How to Brew Chinese Tea: Tips and Details

Surely one of the first and most important questions for anyone just starting to drink Chinese tea is: “How do I brew it properly?” It is a fair and very important question, because it determines what kind of infusion we get and how the whole tea session turns out.

In this article we try to explain the main ways of brewing traditional Chinese tea as clearly as possible. We will also touch on the finer points around brewing, such as water, teaware and the tea itself. All of this will help you keep enjoying delicious tea and bring out its main characteristics – aroma and taste, aftertaste and the way it makes you feel.

Types of tea drinking

Before we turn to brewing itself, we need to understand what kinds of tea drinking there are. Looking at it from a distance, we can single out 2 ways of preparing tea:

1. Brewing tea. This applies when tea is drunk in multiple short infusions, or steeped for a short or long time, and so on.
2. Boiling tea over a fire. This includes boiling over an open fire using the Lu Yu method, boiling in a siphon and other similar methods.

We suggest focusing on the most common kind: simple brewing. This method is the most widespread in the world and is the one we cover in this article.

Multiple-infusion tea drinking

With Chinese tea, simple brewing usually means drinking tea in multiple infusions. This method involves short contact with the water (from 5 seconds to 1 minute) and a large number of infusions (for good tea, from 6 to 15) during one tea session.

The most popular approaches here are Pin Cha (Tea Tasting) and Gongfu Cha (Supreme Mastery of Tea Brewing). The latter, however, already requires some experience with tea and knowledge of the subtleties and features of specific varieties and types.

Where to start

Before we talk about brewing itself, we would like to briefly note several rules that are best not broken — unless, of course, you plan to spoil the taste and aroma and the tea session as a whole. So, here is what to pay attention to and remember first:

1. Water. Use only fresh, high-quality water that has not been boiled before. Spring water or good bottled water is best; at the very least, water from a good filter. Water temperature is 75-85 degrees for white, green and yellow teas; oolongs and pu-erhs can be brewed at 95-98 degrees.
2. Before you start, all teaware is warmed with boiling water.
3. Good tea can be brewed many times. Depending on the variety and the amount of dry tea, the number of infusions will average from 6 to 10.
4. Once the tea is covered with hot water, it is not steeped but poured almost immediately into cups or other vessels.
5. After the finished infusion is poured out, no water should be left in the brewing vessel. Otherwise the tea will over-brew and lose quality.
6. Tea is drunk neither cooled down nor scalding hot. Its flavor opens up best at a medium temperature.

By following these simple rules you can bring out the tea's flavor and character to the fullest.

Nothing complicated. However, there are a few more actions to master for the best result.

Brewing tea: multiple infusions, the most common way to drink tea

Despite how simple the brewing is, we still recommend paying attention from the very start of your tea ceremony and not missing anything. With time your hand will get the feel for it and everything will become familiar and easy. For now, let us look at the order in which to go about it.

1. For more comfortable tea drinking this way, it is best to use a chaban (tea tray). It lets you do a number of things without extra trouble.
2. Take the teaware for brewing. It can be a teapot made of clay, glass or porcelain, or a gaiwan, also of any material. Ideally its volume matches the total volume of the cups (for example, if there are 3 of you and each cup holds 50 ml, you need a brewing vessel of 150 ml).
3. Bring water to a boil until bubbles form and the surface is slightly agitated. Pour it into a thermos.
4. Warm the teapot or gaiwan, as well as the chahai (fairness pitcher) and the cups, with hot water.
5. Put the required amount of dry tea into the chahe – a special small box for getting to know the tea.
6. Once all the teaware is warm and everyone has got acquainted with the aroma and look of the tea, transfer it into the brewing vessel.
7. From the thermos, pour water just enough to cover the leaves and pour it out right away. The first infusion is not drunk; it is a rinse of the tea. With pressed teas you can let the rinse sit for 5-10 seconds.
8. The tea is now ready for proper brewing and drinking. Pour in water, steep according to your own preference for strength, pour into the chahai and then into the cups.

It is worth paying attention to the amount of dry tea. Depending on the type, a different amount is needed to get the tastiest infusion. There are no strict rules here; it all comes down to your taste. Still, as a rough average, you can take the following:

1. White tea – 4-5 g per 100 ml of water;
2. Green and yellow tea – 3-4 g per 100 ml of water;
3. Oolong – 5-6 g per 100 ml of water;
4. Pu-erh – 5-7 g per 100 ml of water.

This averaged proportion can be considered a good starting point. After that you adjust the amount, the brewing time and other details yourself to get exactly what you like best.

One more thing to note – do not add more tea or remove some during the tea session. This can disrupt its integrity and change its flavor and aroma. If the tea turns out a bit harsh and strong, try pouring the infusion as quickly as possible. If, on the contrary, it is a bit weak, simply let it steep in the water a little longer. After just a few sessions you will learn the right dosage and other nuances.

Brewing tea with a tipot

Today's realities do not always allow us to fully enjoy good tea. Lack of time or of the equipment needed for a full Pin Cha or Gongfu Cha session can be a problem. A wonderful device can help here: the tipot.

This item combines three functions at once – a teapot, a chahai and a strainer. Its design lets you brew tea properly anywhere – at the office, outdoors, on a train and so on. In short, anywhere there is no time or setting for a “ceremonial” tea session.

Using such a teapot is very simple:

1. Open the lid, and warm the upper compartment. Drain the water by pressing the button.
2. Put the required amount of your chosen tea into the prepared teapot.
3. Pour in water and press the button almost immediately. The tea flows from the upper part through the strainer into the lower flask, so the tea leaves stay at the top. As mentioned before, we do not drink the first infusion.
4. After that, the same rules as above apply. Brew, pour into drinking cups and enjoy.

This way lets you enjoy good, tasty tea, even if in a simplified form, anywhere there is hot water.

Alternative ways to brew tea

If you have good tea but no teaware or simply no time, no worries. There are many ways to drink tea “quickly” or take it with you. This does “kill” all the ceremony, but it still lets you drink your favorite tea on the road or on the run. In our subjective view, the most acceptable way is this:

1. Bring the water to the right stage (described at the very beginning).
2. Rinse a large brewing vessel with hot water (1 liter as a starting point).
3. Add tea at a rate of 10-15 g (depending on the variety).
4. Let it steep for 5-8 minutes (again, it all depends on the chosen tea).
5. Pour the resulting infusion through a strainer into a thermos or mug.
6. Enjoy your tea on the way or as circumstances allow.

This way lets you brew tea quite well while protecting it from over-brewing and loss of flavor. However, it does not guarantee that the tea gives up all of its aroma and taste.

In our future articles we will look at other ways of drinking tea, such as boiling tea. This method is radically different from those we covered today. It has its own subtleties and nuances that require attention and certain skills. For now you can hone your mastery by practicing multiple-infusion tea sessions, improving your skills and discovering your favorite teas from new sides.

We can answer your questions in more detail in our shop at: Warsaw, Górczewska 4 (Tea24). There you can also discover a lot of new things in the world of Chinese tea and choose something for yourself, or simply place an order in our online shop with courier delivery in Warsaw and InPost across Poland.

Frequently asked questions about Chinese tea