Tea preparation

We have outlined the preferred preparation for each tea on its page on the website. Here we add a little more on this subject. Never underestimate the importance of tea preparation. The Chinese and Japanese Tea ceremonies show that preparation and appreciation go hand in hand.

Preparing Black Tea & Pu-Erh

Bring fresh drawn filtered water to a rolling boil. It is important not to let your water over-boil. You are looking for a mild rolling sound and medium sized oxygen bubbles.

If you observe boiling water you will see that it has three distinct phases of boiling. In the first phase, small bubbles are released giving a light breaking of the water surface. The second phase begins as larger bubbles, with the start of a gentle bubbling sound. This is the correct stage for tea brewing. Finally, boiling water releases large bubbles with very strong sound and an obvious breaking of the surface. This is too late for ideal tea preparation.

The perfect temperature will enhance the final taste. As water boils, oxygen is released and oxygen is necessary for tea's soluble essential oils to react with water.

The essential oils in Black Tea, responsible for much of the taste, will only be released in boiling water. But if we boil the oxygen out of the water, we stop any essential oils binding to water molecules. So we are looking for the correct balance of heat and oxygen to create the final tea.

If you are using an electric kettle you will almost always be over-boiling your water, which for mass-produced teas will be fine. But if you are looking to enjoy rare and fine teas it will be worth your while to invest in a traditional kettle: this is the only way to control the boiling of water.

Pour your boiled water immediately over your chosen Black Tea. Leave the tea to brew for anything between two to six minutes, according to the tea you have selected.

It is my opinion that a fine Black Tea will produce fine results no matter what type of water you have if you follow these basic instructions:

• Filter your water.
• Boil water to the perfect temperature.
• Pour the boiling water over the tea immediately it has boiled.
• Leave the tea to brew according to our recommendations.

Of course less brewing will make a weaker tea.

Preparing Green, White, Jasmine & Display Teas

Green Tea will go bitter if it is prepared in the same way as Black Tea. And no Green Tea will give its best, without some experimentation at home. We have outlined all of the best water temperatures for each Green Tea in on each tea's page in the catalogue. Use these temperatures as a guide to the tea's preparation. But some may find hard water needs a little more or less heat. I have very soft water here in Devon, and I often use slightly hotter water here than in London.

First bring freshly drawn filtered water to the boil as above. Take the water off the heat and leave it to cool down. We recommend temperatures for each Green or White tea.

After a little practise of leaving your kettle to cool down, you will be able to judge water temperature. As a guide, if you leave your kettle for three minutes, the water will be about 80 degrees.

Pour the cooled water over the green leaves and leave the tea to brew for one to three minutes according to your tea and taste: your tea is ready to drink. But do not throw away the leaves, they are not yet spent. You can still use these leaves again. It is worth saying that it is best to make many small pots of Green Tea rather than one big pot. Use the leaves three or four times to make the equivalent of a big pot.

To summarise:

• Filter the water.

• Boil your water to the perfect boiling temperature.

• Allow the water to cool off to the temperature recommended for each tea.

• Pour the cooled water over your tea leaves.

• Leave the tea to brew according to our recommendations and your taste.

• Please do not add milk!

Preparing Oolong Tea

Oolong tea is produced in two categories. Green 10% Oolong and Black 60% Oolong.

I spent my first years of drinking Black Oolongs using cool water. This was a mistake. Only after finding a clear recommendation to use boiling water did I start to understand Oolong teas. I still test each Black Oolong to find out whether boiling water or just off the boil is best for each tea, and I think it is a good idea that you do the same. There really is a perfect temperature for these fine teas and you will notice the best temperature immediately. A crisp,clean taste appears without any dullness.

Green Oolongs are some of the finest teas found in the world and should be treated properly. I recommend using a small Li-Xiang tea pot, which is what is traditionally used in China. To prepare these teas you should boil water as perfectly as you can. Leave the boiled water to cool for one minute. Add one or two teaspoons of Green Oolong to a pot. Li-Xiang teapots are normally about 200 cl. Pour the water and leave the tea to steep for one minute and not more. Pour this first brew away and prepare a second in the same way. This brew will be ready to drink. You can repeat this up to five times. Green Oolongs and Japanese Gyrokuro Sencha need time to enjoy. Do not rush them. These are the teas that friends and I meet to drink together. It is amazing how an Oolong Tea can stimulate conversation.

A note on milk

I do not use milk in any tea accept Chai. My personal feeling is that fine teas do not need milk, but many of my customers still use it. The laws for milk:

• Green, White, Green Oolong and Jasmine Teas do not in any way need milk, nor will they taste good with milk.

• Strong Black Tea is great with milk. Keemun is almost as good with milk as without. With any Black Tea just a dash of milk is always enough.

• Avoid sugar.

How much tea to use

Each tea type brews in its own way. The amount of dry tea you use to get the best from each tea depends on the size of teapot you use. Chinese and Japanese teapots are always small as this stops the leaf being flooded and going bitter. Each tea has its perfect teapot material and we have given a guide to this with each tea.

In general three teaspoons of dry tea to a 750cl clay teapot will be fine for Black Teas. For Green Teas I recommend one teaspoon to a small pot of about 300 cl. Oolongs will be the same as Green Tea and can be made in the same pot.