Statement 1: The first infusion can wash away pesticide residues. Due to the特殊性 of tea leaves, they cannot be washed like fruits and vegetables, so many tea friends use the first infusion to "wash" away pesticide residues. However, most pesticides are脂溶性 substances; hot water can only dissolve and dilute a very small amount. It is truly impossible to rely on the first infusion alone to wash away pesticide residues. If you are still "preoccupied" with pesticide residues, the only suggestion is to buy organic tea.
Statement 2: The first infusion doesn't taste good anyway, so it doesn't matter if it's discarded. This statement mainly talks about the first infusion from the perspective of warming and rinsing, believing that the "warming rinse" does not achieve the best drinking口感, so it doesn't matter if it's thrown away. This practice is not agreed with because the maximum析出 of beneficial substances in tea occurs in the first infusion, especially for green tea. I once saw someone brew Junshan Yinzhen and discard the entire first infusion just because there were fine hairs in the tea soup, which was a great pity because that is the most stunning infusion in the soup of this famous premium yellow tea.
Statement 3: The first infusion is used to wash away impurities and dust. This statement is, of course, aimed at teas that have been stored for a certain period of time. The first infusion does indeed have a rinsing function, and it doesn't have to be drunk, but calling it a "useless infusion" is actually somewhat biased. As the first brew, it is full of quality information about this tea and is highly expressive. For example: if after sipping the first infusion, you detect a faint dusty taste and异味 (like a rotten vegetable smell or sandalwood scent), it indicates that the storage space for this tea was not clean or hygienic enough; if you taste a scorched flavor, it means there were process issues during the making of this tea, such as being overheated or burnt; if you taste a slight musty smell, it means the tea was exposed to some moisture during storage; if there are broken tea leaves and debris floating in the tea soup, it indicates a lower原料等级 or poor tea-breaking skills... Someone once jokingly called the first infusion the "black box" of Pu-erh tea, containing much information that merchants are unwilling to tell you. So next time you buy Pu-erh tea, perhaps take a small sip of the first infusion and carefully taste for any abnormal flavors. This method is very useful. To Discard or Not to Discard the "First Infusion"? It Depends. Actually, regarding the first infusion, we can simply categorize teas into three types.
Category 1: Teas in their natural state or with a low degree of shaping. Here, "natural state" refers to tea products presented in their original form, like flower tea and white tea; "teas with a low degree of shaping" include most green teas, black teas, and yellow teas. For them, you drink the tea's own flavor, so there is no need to discard the first infusion. This is especially true for some famous premium green teas, where the most beautiful aroma and freshness are all in the first infusion.
Category 2: Teas with a high degree of shaping. For example, ball-shaped oolong teas, or Pu-erh teas, tuo teas, brick teas, etc. Due to their special shape, the tea leaves undergo a "slow unfolding" process during immersion. Therefore, the first infusion is often used to warm and moisten the leaves, and this brew is completely drinkable. However, on formal occasions, since the tea soup has not reached its best state for drinking, the warming rinse is not served to guests.
Category 3: Teas with aging time. This category refers to aged teas and old teas, represented by Pu-erh tea. The first infusion often serves as a "warming" function, and more importantly, a "waking up the tea" function. For teas with storage problems, many people rinse multiple times in an attempt to掩盖 the negative effects of storage. Therefore, as mentioned earlier, in such cases, it is not recommended to drink the first infusion. However, you can assess its "health" status by smelling the dry leaves, observing the color of the first infusion soup, smelling its aroma, or even taking a small sip and spitting it out.
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