Before drinking tea, washing tea leaves can remove dust, wake up the tea, and moisturize the tea. Let's take a look at the basic knowledge about washing tea in the six major tea categories.
Some tea leaves in the six major tea categories do not need to be washed. For example, high-quality green tea is relatively tender and does not need to be washed. White tea does not need to be washed either, and oolong tea only needs to be washed once.
Basic knowledge of six types of tea
1. Green tea
Green tea loses its flavor after being brewed two or three times. Green tea has few impurities and can be washed with warm water. Green tea of better quality and more delicate tea is of better quality than other grades of tea, and is cleaner and less resistant to brewing, so it does not need to be washed.
2. Oolong tea
Oolong tea usually only needs to be washed once, which can also wake up the tea and preserve the aroma and flavor of the tea. When brewing oolong tea, you can add water to a fixed point on the wall of the cup, and do not pour water directly on the tea leaves, so that the tea will not have a bitter taste.
3. Black tea
Black tea is more delicate than other teas, and its nature is mild. The first brewed tea can be kept because when the black tea is rolled, the juice of the black tea will adhere to the surface of the dry tea leaves. These tea juices contain nutrients, which are dissolved in the first tea soup. Therefore, the first brewed black tea is rich in nutrients and the taste is not strong.
4. Black tea（黑茶） and Pu'er tea
Black tea is compressed tea and needs to be washed to wake up the tea leaves.
When brewing black tea and Pu'er tea in a covered bowl, pour water along the edge of the covered bowl, not directly on the tea leaves. You can use a ring or spiral water injection. The first brew is for washing tea, and the soup should be poured out quickly.
The water temperature should be controlled at 93 degrees Celsius. If it is loose tea, the water temperature should be 90 degrees Celsius.
You can drink it normally from the second brew. The second and third brews should be properly stewed for 10 seconds, and then stewed for a longer time to drink the soup. The main factors to be mastered are: add the right amount of tea, control the water temperature, pour water at a slower angle and speed, control the stewing time well, and wash it twice before brewing tea.
5. Yellow tea
Yellow tea is a lightly fermented tea, so you don’t need to wash it.
The buds of yellow tea are tender, so it is taboo to brew it at high temperature. Use a glass cup or a covered bowl to brew Junshan Yinzhen.When brewing yellow tea with a covered bowl, take the appropriate yellow tea and add it to the tea bowl. Boiling water is brewed in a spiral shape along the tea leaves in a clockwise direction.
The amount of tea leaves is about one-fifth of the capacity of the covered bowl. The water temperature is controlled at about 85 degrees. Remember not to cover it when brewing, otherwise it will taste bitter.
6. White tea
White tea is made from fresh tea leaves. When the tea is first brewed, the essence of the tea leaves remains in the tea. If the first brewed tea is poured out, the taste of the subsequent brewed tea will be very light. In addition, the production process of white tea is very delicate. Good quality white tea is clean and can be brewed directly. White tea does not need to be washed.
When washing tea leaves, if you are worried about dust on them, you can quickly rinse them with water the first time and then pour them out immediately.
