Green Tea Lemon - Sunleaf - 25 tea bags

A light green tea with lemon

Sunleaf Green Tea Lemon is a green tea with the citrus built into the blend: 80 per cent green tea, 15 per cent lemongrass and 5 per cent natural lemon flavouring. The green tea gives the cup its pale colour and slightly grassy base, while the lemongrass and the lemon flavouring lift it into something sharper and fresher. Nothing is sweetened, so the lemon reads as zest rather than sugar.

Where it comes from

The leaves are picked in the south of India, and processed, blended and packed there as well by the local community. For its herbal infusions Sunleaf notes that individual ingredients can come from another country, so not every component of every blend is from the same region.

Brewing it properly

Use water of around 80°C and give the bag two to three minutes. Let a boiled kettle stand for a minute before you pour. Water straight off the boil pulls tannins out of green tea and turns it bitter, and the fresh lemon note disappears behind that bitterness. If the box carries a different brewing recommendation, follow the box.

Caffeine and packaging

This is mostly green tea, so it contains caffeine, also known as theine — not the one to reach for last thing at night. Each of the 25 bags has its own sachet, which holds the lemon aroma in until you tear it open, and the packaging is eco-friendly. Keep the box dry, dark and tightly closed.

At a glance

• Contents: 25 individually wrapped tea bags
• Blend: 80 per cent green tea, 15 per cent lemongrass, 5 per cent natural lemon flavouring
• Brand: Sunleaf
• Origin: south of India
• Brewing: around 80°C, two to three minutes, one bag per cup
• Caffeine: yes, from the green tea