Brewing Green Tea : How To Brew Green Tea For Beginners
If you are new to brewing green tea, you can expect to make some mistakes along the way. Adding too much tea leaves or steeping for that couple of minutes longer. But, that’s how we all got started in learning how to brew green tea. The point is not to obsess over them as it is just part of the learning and experimenting process. Each time as you make your tea, you will discover for yourself what you like and don’t like. And before long, you will be making that cup of green tea that you enjoy most.
As this is an instructional article on how to make green tea, you may need to refer to it several times when needed. As it is quite lengthy I have divided it into several headings, and you can scroll down to that heading which concerns you most. Basically, I present 2 methods of making green tea toward the end of this article, namely:
1. The traditional method which is making green tea from loose leaves in a teapot, and 2. The quick method of making that 1 cuppa either from loose leaves or teabags
Water for brewing green tea
For green tea to taste good, it all begins with the water used in brewing it. If the water itself does not taste good, chances are that the resulting brew wouldn’t taste good either. For after all, tea is composed mainly of water. Ideally, you would want the water to be chlorine free, has a sufficient amount of oxygen in it and the mineral content is neither too high nor totally absent. Indeed, water quality will directly affect the flavor of the tea.
Water quality
You may have heard it before that the best water quality for making tea is natural spring water. But since most of us do not have access to it, the next best alternative is to use bottled spring water obtained direct from its source. But not all types of bottled water is suitable. Bottled distilled water, for example, is so devoid of minerals that are needed to bring out the flavor in tea and you will find your tea tasting flat.
In certain regions the water might be ‘hard’ water or those obtained from wells, has too high a level of minerals which makes your tea taste chalky. In these cases, you might want to invest in a good water filtration system.
But, let’s face it. Using bottled spring water for all your teas can get rather expensive. So, what I do is to use them for brewing the finer green teas. I do use tap water but with a good water filtration system. Such filter systems can substantially remove the taste of chlorine from the water.
Ratio of tea leaves to water
To measure the amount of water you will be using, you will need a measuring cup – the typical American cup holds 8 ounces of water. By using the cup as a measure you will know how many cups of tea your teapot can hold. Once you have determined this, you can then gauze the amount of tea leaves to use. Typically, the green tea product you buy will have brewing directions such as 1 teaspoon per 8 ounces of water. When I was first starting out I mused, ” Does that mean a full scoop or shall I use a half scoop?”
Actually the ratio of tea leaves to water is in terms of weight and the teaspoon or tablespoon is an inadequate measuring tool. It is difficult to match grams to a teaspoon because of the difference in size and density of the various types of tea leaves. A gram is an unit of weight whereas a teaspoon is a measure of volume. One crucial point to note here is that to make a good cup of tea, less amount would be needed for those smaller and denser leaves, and conversely more is required for larger leaves.
I know of some connoisseurs who are serious enough to have a small food scale to measure the amount of tea leaves to use. The general guideline is that if you are making tea in a teapot, you will need 3 grams of tea leaves for 5 ounces of water. For that 1 cuppa, 4 grams of tea for 8 ounces of water.
If you are simply using the teaspoon, just follow the merchant’s directions and do a normal scoop. And then you will be able to adjust to what you like best. Just let your palate be your guide.
Water temperature
The right water temperature is most crucial to the taste of your tea. Using boiling water would make your green tea taste bitter. Whilst most green teas do well at a cooler water temperature of 165% Fahrenheit on average, there are some which are a departure from the norm. So, it would be best for you to follow the product’s directions as to water temperature. You can use a candy thermometer.
For the Japanese green teas for example, the recommended water temperature for gyokuro can be as low as 159%F which is lower than that of Sencha. But many types of Chinese green tea do well at higher water temperatures of 175-180F.
As regards the way water should be heated, experts are divided as to whether one should heat the water to boiling point and then allowed to cool to the right temperature, or be heated just to the right temperature. Personally, I have not been able to catch any difference in the taste.
It is also important not to re-boil the water or to continue boiling when water has already boiled, for much of its oxygen would have been dispersed.
Steeping time
The steeping time for most green teas is between 1 to 3 minutes although there are exceptions. Again, you can start by following the merchant’s directions and then experiment to see which length of steeping time you like best.
Some Chinese green teas like certain types of Dragonwell (Lung Ching) and the Lu An Gua Pian can take longer steeping times of between 3 – 6 minutes to bring out more of the flavor and aroma.
Take note also that in subsequent infusions, some green teas need only shorter steeping time whilst some require it to be longer. Again let your palate be your guide.
The traditional method of brewing green tea
This is the traditional method of brewing loose leaf green tea in a teapot. As it is the longer process which begins with boiling fresh water instead of simply getting water from a home hot water dispenser, it offers the fullest enjoyment and the most therapeutic calming effect.
1. Start by boiling water in a kettle. Once the water has boiled, let it cool to the right temperature. You can use a candy thermometer but as a rule of thumb, it normally takes about three minutes. You can also use the boiled water to pre-heat the teapot and cups by pouring some of it into them, swishing it around and then pouring it away. This helps in making the tea stay warm longer.
2. Now, add the loose leaves to the warm teapot.
3. When the hot water is ready, pour it over the tea leaves in the teapot.
4. Cover the teapot and allow the tea to steep for that 1 – 3 minutes or according to your requirements.
5. Before pouring out the tea, gently shake the teapot and then let the leaves settle once again. Now, pour the tea into your teacups. Tea is now served! The leaves remain in the pot for subsequent infusions.
The quick method of making that one cup of green tea
This is a simple method of making that one cuppa quickly and it saves time. This is ideal for that “caffeine fix” in the morning before getting out for work, or you can make green tea this way while at work. Instead of starting out with boiling water, you might use a hot water dispenser and a thermometer to check water temperature.
1. For best effect, you need to make use of 2 cups. Put hot water into the first cup from the dispenser to pre-heat it. Now, pour the hot water into the second cup and use the thermometer to check water temperature.
2. Put the tea leaves into the first cup which had been pre-heated.
3. Now, when the water in the second cup is ready, pour it over the leaves in the first cup and cover.
4. Let the tea steep for that 1 – 3 minutes. When it is ready you can drink it direct from the cup. Simple wasn’t it?
You will have much satisfaction to know that it’s green tea prepared by yourself. Sure, probably each cup of tea you brew is going to taste a little different from the last one you made. But it’s all part of the process of learning how to brew green tea. With some practice in brewing green tea, you will soon be able to make that perfect cup. Remember, taste in tea is personal – let your taste buds decide on what you like best. So, just enjoy.
Related posts:
Filed under: About Green Tea
Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!