When buying Tea at a tea shop and unsure about the market, the owner might talk your ear off. Before you know it, you could be misled. However, if you smile and calmly say, “Let me see the Leaf residue,” the owner will promptly present you with quality goods for your selection.

The leaf residue is that magical element—simple, direct, and practical. Join us as we guide you through seven criteria to evaluate tea quality by examining the leaf residue.

How to Distinguish Good Tea from Bad in One Easy Step

This trick is very useful when buying tea at a tea shop: always inspect the leaf residue, never judge the quality of tea solely based on its dry appearance.

First, observe. Look at the leaf residue after Steeping to see if the leaves are intact. If there are too many broken pieces, it indicates that the tea's picking standards were not met.

Second, rub. Take a leaf and rub it between your fingers to check if it crumbles into tiny pieces. Also, feel the leaf's firmness. If it crumbles easily or feels too hard, it suggests that the Tea processing was inadequate.

Third, pull. Take a leaf and pull it to test its elasticity. If the leaf is difficult to break and shows good resilience, it indicates a rich content of internal substances and high-quality raw tea. If the leaf breaks easily without any elasticity, it is not a good tea.

Everyone has their own definition of good tea, but objectively, you can evaluate it based on four dimensions: aftertaste, salivation, throat resonance, and bodily sensation.

So when buying tea, be bold and taste it. Afterward, inspect the leaf residue, and you'll easily avoid pitfalls!