Proper Tea Storage

Tea is hygroscopic, which means it will absorb moisture and odor from the air. So it needs an air-tight container, kept away from spices, garlic, onions, and anything else that has strong odors in the kitchen. Tea should also be kept away from heat. Generally in a kitchen, when food is heated it releases steam and the tea will absorb all of it. So never store your tea near or above your oven, cook top, dishwasher, or microwave. By doing that, you are just asking to have your morning tea taste like last night’s dinner. Finally, tea is also light sensitive. Remember, the sun is used to whither the freshly plucked tea leaves. So more sun on the dried tea leaves, will just break them down faster. So its best to stay away from clear containers.
If your tea comes in a resealable pouch that is not clear, you have the perfect container to store your tea. For those pesky tea bags in cardboard boxes, get them into a zip lock bag immediately and make sure you are using them regularly as they do not last that long. That is not to say you should not have a metal, plastic or dark glass container to store your tea, if you like those kinds of things. Just keep in mind they have seams and may not be as air-tight as most of the resealable pouches. Also, the flavor of the tea will stay with the container, especially plastic ones, so you have to be willing to constantly drink the same tea to justify having a secondary container for it. Either that or be prepared to wash it well between teas (and expect plastic to still retain the smell of the prior tea or soap used to wash it). Just remember to put your tea in a dark part of the kitchen away from heat, and not in the refrigerator, unless you have the tea in a vacuum sealed container. In closing, to keep your tea as fresh as possible, an air tight container that is dark and placed away from heat and appliances that produce heat or steam is the best solution.
Expected Shelf Life to Preserve Original Flavor:
Black: 24-36 months, Since this tea is generally dried longer, it will last longer under the right conditions.
Oolong: 12-36 months, The darker the oolong the longer the shelf life. The Taiwanese believe in aging oolongs as the flavor gets more complex with age.
Green and Yellow: 6-24 months, The British Tea Council advises to drink the green teas before 6 months as the anti-oxidants will break down over time. If taste is more your concern, you are fine going out 12 months for most.
White: 6-12 months, Since white tea is made from younger leaves with the least amount of manufacturing, so this is not a tea to keep long.
Blended with Flavoring: 6-36 months, Flavoring extracts have long shelf lives, so it is the tea base that will dictate this shelf life
Blended with spices, flowers, herbs:6-12 months, Here the spices more than the tea dictate the shelf life. Cinnamon, mint, and cloves will start to lose their punch after six months. Most flowers add no flavor and will stay as long as the tea.
Blended with Nuts: 6 months, Nuts go bad quickly, that is why you often don’t find them in tea. If a tea is nut flavored, it is generally through extracts.
Puerh: Generally the older the better, some of the best on the market are 20-30 years old, unlike the other tea, this one needs air to improve its flavor. So store it somewhere other than the kitchen to allow for proper air circulation without it picking up the odors from your cooking.
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[@oscars4107]

I used to love Oolong until I got hooked on Shen Puerh

[@beebop9808]

Can't imagine why anyone would want to store tea for years unless maybe you're a prepper.
That said, I was just recently digging around in one of my upper cabinets and found several jars with stuff in them. lol Took me a while to figure out what it was really. Turned out to be some green/mango tea I had bought in bulk about seven years ago and had broken up in pint jars and vacuum sealed the jars. Tell you though, when I cracked one open the aroma was amazing! Steeped out a big mug and have been enjoying a blast from the past. Can't say it's any better but it's certainly no worse than it was when it was stored. I can see why I had purchased so much of it.
Can't say that I've heard of Dominion Tea before but I'm headed to your site now to look at your offerings.
Good vid by the way. :)

[@laurathecool6381]

Certain types of asian tea benefit from ageing for multiple years. I would imagine those would be more the teas stored for extended periods, as opposed to green teas which you'd want to drink as fresh as possible.

[@darrenz2636]

you are totally wrong about white tea. there is a Chinese saying about white tea ageing : one year age is tea; three year is medicine; seven year is treasure. white tea processing is kind of like raw pu-er which is done under 70c to keep it :alive:, so both can age and turn .