Because of these different methods of preparation and the many different varieties of the cultivated plant, the average caffeine content of tea ranges widely, from about 1 to more than 4 percent.
