To brew a good pot of tea, you must have the proper teaware for Gongfu tea. For everyday tea drinking at home, an electric kettle (also called a "sui shou pao"), a tea tray, a fairness cup, and a ceramic lidded bowl are sufficient. If you have a purple clay teapot, you can choose to use it. (Especially in the southern winter without heating, the cold weather makes a purple clay teapot preferable as it doesn't lose heat easily.) The amount of tea leaves depends on the size of the vessel. Friends who prefer a lighter taste can fill about one-third of the container with leaves. This can be decided based on personal preference. Due to the special geographical climate and growing environment, different Wuyi Rock Teas also have different brewing methods.

Choosing Water

 

 

Water is a crucial element. Mountain spring water is best if available, or mineral water. Bottled purified water is also acceptable. After boiling the water, first warm the cups. After warming the brewing vessel, pour in the tea leaves, cover, and gently shake for a few seconds. Then open the lid—at this point, a light tea fragrance will emanate from the container. This process is called "smelling the dry aroma." Then, pour water from a height, aiming at a single point, preferably at the edge of the container, causing the tea leaves to tumble inside.

 

 

At this point, you can see white foam. Skim off the foam and quickly pour out the tea liquor. This process is called "rinsing the tea." In our daily tea brewing, we are accustomed to rinsing the tea, meaning we don't drink the first infusion and discard it. In professional tea evaluation, only the foam is skimmed off; the first infusion is not discarded. As a new tea farmer, I'll add a word: tea friends don't need to overthink whether to drink the first infusion or not—there's no need for so many rigid rules! Drink it if you want, or use it to rinse the tea if you prefer. Personal habits vary!

 

Points to Note

 

 

Light, fragrant teas are processed with gentle shaking and light roasting to preserve the aromatic substances in the leaves, typically using medium to low fire. For brewing this type of tea, the first few infusions generally take only 5 to 10 seconds before pouring out the tea liquor. This brewing method minimizes or avoids bitterness and astringency, resulting in a better taste. Subsequently, the steeping time increases with each infusion, usually by 10 to 15 seconds. Wuyi Rock Tea is famously said to retain its fragrance for over 8 infusions; brewing it 10 times is usually sufficient.

 

 

Controlling water temperature is also very important when brewing Wuyi Rock Tea. Don't boil too much water at once; about half a kettle is enough. Repeatedly boiled water is not good for health, and over-boiled water also affects the taste. In winter, pay attention to the water temperature from the second infusion onwards. It's best to keep the water temperature close to boiling. This brings out the best flavor and makes the tea more durable for multiple infusions. This brewing method truly brings the rock tea to life.

 

High-Fire Tea

 

 

There are two situations with high-fire tea. One is for people with specific tastes who demand both excellent mountain origin ("shan chang") and high fire. When you open the lid of such tea, you are immediately greeted by an elegant coffee-like aroma. The tea liquor is glossy and deep in color, like amber. This type of tea requires a very high-quality mountain origin; ordinary origins cannot produce such a tea liquor color.

The other type of high-fire tea is made from very ordinary, low-priced leaves with heavy roasting. The tea liquor brewed from this type resembles soy sauce in color. The aroma is only of charcoal, and the tea taste is hollow and bland. For both types of high-fire tea, the first few infusions should be poured out quickly and not steeped for long. Otherwise, slow brewing will make the tea liquor very difficult to drink—except for old tea drinkers in the Chaoshan area, who are a different story.

 

Rock Tea from Special Geographical Environments

 

 

In Wuyi Mountain, the most famous rock teas are those from the "Three Pits and Two Streams." When brewing authentic rock tea, especially from the Three Pits and Two Streams, many people are reluctant to rinse the first infusion. They skim off the foam and drink it directly. Wuyi Rock Tea has a long growth cycle, producing only one spring harvest per year. High-quality tea from excellent mountain origins never touches the ground throughout the entire production process, from picking to processing.

 

 

It's completely fine not to rinse the first infusion. However, most people have the habit of rinsing the first infusion, which can enhance the mood for tea appreciation. When brewing authentic Wuyi Zheng Yan tea, the steeping time can be slightly longer than for tea from ordinary mountain origins. This is because tea from special mountain origins is rich in inner substances, and these qualities are not easily extracted. As we Wuyi tea people often say: "Good tea requires patience; its true character is revealed only after three infusions." This is the reason.