Tea & Tannic Acid or lack of Tannic acid ... or even tannins?

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Very confusing. Most sites that I found seem

to say that tea doesn't contain tannic acid

.... or even tannins!

<http://www.hungrymonster.com/Foodfacts/Tea_G

lossary.cfm>

http://www.hungrymonster.com/Foodfacts/Tea_Gl

ossary.cfm

Tannin A misleading term referring to tea

polyphenols, which are different than the

tannic acid polyphenols associated with other

plants such as grapes.

<http://www.green-tea-benefit.com/Questions_a

nswer.html>

http://www.green-tea-benefit.com/Questions_an

swer.html

Q. Has green tea got tannin like other teas?

A. " Tannin " is an old term used before for

plant materials caused blue or black color,

or a group of chemicals with large molecules.

Tannin is completely different from tannic

acid which is used in leather industry. Tea

contains no commercial tannins actually. Tea

contains just flavonols which are the

precursors of tannins. Please remember

flavonols are one of the antioxidants in tea.

Green tea has less " precursors of tannins "

than black tea since flavonols are in black

tea mainly. We use more precise terms of

" flavonols " and " polyphenols " for the old

terms of " tannins " today.

www.hooroofoods.com

Madura Tea is completely free of tannic acid.

Tannic acid in natural

form derives primarily from the bark or roots

of various plants and

trees. If we were to obtain tea that was

plucked from the hard wood of

the bush i.e. mature leaves then we may have

a problem with tannic

acid. Some herbal teas due to the nature of

the herb and from what

part of the plant it was obtained are more

likely to contain tannic acid.

High quality traditional tea is unlikely to

ever have Tannic acid

content.

Tannic acid and tannins are two distinct and

separate things and

possess totally different chemical

structures. Tea contains tannins

although the reference to tannins is a broad

ranging description often

associated with tea due to its ability to

stain. In fact, the tannins in tea

are part of a group of polyphenols or

antioxidants that are claimed to

be good for you. The particular polyphenols

that give black tea its

colour are called thearubigins ( " ruby " as in

red). Grapes too have

tannins and these are present in wine. These

antioxidants in wine are

said to be good for you as well. Tannic acid

on the other hand is a

toxin and should not be confused with

tannins.

Tannic acid has the property of being able to

soften leather and is

thus widely used in the leather industry.

http://www.harvestfields.netfirms.com/Tea/03t

b/08.htm

Tannin is the third important element of the

tea leaf, and it varies greatly in percentage

in different teas, and increases with the age

of the growing leaf. It is the cause of the

rasping, puckering, astringent effect upon

the tongue and interior of the mouth.

Tannin in tea has been a great bugbear with

the ill-informed, bit it is not nearly so

deleterious as some careless or unscrupulous

writers would have us believe. In the first

place there is a very insignificant quantity

of tannin in properly drawn teas, say in

those drawn for not longer than five or eight

minutes. The tannin present in a fine Black

tea, steeped at a moderate temperature for

fifteen or twenty minutes will not harm a

delicate stomach. We take quite as much

tannin in some fruits, and make no fuss about

it. Secondly, if a strong solution of tannin

is taken into the stomach and there comes in

contact with albuminous or gelatinous foods,

it will expend its coagulating power upon

such substances. If there are no such

substances present, it is the expressed

opinion of Mr. Crole (in a discussion upon

the chemistry of tea) that the tannin is

converted into glucose and other harmless

products by the digestive processes. The wild

declarations that tea tannin " tans " the

coating of the stomach into a leathery

condition is without foundation. Even where

too prolonged steeping has greatly increased

the usual proportion of tannin in tea

infusion, milk, when added, neutralizes the

coagulating power of the tannin entirely or

to such degree as to render it harmless.

Professor ston thinks it quite probable

that tannin takes some part in the

exhilarating effect of tea, and in that of

the betel-nut of the East. While the

astringent influence of strong tannin upon

the bowels is regarded as unfavorable, hot

tea infusion has with many persons a contrary

effect, stimulating the peristaltic movements

and antagonizing constipation.

If tannin is injurious, it should be observed

that its proportion in the leaf of green teas

is very much larger than in Black teas. An

analysis by Mulder gave as the percentage of

tannin in a Black tea, 12.85 per cent., and

in a green tea as 17.80 per cent. But another

analysis made by Y. Kazai, of the Imperial

College of Agriculture of Japan, made the per

centage of tannin (gallo- tannic acid) in a

Green tea 10.64, and in a Black tea from the

same leaf 4.89. In the green leaf from which

these teas were derived he found 12.91 per

cent. of tannin. This analysis indicates also

that a portion of the tannin disappears in

manufacturing Green tea, but a still larger,

proportion is lost or changed in the

manufacture of Black tea.

<http://www.maduratea.com.au/faqs.asp>

http://www.maduratea.com.au/faqs.asp

<javascript:Show_Stuff(display5)> 5) What

are polyphenols, tannins and Tannic Acid in

Tea

Polyphenols are part of the Flavonoid

component of tea. The polyphenols are made up

of the tea catechins and their gallates. They

used to be referred to as the tea tannins.

They are the antioxidants in tea. The

formula for Tea Tannins is C20 H20 09.

Tannic acid is used for the tanning of

leather and is found in the bark of many

plants and in some ferns. Commercial

quantities of tannic acid are extracted from

the bark of the Oak and American Chestnut

trees. Generally, real tea does not contain

tannic acid provided only the fresh tender

leaves are harvested and there is no hard

wood or bark used. Of course, herbal

infusions and tea substitutes are not real

tea and could contain tannic acid. The

formula for Tannic acid is C14 H10 09.

Does tea contain tannic acid?

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No. Drinking tea sometimes causes a dry

feeling in the mouth. This is caused by the

flavonoids in tea. It is often heard that

tannic acids are responsible for the dry

feeling. However, tea does not contain any

tannic acid at all.

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