Brewing is a starting point
Clear, practical guides for getting more from tea, whether you have five minutes or fifty.
Simple and forgiving
Coming soon
Modern gongfu sessions
Adjust, taste, repeat
BREWING GUIDES
Brewing is a starting point.
Simple starting points for brewing better tea. Follow once, then experiment.
We provide brewing recommendations for every tea we offer, based on how we actually tested it. Sometimes our suggestions look different from conventional advice. That is intentional: different temperatures, timings and ratios can bring out different sides of the same tea.
Start with our suggestion. Then make it yours.
01
What you need
You do not need much.
Tea
Loose-leaf tea. Begin with the amount on the tea label.
Water
Fresh water, heated to the temperature recommended for the tea.
A vessel
A mug, teapot, gaiwan or whatever lets the leaves open comfortably.
A little attention
A timer helps, but tasting is the tool that matters most.
02
Choose how you want to brew
Two simple approaches. The same good tea.
Everyday brewing
Simple, forgiving, and good for a full cup.
Start with
5 g tea · 500 ml water
3 minutes
1 Add the leaves.
2 Pour in water at the temperature on the tea label.
3 Steep for around 3 minutes.
4 Strain completely.
5 Re-steep the same leaves, adding time gradually.
Gongfu brewing
More leaf, less water, shorter steeps.
Start with
5 g tea · 100 ml water
10 seconds
1 Warm your vessel if you like.
2 Add the leaves.
3 Pour in water at the temperature on the label.
4 Steep for about 10 seconds.
5 Decant fully.
6 Add 5–10 seconds each round.
7 Keep tasting; stop when the leaves have no more to say.
03
Adjust, taste, repeat
There are no sacred numbers. These recommendations are starting points, not rules.
Too light?
Use more leaf, less water, or add a little time.
Too bitter or drying?
Shorten the steep, lower the temperature, or use more water.
Want more aroma?
Try a slightly hotter temperature with shorter, concentrated steeps.
Want something softer?
Lower the temperature, shorten the brew, or add a little more water.
The best brewing parameters are the ones that make the tea taste good to you.
04
Why our recommendations might look unusual
We brew everything we offer. Our recommendations come from tasting the tea itself, not simply from its category.
Two white teas do not necessarily want the same temperature. Different cultivars, harvests and processing choices change what works.
Sometimes a suggestion may look unconventional because, after testing different ratios and temperatures, that is where we found the clearest and most enjoyable cup.
Treat the label as a well-tested first step. Your water, vessel and taste will finish the recipe.
It is our starting point. Not the final word.
05
Brewing one of our teas?
Every Leave Blank tea comes with its own recommended ratio, temperature and starting time. Head to the tea page for the full guide, then adjust from there.
Explore the teas →