The brewing of Pu 'er tea is also inseparable from the choice of boiling water, utensils, tea consumption, water temperature and soaking time. Too many factors have brought about the variety of Pu 'er tea, the particularity of Pu 'er tea brewing and the unique charm of Pu 'er tea. If you don't master the brewing technology well, it will be difficult to enter the door, and you will not appreciate the magical charm of Pu 'er tea.
First, master the nature of tea.
It is not easy to really brew Pu 'er tea, reflect the true taste of various Pu 'er teas and improve the taste and mouthfeel of Pu 'er tea because of its complexity. There are many variables in the selection, processing and storage of Pu 'er tea. For example, which tea area does the raw material come from, Yiwu, Menghai or Lincang? Are they mixed? Which region of tea is selected for blending with several grades of raw materials? What is the matching ratio? Is it ancient tree tea, platform tea or wild tea? Storage location and storage time ...
From the packaging paper and flies, these can tell us the origin, factory date and other information of raw materials, as well as the grade and material specifications of tea.
Take ancient tree tea as an example. When the tea in your hand is Lincang ancient tree tea, the amount of tea should be less than more, and the soaking time should be shorter than longer, because the ecological environment and conditions of Lincang tea and the varieties of tea make Lincang ancient tree tea rich in flavor. If it is Yi Wu ancient tree tea, the amount of tea and soaking time can be increased accordingly, because Yi Wu ancient tree tea is famous for its fragrance, Shui Rou and sweet soup.
If you get ripe tea with a certain year and good storage, you don't need to invest too much tea. If it is older, wake up the tea with a slightly higher water temperature. If it is new tea, the bitterness of new tea is slightly heavier. If it is kneaded by a machine, the intensity will be greater, and the water-soluble substances in tea will dissolve faster, so the amount of tea and the water temperature will be slightly reduced accordingly.
When brewing Pu 'er tea, you must not "change with the constant". It is wrong to treat different teas in one way. Brewing is a changing process, so it is necessary to adjust the brewing technique and change the brewing rhythm according to the inherent quality of tea. Although the final decisive factor is the quality of tea. But the appearance identification of Pu 'er tea is also very important, which is directly related to the selection of brewing equipment, tea consumption, water temperature control, rhythm control and so on. It is a necessary link before brewing Pu 'er tea. In addition, observing the appearance can also judge whether tea has drinking value. Tea judged to be inferior (e.g. with pungent smell) does not need to be brewed again.
Second, the shape evaluation of Pu 'er tea
The evaluation of the appearance of Pu 'er tea is mainly based on the preliminary evaluation of tea products by means of looking (appearance), smelling (aroma) and pinching (tightness). Generally speaking, the evaluation is carried out in the following aspects:
1, fresh tea
Tea is very close to green tea in nature, so "cooked soup flavor" should be avoided when brewing, so the water temperature should be slightly lower and the soup should be faster. The key is to grasp the characteristics of its raw materials, such as tea varieties, tea area characteristics, tree age, grade, ecology and so on. In principle, the water temperature with heavy taste is slightly lower, the soaking time is shorter, and the light taste is the opposite.
2. Newly brewed tea
Generally speaking, compared with the old tea, new tea has some shortcomings, such as the tea soup is not bright enough, the aroma is not pure enough, the taste is not mellow enough, and there are often some unpleasant feelings, such as "heaped taste" and heavy bitterness. Moreover, the newly boiled tea extract dissolves quickly, so we should try our best to make full use of its strengths and avoid its weaknesses, wash off the odor of the tea at high temperature, and brew it after a little cooling, so as to avoid the brewing rhythm a little faster. Drinking new tea (from strong to light to tasteless) can determine the storage value of tea and judge whether it has potential.
3. aged tea
Old tea generally needs high-temperature tea to wake up and brew at high temperature. Relatively speaking, the consumption of old tea is lower than that of old ripe tea, while the brewing temperature of old ripe tea is slightly higher. For many old teas, it will be different to open the lid at the interval between soaking and not soaking, so that the bottom of the leaves will be a little cooler before continuing to soak. it wont hurt you to try it After years of precipitation, some old teas are mixed with odor due to improper storage. Through high temperature and repeated tea washing, the odor can be eliminated as much as possible.
4, the tightness of the cable
Generally speaking, the more compact and thick tea leaves are, the less tea leaves will be poured, while the brewing water temperature is slightly higher, and the water temperature can fully awaken the tea leaves. As soon as the tightly bound tea leaves are scattered, they will dissolve quickly, so there are relatively few tea leaves. In some years, we should pay attention to controlling the rhythm of brewing. Let the tea have a rest, and you will be pleasantly surprised to find that a good cup of tea is in your hand.
5, rough and old, exquisite degree
Delicate Pu 'er, such as (Gongting Pu 'er), can be brewed by "leaving roots" to keep its taste stable, and the water temperature should be properly controlled to avoid "boiling tea", especially to prevent the unnecessary loss of effective components and the loss of taste and drinking value caused by repeated and long-term washing at high temperature. Due to the decrease of the content, the amount of coarse old tea will greatly increase and the brewing time will be prolonged. It can be brewed at high temperature or even boiled.
6. Fermentation degree
Over-fermented tea tastes weak and needs to be brewed with boiling water, and the soaking time should be prolonged. Otherwise, the soup should be served quickly, or it will be as thick as miso soup.
7. Evenly arrange the crushing degree.
Tea leaves are broken and the extract dissolves quickly, so the amount of tea is less and the soup is faster.
8. Storage situation
Good raw materials, good processing and good storage, this kind of tea is best brewed, and the shade is always appropriate. No matter how brewed, it is delicious.
If there are slight problems during storage, such as slight odor, you can appropriately increase the number of tea washing. If tea deteriorates due to improper storage, no matter how expensive the tea is, it has no drinking value.
Third, ZhaJie.
For pressed tea, most people who love tea are used to drinking it now. This is very convenient, and it can also try to keep more complete tea shape information. The key point of tea solution is to avoid hard prying, start from loose edges, and reduce the occurrence of broken tea and scratches left on dry tea.
A green camel that is particularly tight. Put it in a clean and odorless bamboo bottle, steam it to Microsoft, wrap it in pure cotton cloth, pinch it, dry it, and put it in a casserole or porcelain pot for later use.
Fourth, wake up tea.
Awakening tea is to give tea better storage space before brewing and show its real taste. Generally speaking, aged Pu 'er tea and tea with high aroma are more suitable for waking tea in porcelain jars, while new tea and Chaze with low aroma are suitable for waking tea in purple sand jars.
Pressed tea: Due to the different aging speed of different parts, the tea soup may have a single and unstable taste by drinking it now. Therefore, the pressed tea can be dissolved and mixed first, and stored for a period of time to make it more evenly aged before brewing.
Loose tea: Loose tea is often packed in plastic bags, which will affect the subsequent fermentation. In addition, tea will absorb other odors during storage. This requires changing it to a better space to restore its true flavor.
Choice of water
Making tea is inseparable from boiling water, which is the mother of tea. Tea is made of water, which largely determines the quality of tea soup. The ancients paid great attention to water use and left the words "clear, lively, light, sweet and bitter" to future generations.
Pu 'er tea brewed with different water will show different characteristics, either fragrant or strong, sweet or slippery, or both, which is very attractive. When you try the water that can best show the tea, your mood is extremely comfortable. Therefore, many friends are obsessed with finding water, and they have also summed up many "exclusive secrets" for storing and nourishing water, such as: washing sand, raising stones, shading, what sand, stone, pottery, how to store it, and what water to use ... There are too many lists, some simple and easy, some mysterious, always interesting and fascinating, which is also a great life.
Selection tool
When making Pu 'er tea, you can use a teapot or cover a bowl, and the width is better, because the width can awaken Pu 'er and make it more fragrant.
Zisha pot, with its unique thermal insulation, air permeability and adsorption properties, makes tea soup more mellow and smooth, which is highly praised by tea lovers and is most suitable for brewing raw tea.
Brewing in a covered bowl is undistorted, undistorted and original, which can highlight the advantages and disadvantages of tea soup. When evaluating and identifying tea products, bowls with lids must be used.
In addition, a glass fair cup is needed to show and appreciate the ever-changing beauty of Pu 'er tea soup, including orange, turquoise, amber or ruby red. Of course, when the tea soup is turbid and black, it can also be used to judge its quality.
The best choice is a big cup with a white porcelain inner tube. Pu 'er pays attention to the smoothness, smoothness, alcohol and sweetness of tea soup, and it is better to drink it with a big mouth. At the same time, the white porcelain cup is also beneficial to set off the color of the soup and is easy to watch.
For unfamiliar tea, it is recommended to cover the bowl and brew. Cover-bowl brewing can truly reflect the advantages and disadvantages of tea products, and you can decide which (revised) brewing method to adopt after you have a better understanding of tea. When you don't plan to brew inferior and deteriorated tea products, the characteristics of covering the bowl without absorbing taste and water also make you not have to worry about the "pollution" of the tea set.
Verb (abbreviation for verb) brewing process
The brewing process of Pu 'er tea follows a simple and simple principle, that is, when the amount of tea is large, the concentration will be high; The water temperature is high and the soluble matter dissolves quickly, so the soup is quick and has a strong taste; The longer the soaking time, the more substances are dissolved. It is not easy to soak Pu 'er tea well and taste its true taste, but it also needs "concrete analysis". It is impossible to read it from a classic, which is caused by various changes in Pu 'er tea. In the process of brewing, the brewing technique and rhythm must be adjusted according to the intrinsic quality of brewed tea (aroma, soup color, taste and leaf bottom), so the brewing process of Pu 'er tea is also a changing process, which is quite interesting.
Quantity of tea: This is a relative problem, which depends on the drinking habits of drinkers, the number of drinkers and the size of brewing equipment. Generally speaking, raw tea is less than cooked tea, new tea is less than old tea, and tender people are less than coarse old people.
Washing tea: First of all, dry tea, whether loose tea or pressed tea, may have tight knots or even caking in different processes. Washing tea (moistening tea procedure) is helpful to spread tea evenly and give full play to its characteristics. Secondly, due to many processing links of Pu 'er tea and some uncontrollable factors in nature, Pu 'er tea will inevitably be contaminated with dust or impurities, so washing tea is necessary. And for old tea, washing tea is especially necessary because of more time and space travel. More importantly, by washing tea, we will have a further, more real and more accurate understanding of tea products. If it is determined to be bad tea, it is completely unnecessary to import it. Different teas have different washing methods, depending on the situation. The general principle is: distribute tea fragrance.
Water temperature: The water temperature for brewing Pu 'er tea is relatively high, which should be adjusted according to specific tea products.
Choose delicate tea (Pu 'er, the top of the big leaf species Menghai), the water temperature is about 95 degrees, and the aged Pu 'er needs high temperature brewing. The boiling water pot and the temperature outside the pot can effectively increase the brewing temperature. There are also special circumstances: some aged Pu 'er tea has been soaked in water with a water temperature of about 80 degrees for a long time, and its taste is still quite mellow. This method is suitable for Pu 'er tea with a slight aroma but pure tea taste.
The temperature control of each bubble should also be fine-tuned according to the feeling of the endoplasm. For example, the leaves are uneven with flowers, the soup is especially fast, and the tea soup is relatively thick, so the temperature can be slightly lowered during subsequent brewing. Coarse old tea can be boiled.
Brewing old tea with different water temperatures will have different styles: high temperature, fragrant, slightly lower temperature and slightly better taste. Because the highest temperature of water is related to the local air pressure, the taste and aroma of the same tea brewed in Guangdong and Yunnan will be different.
Brewing rhythm refers to soaking time and brewing frequency. Excluding external factors such as brewing environment and the number of people drinking, the brewing rhythm should be determined according to the quality of tea. For example, the brewing frequency of aged Pu 'er tea should be accelerated to maintain the high temperature in the pot; Tea with good aroma and weak quality slightly increases the soaking time and soothing frequency.
Sixth, choose appropriate brewing techniques.
When you are depressed because you can't make the real taste of tea, try to change the brewing method according to its advantages and disadvantages, and there will often be surprises in the process of pondering.
Dry bottom soaking method: that is, soaking method similar to oolong tea. Every time you make tea, the soup is exhausted, leaving no tea roots. The characteristic of this kind of soaking is that you can appreciate the change of a tea waterway, see if it is resistant to soaking, and experience the changes of different soup colors, aroma, taste and so on.
Root soaking method: after washing tea, leave a part of the soaked tea soup in the teapot from beginning to end, and don't drain the tea soup. Generally, "eight leave two" or "half leave half" is adopted. Stuffing with roots can adjust the taste of tea soup from beginning to end, so that the change of each bubble is not so abrupt.
Boiling method: This soaking method is suitable for coarse and old tea, such as coarse and old tea after slight moisture treatment. If you use western-style glassware in the brewing method, you can see the dynamic picture of tea boiling, and you can also appreciate how the color of tea soup becomes wet one by one, which can increase a lot of fun. If you use ceramics with minority colors, it will have a different taste.
Special brewing method: some tea products with high aroma and weak quality are specially brewed and washed quickly at high temperature. The first brewing is slightly stuffy and combined with the "root-protecting bubble method", and the subsequent brewing is fast-forward and fast-out.
Correction method: old tea with small smell and good internal quality can be treated at high temperature during tea washing and the first two infusions, and the subsequent infusions can be treated with cool and stuffy infusions; New tea products with high quality but insufficient aroma and soup color are slightly stuffy at high temperature when washing tea, and high temperature and accelerated rhythm when drinking tea.
In fact, the best skill of making tea is to fall in love with Pu 'er tea, be deeply attracted by its various changes, and have endless fun in the process of exploration. If we can achieve the realm of "heart and tea in one", we will certainly make good tea.
Author: Wang Xia (Pu 'er Tea Artist, Senior Tea Artist)