Tannins

My rusty gears' resting period is nearly at end. They've enjoyed their time in the elements and have a nice healthy coat of natural oxidation. And, to be honest, I've been suffering withdrawal symptoms. My winter rusting season served well to make a true addict of me. After all, my Tumblr page isn't called Rust Junkie for nothing.

At some point in the winter season, I began to wonder about tannins. What plants are they found in? What foods or drinks are they in? Is there a difference in the tannins/levels in green tea vs black tea? Is a tannin a tannin regardless of what it's found in? 

The question that persisted in niggling at my creative mind - especially each morning when I enjoy a pot of jasmine green tea - is how would green tea rust? Only one way to find out...just do it.

My last trip to Costco found me bringing home a jumbo box of green tea bags. At first glance, it seemed to have rusted just as black tea would - with the tannins turning to a lovely black/grey color.

 Yet as I unwrapped and unfolded the cotton another color kept coming to mind.

Still wet from just being unbundled, all I could think while marveling at this piece was indigo. There's a blue tingle to the rusted areas that didn't exist with the black teas.

 green tea #1 dry

Even dry, I still see hints of blue in the grey. An internet search on tannins in green tea vs black tea supplied one answer on the subject. Green tea has a higher tannin content than black tea due to not being left to oxidize. Of course, this just makes me wonder if white tea has a higher tannin content than green tea and how it would rust. Hmmm...