When brewing tea, the method of pouring water is a crucial soft factor that significantly affects the tea's quality. It is the only step in the tea brewing process that requires complete manual control, including the speed of pouring, the intensity of the water flow, the path of the water line, its height, and thickness. Here, we focus on the science behind the water line's path.

Spiral pouring

This water line allows the edge of the tea leaves and the surface of the tea base to come into direct contact with the poured water, enhancing the integration of tea and water at the first moment of pouring.

This pouring method is suitable for black tea, green tea, and white tea. It is also ideal for later stages of brewing when the tea's flavor has become lighter and needs to be extracted quickly.

Circular pouring

As the name suggests, circular pouring involves pouring water in a full circle around the lid of the teapot or the surface of the cup, returning to the starting point when finishing. The speed of rotation should be adjusted according to the pouring speed—slow rotation for a thin water column and fast rotation for a thick one.

This water line allows the edge of the tea leaves to come into contact with water immediately, while the middle part of the tea surface only contacts water as the water level rises. The integration of tea and water is less immediate compared to spiral pouring.

This pouring method is suitable for high-tenderness green tea.

Single-side fixed-point pouring

This method involves pouring water at a fixed point on one side. With this technique, only one side of the tea comes into contact with water, resulting in poor initial integration of tea and water. Note that if the pouring point is on the wall of the teapot, the integration will be slightly better than if the pouring point is between the teapot and the tea base.

This pouring method is suitable for teas that require quick extraction or broken tea leaves.

Center fixed-point pouring

Center fixed-point pouring is an extreme method, often paired with a thin water line and slow, prolonged pouring.

With this method, only a small central part of the tea base comes into direct contact with the water line, while the rest dissolves very slowly. This minimizes the initial integration of tea and water, creating a distinct layered flavor in the tea. However, it can cause overly concentrated flavors and separation of tea and water in some fermented teas.

This pouring method is suitable for teas with high aroma.