Brewing in General
Brewing in General
From time to time people ask, “How can I brew a cup of tea?” This can be discussed in the following considerations, namely, water temperature, tea-water proportion,and brewing time.
Water Temperature
The water temperature for brewing tea has to be adjusted for different types of tea. The higher the water temperature, the more and faster the tea contents such as fragrance and taste are released. In general, the following temperature ranges are suggested for some common types of tea we drink.
Green Tea – 8o to 85oC
This type of tea has not gone through the process of oxidation. For green tea in general, e.g. Longjing (Dragon Well), Biluochun, Maojian (Hair Tip) etc., they contain rich content of tea polyphenol (mainly catechin) and the leaves are still fresh. Too high the water temperature will over steep the tea leaves and turn them yellow. The tea fragrance will become dull. What’s more, too much catechin will be released, causing the tea more astringent and lose its fresh and crisp characteristics.
Oolong Tea – 90to 100oC
This temperature range is suitable for Oolong tea in general, e.g. Wuyi tea (Bohea), Tieguanyin (Iron Goddess), Da Hong Pao (Big Red Robe), Pouchong, etc. Oolong teas are partially oxidized. A water temperature at this range can fully unleash the subtle and rich fragrance and sweetness of the teas.
Black and Dark Tea – 100oC
Black and dark teas such as Pu'er, Keemun (Qimen red tea), Liu Bao Cha (loose dark tea) etc. will need a high water temperature for brewing, under which the fullness and throat-soothing capability of the teas can be fully released.
To brew a good tea, it is advised to use freshly boiled water. Avoid using water from hot water flask or drinking machine. The hot water from these devices has been staled for a while and lost its freshness, even reboiled. The tea brewed with such water will become dull, losing its freshness. For office environment, if possible, use a 0.5-1L electric water boiler. If you must use hot water from a drinking machine, which can maintain the water within 80-85oC, reheat the water. This can make the water reach 90oC.
Tea-Water Proportion
For people new to Taiwanese or Chinese tea, one of their frequent questions is how much tea leaves and water should be used. There’s no fixed answer. But, there is an objective reference that we can use.
Within the tea industry, there are various tea competitions and tasting activities held every year. Generally, a 1 to 50 ratio is used as the standard tea-water proportion. That is, for each and every tea in competition, 3 grams of tea are put in a tea cup that holds 150mL of hot water at 100oC. A lid is then covered for 5 to 6 minutes. The tea is then filtered out for tasting. The trade treats this as the optimal proportion and timing for the tea to reflect its best taste, colour and fragrance.
Now you can use the 1:50 golden proportion as a reference and make adjustment to prepare your cup of tea. Before that, let us make clear how much 3 grams of tea is if there is no scale available. Taking our company’s Notes of Spring Aromatic Oolong as example, a heaped teaspoonful is about 3 grams. For our Charm of Honey Taiwan Black Tea, 3 grams mean a heaped tablespoonful instead.
For different tea drinking occasions, tea-water proportion may need some calculations.
Drinking with a Mug or Porcelain Cup
There are 2 purposes for using for these utensils besides convenience. One is for quenching the thirst and the other is for enjoying the taste of tea. Assume that a mug can hold 220mL (7 oz) of water, to brew our company’s Notes of Spring Aromatic Oolong, put 3 to 5 grams of tea leaves into a teapot and pour in freshly boiled water (100oC) and brew for 2 to 3 minutes. Filter out the tea into the mug, let it cool down a bit and then, enjoy. Adjust the tea-water proportion or the timing(within 5 minutes) to make your own cup of Notes of Spring Aromatic Oolong.
Treating for Visitors
It is best to share the tea you love with your visitors. Count the number of visitors and estimate how much they will take the tea. For instance, there are six people altogether and you are serving tea in porcelain cups. Each porcelain cup can hold 150mL (a bit more than 5 oz) of tea. Six cups equal 900mL of tea. Using 1:50 as tea-water proportion and 3 grams of tea leaves for each person, your need 6 heaped teaspoonful of Notes of Spring Aromatic Oolong, which is 18 grams. Brew for 2 to 3 minutes in a teapot and filter out the tea into another container. Your guests can then enjoy the tea with you.
An advice is worthy of mentioning if you do not have a container to hold the filtered tea. When you pour tea into each cup, do not make a cup full before turning to another cup. This will make the concentration of the tea different for every cup, the first weakest and the last strongest. Instead, pour the least amount for the first cup and fully for the last cup. Then return to the second last for full cup until the first cup is filled. This way the concentration of the tea will be even.
The filtered tea leaves can be used for a second steep. Reboil the water and brew for a bit longer, e.g. 1 to 2 minutes more.
Using a Small Teapot and Teacups
Most instructions for brewing Chinese or Taiwanese tea are for brewing in a small clay or porcelain teapot and serving with small teacups. The main purpose is for enjoying the tea with multiple steeps, each with various level of taste and aftertaste. Many will suggest a pre-wash or wake-up steep. This means pouring boiling water to cover the tea leaves and then quickly filtering away the water to prepare for the first steep. The first steep is advised to take 1 to 1.5 minutes. Add 15 seconds or more for subsequent steeps until the taste is no more fulfilling. For such brewing, more tea leaves are suggested than other brewing occasions.
Timing
Taking into consideration of the tea-water proportion mentioned above, the timing for each steep is recommended between 1 to 3 minutes. For all circumstances, tea leaves should not be kept in hot water for later servings.
All in all, adjust accordingly the water temperature, tea-water proportion and timing for brewing your own cup of tea. This may take a few trials before an optimal combination can be figured out.
