Have you ever had this experience? Every time you walk into a tea market and see the dazzling array of tea leaves, you often feel at a loss, not knowing which one to buy? If you follow the shop owner's recommendations, you might worry about being cheated. So, what should you do in this situation?

In fact, the most important thing when buying tea is its quality. To judge whether tea is good or bad, you mainly rely on vision, smell, taste, and touch. The key methods to determine tea quality are: look, smell, touch, and taste.

1. Look

Observe the appearance of the tea leaves. Check the shape and color when dry, and assess the tenderness, uniformity, and soup color when wet. From the appearance, the tea should have consistent color, size, length, thickness, and shape, achieving uniformity. If the lengths vary, sizes differ, or shapes are irregular, it may indicate rough picking. If the colors are inconsistent and shapes are diverse, the production might be careless. If there are too many broken pieces or impurities, it suggests poor screening after production. Such tea cannot be considered high-quality—it lacks flavor, let alone charm. At best, it’s just a thirst-quenching drink, far from being good tea.

2. Smell

Smell the tea’s aroma, combining dry sniffing with wet sniffing after brewing. Summarizing the experience of tea connoisseurs throughout history, good tea should have a fragrance that is "four nos": not vulgar, not shallow, not monotonous, and not浮躁. If there are impurities, odd smells, or smoky or burnt notes, they are not part of the tea’s natural aroma.

3. Touch

Feel the tea’s body—its weight (heavy or light), smoothness or roughness, and estimate its moisture content by rubbing it between your fingers. Randomly pick a dry tea leaf and press it between your thumb and forefinger. If it crumbles into powder, it’s dry enough. If it forms small颗粒, it’s either not dry enough or has absorbed moisture.

4. Taste

Practice is the sole criterion for testing. If you’re unsure when buying tea, ask the seller to brew a sample for further鉴别 if possible. Generally, a good cup of tea must have a rich flavor, creating a lingering sensation as you drink it. After swallowing, it should leave an endless aftertaste. Some teas taste sweet and smooth when consumed but leave no回味 afterward.

One last tip: No matter where you buy tea, if you still can’t tell whether it’s good or bad after following these steps, go through them before purchasing. The tea shop owner will see that you’re knowledgeable and won’t dare to cheat you easily.