The brewing method for aged Pu'er tea differs significantly from that of new tea. With new teas, there are many varieties, and the focus during brewing is often on identifying any shortcomings. For aged teas, however, quality is high and quantity is limited, so the goal when brewing is to highlight its strengths and minimize its weaknesses, doing justice to this precious aged tea. Brewing Pu'er tea requires skill and attention to detail. As the saying goes: “The devil is in the details.” Brewing tea is not only a technical skill but also a meticulous one. Here are four key phrases to remember.
How to Brew aged Pu'er tea for the best flavor?
Catchphrase 1: Awaken the tea before brewing.
Aged Pu'er tea is stored in an environment with low oxygen, dryness, and no light, which keeps its internal substances in a state of low activity. Without awakening the tea, the flavor will be flat and unappealing. Therefore, before brewing aged tea, it's necessary to awaken its qualities, quickly elevating them to a higher standard.
The process of awakening the tea can be done dry or wet.
Dry awakening involves opening the packaging of the stored aged Pu'er tea and storing it in a clay or purple clay jar for 1 to 3 months to remove any odd odors.
Wet awakening refers to the first rinse of the tea.
After pouring boiling water over the tea, cover it and quickly pour out the water to avoid over-extraction, which could lead to a weaker flavor during actual brewing.
Catchphrase 2: Use high water temperature during brewing.
After many years of settling, aged tea has entered a stable transformation state. High temperatures can help release the hidden internal qualities of the tea.
Therefore, when brewing aged tea, the water temperature must be high.
Catchphrase 3: Pour water slowly when infusing.
When brewing aged tea, use freshly boiled water and pour it in a low, quick motion to maintain the water temperature.
This means pouring the boiling water into the Teapot at a low angle and quickly. After adding the water, immediately cover the teapot to retain the heat and concentrate the tea's aroma.
Catchphrase 4: Gradually increase Steeping time after six infusions.
During the first six infusions, pour out the tea quickly at high temperatures to stimulate the flavors while reducing bitterness.
Starting from the seventh infusion, gradually increase the steeping time. Increase it by just a few seconds each time—5, 10, 15, 20 seconds, and so on—based on the fullness of the tea's flavor and whether there is a watery taste.
Warm Tip:
Ancient tree-aged teas have a higher endurance compared to other aged teas and can start being steeped longer from the ninth infusion onwards.
After the ninth infusion, you can increase the number of times you pour hot water over the teapot to raise its temperature and enhance the tea's qualities, improving its aroma.