One hot day more than 4500 years ago the Chinese emperor CHEN-nung was boiling water to refresh himself. A few leaves blew off a nearby shrub and landed in the water, and Chen-nung named the resultant brew ’’tay’’, or ’’ch’a’’. The legend is an appealing one but infact no one knows who first drank tea. However, the leaves came from the evergreen shrub Camellia sinesis, which is native to the foothills of the Himalayas.
The Chinese first gathered the leaves from the wild, and have cultivated the tea plant since atleast AD 350. In time taking tea for its stimulating properties took on social and cultural significance throughout the Far East and India, which culminated in an elaborate tea ceremony in Japan, popularised in the 15th century.
Europeans first heard of tea in the 16th century from the Dutch traders and Portuguese missionaries. Tea went on public sale for the first time in London around 1657, with many claims made for its medicinal value. In 1660 the diarist, SAMUEL PEPYS sent for ’’a cupp of tee (a China drink) of which I never had drank before.’’
What I think is it all depends on the taste of a person so one cant rate tea leaves as such. There are variety of tea leaves and the process of making is also different. Some make ginger tea, cardamon tea , etc. and also tea made in other countries like China, Japan, etc. are of different taste and style. Now the culture is changing and now we get Ice tea, Lemon tea , etc.
So what I believe is its just the game of style and taste!!