Green tea is unfermented tea, so it is rich in antioxidants, tea amino acids and other healthy benefits, as well as a refreshing taste and rich aroma. However, many people do not find the joy of drinking tea when brewing green teas, but instead brew bitter or other flavors, which makes them feel unpalatable.
This is because Chinese tea beginners have not mastered the skills of brewing green tea. As long as they master some brewing skills and practice, they can make green tea taste good.
1. Choose good quality green tea
First, choose good quality green tea. Different varieties of green tea have different flavors and characteristics. Green tea Chinese includes West Lake Longjing Tea, Bi Luo Chun, Anji white, Huang Ahan Mao Feng, Taiping Houkui and Lu'an Guapian. When choosing, you should choose according to your taste and needs. For example, Longjing tea with a soft taste is suitable for Chinese tea beginners, while Guapian with a slightly stronger taste is more suitable for people with certain Chinese tea experience.
In addition, choose fresh tea leaves. The freshness of tea leaves has a great influence on the quality of tea. Therefore, it is important to keep green tea fresh. If possible, try to buy new tea produced that year. When storing, be sure to pay attention to sealing and low-temperature refrigeration to avoid changes in the quality of green tea.
2. Water quality and water temperature
The water used for brewing green tea is also very important. Use spring water to make the taste of tea more pure. In addition, pay attention to the temperature of the water. Different teas are suitable for different temperatures. Generally speaking, high-quality green tea is suitable for brewing with water below 90℃ (194℉). If the water temperature is too high, it will scald the delicate tea leaves.
3. Correct tea-water ratio
The ratio of brewing green tea is also very important. Generally speaking, the ratio of tea to water is 1:50 when brewing green tea with a covered bowl; the ratio of tea to water is 1:100 when brewing green tea with a glass cup
4. Correct steeping time
The brewing time of green tea is also very important. If the time is too short, the taste of the tea will be light, and if the time is too long, the taste of the tea will be bitter.
Generally speaking, the soaking time for brewing green tea with a covered bowl is 10-15 seconds; the soaking time for brewing green tea with a glass cup is about 1 minute. The specific time can be adjusted according to the type of tea and personal taste.
5. Brewing steps
Here we take our Huangshan Maofeng green tea as an example to show how to make green tea
1. Preheat the tea set: wash the tea set with hot water, the residual temperature can stimulate the aroma of dry tea leaves
2. Add tea leaves: put an appropriate amount of tea leaves into a glass cup or teapot.
3. Add water: pour hot water below 90℃ (194℉)
4. Steeping time: the steeping time, we would recommend you within 15s for the first-five brews. ( you can appropriately increase or decrease your steeping according to your taste)
In addition to the above basic brewing methods, there are another method to make green tea taste better, such as:
Brewing tea leaves in cold water: Brewng tea leaves in cold water for a period of time can make the aroma of tea leaves more fully released. (For specific operation methods, please see our tea blog: How To Make Iced Green Tea?)
