Aq. infusions of com. green tea with varying degrees of leaf refinement (whole and finely cut) were prepd. by flooding with boiling water for 1-15 min without mixing. Total polyphenolic content in the infusions was detd. by using the Folin-Ciocalteu assay. In order to obtain infusions with the highest polyphenolic content, the tea was extd. longer than 3-5 min. The tea with whole leaves was extd. at least twice, while in the case of finely cut leaves only the first extn. was effective.