How to Properly Brew Taiwanese Orange Tea – Cheng Cha 橙茶

Orange Tea, in Chinese Cheng Cha 橙茶, is a new type of Taiwanese tea that lies on the boundary between white tea, oolong tea and black tea. However, it is not correct to prepare it exactly the same way as any of these categories. It is precisely the processing method, medium to higher oxidation and the rapid release of substances into the infusion that make Orange Tea require its own preparation logic. This style was officially introduced by the Taiwanese Tea and Beverage Crop Research and Extension Station in August 2024 as a new tea category. The goal was to create a tea that retains the character of a premium tea, but at the same time is stable, well usable in beverages and suitable also for iced teas or mixed drinks.

A typical Orange Tea has an amber-orange infusion color, a fuller body and an aroma reminiscent of flowers, fruit, maple syrup, dried fruit, honey, dried kumquats or lightly caramelized notes. In some versions, tones of milk, pear, dried tomatoes, orange blossom or wild honey may also appear. However, it is essential to distinguish what material the tea is made from. The bud version with fine tips, white down and higher-quality harvesting requires more careful preparation. Too high a temperature or too strong extraction can easily deprive it of its delicacy and bring it closer in taste to a cheaper version. More mature leaves, older leaves or machine-cut variants, on the contrary, are more robust, darker, sweeter, more woody and more suitable for stronger infusions, iced tea or gastronomic use. When preparing Orange Tea, it is therefore most important to observe the color of the infusion, the strength of extraction and the type of leaf.

1. Preparation for beginners

The beginner method is mainly intended for easy understanding of the tea and for preparing a hot or iced drink. It works well especially with more mature leaves, machine-processed versions and more common variants of Orange Tea.

The basic ratio is:

1 g of tea per 70 ml of water

Practical example:

3 g of tea for approximately 200 ml of water

Use water at a temperature of approximately 100 °C and steep for around 7 minutes. The result is a stronger, more concentrated infusion that you can drink on its own or further dilute with water or ice.

This method is suitable mainly because Orange Tea releases quickly and produces a relatively concentrated infusion. If the tea is prepared too weakly, for example by short steeping or a small amount of leaves, it may be gentle and pleasant, but it loses part of its potential for iced drinks or mixing.

Shorter steeping: 3 minutes

If you want a lighter and fresher infusion, you can steep for only 3 minutes. The result will be a quickly prepared, more delicate and refreshing tea. The aroma will be lighter, the infusion will be lighter and the taste less concentrated.

Longer steeping: 7 minutes

When steeping for around 7 minutes, more pronounced fruitiness, a sweet-sour character, a fuller body and a deeper color are extracted from the tea. This style is excellent especially for iced serving, shaking with ice or use as a base for a drink.

How to dilute and serve Orange Tea with ice

Iced preparation is one of the strongest aspects of Orange Tea. The tea was designed to work well not only as a hot premium tea, but also as a base for modern beverages.

Basic concentrated infusion:

200 ml of strong Orange Tea

Dilution options:

Rich drink:
200 ml of strong Orange Tea + approximately 100 g of ice or hot water

Standard dilution:
200 ml of strong Orange Tea + approximately 200 g of ice

Recommended refreshing serving:
200 ml of strong Orange Tea + approximately 300 g of ice

Commercially usable stronger variant:
200 ml of strong Orange Tea + approximately 400 g of ice

In general, a strong infusion can be easily softened by adding water or ice. If the color is too dark and the taste too concentrated, it is not necessarily a mistake – the infusion can be diluted into a more pleasant balance.

How to recognize the correct strength by color

For beginners, it is very helpful to observe the color of the tea infusion.

A lighter golden-orange infusion will be more delicate, fresher and more floral. It is suitable for drinking without dilution.
A darker orange to brown-orange infusion will be stronger, sweeter, more fermented and more suitable for ice, dilution or mixed drinks.
If the color is very dark, it is recommended to dilute the infusion before drinking. Too strong Orange Tea may be sweet and expressive, but it does not have to be so smooth and layered.

2. Preparation for advanced – gongfu style

Advanced preparation is suitable mainly for finer, bud-based and higher-quality versions of Orange Tea, for example types similar to Orange Beauty, White Beauty or Snow Beauty. These teas may have more white down, fuller buds and finer aromatics. More careful handling is required, otherwise their character will be lost.

The basic ratio for gongfu preparation:

1 g of tea per 60 ml of water

Practical example:

2 g of tea per 120 ml of water

The goal is not to make the strongest possible infusion. On the contrary. With high-quality Orange Tea it is better to start with a slightly weaker infusion than one that is too strong. A weaker infusion can be extended, but over-extraction cannot be reversed.

Three infusions: white tea, oolong, black tea

Advanced preparation shows why Orange Tea is so interesting. In three infusions, different parts of its character gradually appear.

First infusion

30 seconds, approximately 92 °C, lid half open

The first infusion should be gentle. The water should not be too aggressive and the stream of water should not stir the leaves too strongly. Gentle pouring is recommended, ideally along the side of the vessel or at one calm point.

This infusion shows rather the character of white tea: lightness, florality, freshness, delicate sweetness and purity.

Second infusion

20 seconds, approximately 92 °C, lid fully closed

The second infusion is usually the most beautiful and the most complex. Here the body, fruitiness, structure and oolong depth appear more clearly. The aroma becomes rounder and the taste begins to be fuller.

It is precisely the second infusion that often shows the true quality of Orange Tea best.

Third infusion

50 seconds, 92–100 °C, lid fully closed

The third infusion may be stronger, deeper and rounder. In taste it comes closer to black tea – sweetness, fuller body, darker fruitiness and a lightly fermented character appear.

The three infusions can thus gradually resemble three worlds: white tea, oolong and black tea. It is precisely their connection that forms the distinctiveness of Orange Tea.

Pouring technique

In advanced preparation, not only the amount of tea, temperature and time are important, but also the way of pouring the water itself.

First pour gently. In the first infusion, the stream of water should not be too strong, because Orange Tea extracts quickly. Too forceful pouring can cause the flavor to open too quickly and lose its delicate layers.

In further infusions, the stream of water can be gradually increased. In the source material, this method is described as the principle: first gently, then more strongly. In this way, the tea opens layer by layer.

Side pouring or single-point pouring is suitable. Strong swirling of the leaves is not ideal, especially with finer bud versions.

Preheating the vessel is necessary

With Orange Tea, preheating the vessel is very important. It is not just a ritual detail. A heated teapot, gaiwan or tasting cup helps to release the aroma better and stabilize extraction.

Without preheating, the first infusion may appear flatter and the aroma may not open fully.

For a start, porcelain is more suitable than a Yixing teapot. Porcelain is neutral and allows better understanding of the tea. Yixing or other unglazed ceramics may round the taste, but at the same time hide differences between individual infusions.

What to watch out for

Orange Tea is not recommended to be prepared in exactly the same way as standard white tea or oolong. At high temperature and with too long steeping, it can easily become over-extracted. The result will then be an infusion that tastes like a lighter black tea, but loses delicacy, florality and layering.

With high-quality bud versions, even greater caution is needed. If they are prepared too strongly, they may taste almost the same as cheaper variants made from more mature leaves. This is a pity, because it is precisely the delicate buds that can show the greatest depth – honeyedness, flowers, fruit, freshness and a long sweet aftertaste.

It is also important not to judge quality only by the amount of white down. More tips and down may indicate finer material, but what is decisive is the overall quality of the harvest, fullness of the buds, condition of the leaf and processing method.

Bud version vs. mature leaves

The bud version of Orange Tea is suitable mainly for hot gongfu preparation. It requires lower to medium temperature, gentle pouring and shorter infusions. If prepared well, it shows floral, fruity, honeyed and fresh layers.

More mature leaves, older leaves and machine-cut variants have a darker dry leaf, often yellow-brown to dark-brown tones, and a taste closer to a less bitter black tea. They excel in sugary, woody, sweeter and stronger aromatics. They are suitable for stronger infusions, iced tea, dilution and beverage use.

With more mature leaves, differences between cultivars may be more pronounced. The source mentions differences between three main groups: small-leaf cultivars, large-leaf cultivars and camellia-type tea plants. Differences between individual small-leaf cultivars are usually not so significant.

Why Orange Tea stands out as iced tea

One of the greatest charms of Orange Tea is cold serving. Whether you prepare a lighter or stronger infusion, after cooling its taste often opens beautifully. Fruity notes are clearer, sweetness feels cleaner and the fermented character becomes rounder.

With three-minute steeping, a quick, fresh and lighter drink is created.
With seven-minute steeping, you obtain a richer fruity taste, a sweet-sour character and a more expressive base suitable for ice.

Therefore, it can be said that Orange Tea is not only a tea for hot drinking. It is also a very interesting base for iced tea, shaking, cold drink service and modern tea gastronomy.

Recommended preparation summary

For simple preparation, use:

1 g of tea per 70 ml of water 100 °C
3 minutes for a lighter infusion
7 minutes for a stronger infusion
suitable for ice, dilution and beverage use

For advanced gongfu preparation, use:

1 g of tea per 60 ml of water
preheated porcelain vessel
1st infusion: 30 s, 92 °C, lid half open
2nd infusion: 20 s, 92 °C, lid closed
3rd infusion: 50 s, 92–100 °C, lid closed

With delicate bud versions, start more carefully. With more mature leaves, do not be afraid of stronger extraction and iced serving.

Conclusion

Orange Tea is a tea that rewards attention. With simple preparation, it offers a sweet, fruity and clearly readable infusion. With advanced gongfu preparation, it reveals its true depth – the delicacy of white tea, the structure of oolong and the roundness of black tea.

Its greatest charm lies in its variability. It can be fresh or deep, hot or iced, delicate or concentrated. It is enough to choose the right ratio, observe the color of the infusion and let the tea gradually open.