How to perfectly prepare tea?

If you have no experience with tea preparation, try following the steps below. Preparing tea is not complicated, there is nothing to be afraid of. Start by placing the tea itself into a glass or porcelain teapot:

about 1 teaspoon for teas with small (or chopped) leaves
about 1 tablespoon for teas with large leaves

Then pour 250 ml of water over the tea. It is important to use the right water temperature.

Green tea and yellow tea – 75-85 °C
White tea – 80-90 °C
Oolong tea – 80-90 °C
Black (red) tea – 95-100 °C
Puer and Heicha – 95-100 °C

After 2–3 minutes, strain the tea through a strainer into another vessel and you’re done. The method described is extremely simplified for absolute beginners, but it works.

But let’s think a bit more about tea preparation…

First of all, there is no need to strive for perfection — what is perfect for one person may not be for another. We should prepare tea so that it tastes good to us above all. Our satisfaction will carry over to others. The experience of tasting tea is influenced by many factors. These include, of course, the quality of the tea itself, the quality of the water used, the material and shape of the teaware, the method of preparation, but also, for example, ambient temperature and humidity, environment, food consumed beforehand, and last but not least, our mood.

Tea quality

It is very complicated to reliably determine the quality of a tea we don’t know, even for a professional with many years of experience. That’s why we always recommend buying from vendors who are trusted by people we trust, and who have had good experiences with them for a long time. For unknown teas, it’s always advisable to buy samples before purchasing a larger quantity. Before forming an opinion, we recommend tasting the tea more than once for the reasons mentioned above.

Tea cannot be bought like, for example, a vacuum cleaner, where we compare prices by name or model number and buy where it is cheapest. If 10 vendors sell tea under the same name, you can be sure that at least 8 different teas are involved. And when we say different, that can mean 8 teas that differ in all attributes and share only the same name.

Water

Even if you purchase the highest-quality tea, its potential will only be realized if it is prepared with quality water. Lu Yu, a Chinese scholar who lived in the 8th century, wrote the first encyclopedia of tea called Cha Ching, long regarded as the most important treatise on tea. Lu Yu stated that the best-quality water comes from slowly flowing mountain water (he identified ten springs in China ideal for tea preparation). His next choice in water quality was river water, preferably from the middle of the river, and lastly well water.

While the mineral content of water clearly affects the appearance and taste of the infusion, there is no clear consensus on which kind of water is best for tea. It seems that different teas benefit from different waters, and personal preference also plays a role. Choosing the right water for a particular tea is considered part of the art of tea preparation and something that comes with years of experience. Most tea experts, however, say that soft water is best for quality teas. Lu Yu himself probably preferred high mountain spring water for this very reason — because mountain spring water has spent little time in contact with the ground and is therefore relatively soft. Most published research on this topic has reached the same conclusion. One study compared different types of tea brewed with tap water (about 200 ppm), bottled mineral water (70 ppm), and mountain spring water (20 ppm). It was found that waters with lower mineral content produced better taste, with mountain spring water producing the best overall flavor. Adding greater hardness to brewing water reduces the characteristic bitterness, sweetness, and umami of tea and makes it more astringent.

Another important factor is the pH of the water. In one test, the pH of tap water was adjusted with acid until it reached 6, approximately the same pH as mountain water. This improved the taste and clarity of the resulting tea but did not fully compensate for the difference in hardness. Another test found that water with low hardness and low pH makes better tea, but also that green tea seems to be more affected by the mineral content of water than black tea. This is likely due to the importance of catechins in taste.

It was found that brewing tea with harder water or water with higher pH results in an infusion containing fewer catechins. This may be partly because calcium in the water binds to pectin in the cell walls, making them less porous. The main factor seems to be that in water with higher mineral content or higher pH, catechins oxidize faster. When catechins oxidize, they bind together and form larger, darker-colored molecules. The bitterness of catechins is reduced as they break down, but the larger molecules formed in the process increase the astringency of the tea. Softer water therefore leads to tea that experts claim tastes better, looks better, and is potentially healthier because it contains antioxidants.

Temperature

Another crucial factor in tea preparation is water temperature. When tea leaves are placed in hot water, substances begin to dissolve and diffuse into the water. Many different substances are involved, and the rate at which they dissolve varies. At lower temperatures, only some substances dissolve, while at higher temperatures a different combination is extracted.

For green teas, higher temperatures usually result in more bitterness. However, at lower temperatures, many of the substances responsible for the delicate aroma of tea are not extracted. In general, the best temperature is one that achieves a balance of different flavors. For green tea, the optimal temperature is usually around 80 °C. For black tea, higher temperatures — close to boiling — are generally best, because they bring out its rich and full character without an unpleasantly bitter taste. Oolong teas fall somewhere in between, usually between 80 and 90 °C. But there are exceptions, and the optimal temperature may depend on the specific tea.

Gong Fu Cha

Gong Fu Cha 功夫茶 literally means “tea with skill” and is the traditional Chinese method of tea preparation. It uses a higher proportion of leaves relative to water than Western-style preparation and a smaller teapot or gaiwan. Tea is steeped repeatedly for short intervals, allowing the drinker to appreciate the changing character of the tea with each infusion.

The number of infusions depends on the type and quality of tea. High-quality oolong and puerh teas can yield 10 or more good infusions. This method is particularly suitable for teas with complex flavor profiles, as it reveals their different aspects over time. It is also a more meditative and ceremonial way of preparing tea, emphasizing the beauty of teaware, water pouring, and shared experience.

Teaware

The choice of teaware also affects the taste and overall experience of tea. Porcelain and glass are neutral materials that do not affect the taste and allow you to see the color of the infusion. Clay teapots, especially Yixing 紫砂 teapots, can subtly influence the taste of tea, as the porous clay absorbs tea oils and develops a patina over time. Some tea drinkers dedicate one teapot to a particular type of tea (e.g., oolong or puerh) to enhance its flavor.

The shape and thickness of the teapot also play a role — thin-walled gaiwans cool quickly and are suitable for green teas, while thicker clay teapots retain heat longer and are ideal for heavily roasted oolongs and puerh. Cups should be thin enough to allow comfortable sipping and to transmit heat pleasantly to the lips.

Conclusion

Preparing tea is both simple and endlessly deep. Beginners need not worry about complex rules — even a simple method can produce a delicious cup. But those who wish can gradually refine their technique and explore the subtleties that make tea preparation an art. What matters most is enjoyment — tea should bring joy, relaxation, and a moment of connection with oneself and with others.