Best Way to Store Your Teas

Tranquil Tuesdays old product packaging which tried to control for all the factors below.

The ideal way to store tea is one that keeps it in a temperature and humidity controlled capsule that is sealed off from air circulation inside a vault un-penetrable to outside light or smell.

The worst way to store tea is leaving the leaves out by the window near the kitchen stove (even worse if your kitchen is located inside your home sauna) next to an open bottle of fish sauce.

Ok But Getting Real

I realize the “ideal way” described above is not exactly tenable or preferred for the casual home drinker. Plus drinking tea regularly should be easy and leisurely and not involve overly troublesome storage systems.

So lets talk about the basic principles we can use to store tea:

Heat, humidity, oxidation (a chemical process that is the result of interaction with oxygen) are elements and factors that are crucial in tea production and which tea masters control and manipulate as a craft. Therefore you want to prevent your tea from too much exposure from these elements.
Like all natural food items tea will react with its environment if you don’t take steps to protect it. (think about how many fine liquors and wines are stored in green or brown bottles to mitigate the affects of light on the liquid inside or if you cut an apple or avocado and leave it out and it turns brown from oxidation)
For unscented and un-blended teas, all the flavors are in the natural tea leaves which can easily absorb strong smells or odors with prolonged exposure.

Recap of Basic Ideas To Keep Your Tea Fresh

So the keys to keeping your tea fresh are:

protecting from light
sealing from oxygen
preventing extreme heat and humidity changes
keeping it away from strong odors that could be absorbed.

This doesn’t have as much to do with freshness as respecting your tea, but it is also preferable to have a protective hard exterior (like a tin or a box) protecting the leaves because they can be easily crushed or bruised.