Struggling to Control Brewing Time? 4 Steps to Brewing a Sweet, Smooth Cup of Tea

"Let's catch up over tea!" Have you heard this kind of invitation before? Tea can be a relaxing pastime to enjoy with family and friends, but if you want to take it seriously, brewing a good cup is both a deep area of study and an art form. So today, we're going to walk you through 4 steps to help you brew a rich, fragrant cup of tea.

Preparation Before Brewing

At home, the tea table of an experienced tea drinker is always covered with cups and tools of various sizes. Every time they brew, you'll see them rinsing the teapot, pouring out a brew, then pouring another. Do you know what all these tools and actions are for? Before introducing the brewing steps, let's first look at what preparation needs to be done beforehand.

Essential Tea Equipment

The main tools you'll need are: a kettle, a teapot of 250ml or less, a tea sea (same capacity as the teapot), teacups, a tea towel, a water tray (a container for waste water and tea residue), tea tongs, and a tea needle (a tool for removing tea leaves from the pot). If you want to better control your brewing time, you can also prepare a timer.

Use the Right Amount of Tea Leaves

Next is preparing the right amount of tea leaves. Since more leaves does not mean a better brew, the strength of the tea depends on the variety. Add an appropriate amount of leaves so they can fully open up and release their complete aroma. Most teas are recommended to fill 30–40% of the teapot, with the exception of ball-shaped oolong teas, which need more room to expand, so just one flat layer covering the bottom of the pot is sufficient.

How to Brew a Great Cup of Tea? 4 Steps and the Full Process

Once you have your equipment and leaves ready, you can follow the steps below to brew a fragrant, perfectly balanced cup.

Step 1 | Rinsing Brew

First, bring the water to a boil, rinse the teapot, add the tea leaves, pour in enough water to submerge them, close the lid, and wait about 10 seconds. This allows the leaves to absorb enough water and helps release the tea's aroma. You may then pour out this rinse. However, not all teas require a rinsing brew, so you can choose whether to skip this step depending on the tea variety.

Step 2 | First Brew

After the rinsing brew, it's time for the actual first brew. Boil the water again, fill the teapot, close the lid, and wait about 50 seconds. Pour the tea into the tea sea, then distribute it evenly into the teacups. If there is tea liquid around the teapot lid, use a tea towel to wipe the pot dry to maintain hygiene.

Step 3 | Second to Fifth Brew

The following second and third brews follow the same steps as the first, and can be repeated about four times until the tea loses its flavor.

Step 4 | Cleaning

After finishing, use the tea needle to scoop the spent leaves out of the teapot into the water tray. Pour water into the now-empty teapot, close the lid, and wait about 30 seconds. Then pour out the water and open the lid. Use a sponge to clean the inside of the pot. Teacups, the tea sea, and the water tray can all be rinsed at the drain. The tea needle can be wiped dry with a tea towel. Cleaning is now complete.

Brewing Tips! Time and Temperature Are Key

In addition to the brewing steps, steeping time and temperature are also important factors affecting the aroma of the tea. As long as you control the amount of leaves, water temperature, and time, you can brew a great cup. Below, we've listed the recommended brewing parameters for 5 common Taiwanese teas for your reference, so you can brew a rich and fragrant cup.

Note: after the rinsing brew and the first brew (which use high-temperature boiling water), subsequent brews use naturally cooled water and do not need to be reheated, to avoid the tea becoming overly bitter and astringent.

No Tea Set? 3 Alternative Methods

But does not having traditional tea equipment mean you can't brew loose leaf tea? Not at all. Yoshan Tea is here to teach you how to brew a great cup using a thermal flask, a thermos bottle, and a glass bottle.

1. Thermal Flask | Light and Refreshing

Prepare a heat-resistant flask of 500ml or more and a kettle or mug, then add about 7/10 of the bottom (for ball-type oolong) to a full layer (for other teas) of leaves. Fill with boiling water, and drink once the leaves have fully opened.

2. Thermos Bottle | Rich and Mellow

For a thermos bottle, add about 5/10 of the bottom (for ball-type oolong) to a full layer (for other teas) of leaves, pour in boiling water to about 1/3 of the thermos, wait about 30 seconds, then use room-temperature water to fill up the bottle before drinking.

3. Glass Bottle | Cold and Sweet

For a glass bottle, you can try cold brewing. Just like with the thermal flask, add the same amount of leaves, use cold water to fill the glass bottle, and refrigerate for 8 hours. You'll get a cold brew that is mellow and not at all bitter.
Compared to traditional brewing, these 3 methods use fewer leaves and therefore cannot be re-steeped as many times. The steps and cleanup are also simpler, making them ideal for brewing tea conveniently at the office or outdoors.