Water and temperature
The single biggest reason people think they dislike green tea is water that is 20 degrees too hot.
Green and white teas are the most delicate things in tea and the easiest to ruin. Water at 75–85 °C extracts sweetness and aroma; water at 100 °C extracts tannin and turns the cup bitter and spinach-like. Let a freshly boiled kettle sit for two or three minutes before you pour it over a Longjing.
Oolong wants 90–100 °C, and rock oolong and pu-erh want a full rolling boil — they are built for it. Black tea sits in the middle at 90–95 °C.
Water quality matters as much as temperature. Soft, low-mineral water makes noticeably better tea; heavily chlorinated tap water will flatten any aroma. If your tap water tastes of anything at all, filter it.
Pick a tea and brew it tonight
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Keep reading
How to brew gongfu style
More leaf, less water, shorter steeps, many infusions. The Chinese method that gets the most out of a tea — and is far more forgiving than it looks.
Pu-erhStoring tea properly
Tea is a dried leaf that wants to reabsorb the world around it. Four rules keep it tasting like itself.
WhiteWhat tea actually does
An honest summary: tea is a pleasant, low-calorie drink with mild effects. Most of the extraordinary claims are marketing.