Drinking Green Tea
Kinds of Green Tea
The Chinese green teas, classified according to age and style of leaf, fall into one of three categories:
Hoochows. Grown in the district that bears the same name, the Hoochows are the first of China’s green teas to mature in the spring. They have a light, sweet taste.
Pingsueys. From the Pingsuey district in the Chekiang province, they look as appealing as the Hoochows but are not as delicious.
Country Greens. This moniker is tacked on to all other green teas that are neither Hoochows nor Pingsueys. But this group boasts some of the finest of the China green teas, which are known for their clarity and richness.
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There are three major ways that green tea is manufactured in China, as well as variations on those themes:
Gunpowder. Called “Pearl Tea” in China, Gunpowder refers to high-quality tea leaves that are rolled into small pellets. This method of manufacturing got its name from a young English clerk who thought that the tightly rolled pellets looked like gunpowder, or perhaps more accurately, buckshot. The name is apt because each pellet “explodes” when boiling water is added and the leaves begin to unfurl. The smaller the pellets, the costlier the tea, with the highest grade deemed “extra first pinhead Gunpowder”.
High-quality Chinese Gunpowder tea makes a refreshing yellow-green brew with a brisk, astringent taste, while Formosan Gunpowder is sweeter with a blander taste.
Imperial. This style of tea refers to older leaves that are manufactured Gunpowder style, but are less tightly rolled. (Often they have been sifted out of the regular Gunpowder tea because of their lesser quality.)
Young Hyson (pronounced “HIGH-sun”). Named after the rich East India merchant who was the first to import it, this tea is made of top-quality leaves taken from wild tea trees in the Zheiiang Province. The thick, yellow-green leaves are twisted and rolled into long, thin shapes. Young Hyson makes a stronger, more full- bodied tea than is usually found in the green tea family.
Hyson. This grade of tea consists of older, poorer leaves twisted and rolled like Young Hyson. The resulting tea looks like a combination of Young Hyson and Imperial, loosely rolled and twisted.
Twankay. Made from older, poorer-quality unrolled leaves, this is the next grade lower than Hyson.
Hyson Skin. Even lesser quality than Hyson or Twankay.
Dust. Anything that is left over.
Brewing the Perfect Cup of Tea
No matter how high or low the quality of the tea leaves, a cup of tea can be greatly enhanced or absolutely ruined in die brewing process. But by just following a couple of simple rules, you can be assured that you’ll have a delicious cup of tea every time:
1. Choose the proper water. The main ingredient in a cup of tea, water is the most important factor in determining its taste and aroma. Spring water is generally the preferred choice, but any good-quality bottled or filtered water will do, although you may wish to experiment with several and decide for yourself. Be aware, however, that the wrong kind of water can ruin even the most exquisite tea. Distilled water, water that is fluoridated or highly chlorinated, or hard water containing large amounts of lime, magnesium, or iron can alter the taste of the tea, so they are definitely not recommended.
2. Boil the water. Although the true taste of tea cannot be fully expressed in water that is only warmed, overboiling causes the flavor-releasing oxygen to escape, and the resulting tea tastes flat. The best flavor results from water that is brought just to the boiling point, and either is poured immediately or, if the leaves are very delicate, is just slightly cooled before pouring. This cooling can keep the leaves from “stewing” and becoming too bitter. Generally, the higher the quality of the tea, the longer the water should be cooled (with a maximum of about a minute-otherwise it will be too cool). Ordinary teas can take higher temperatures but should be steeped for a shorter length of time to avoid excessive astringency.
3. Warm the Chinese teapot. Before adding the tea ingredients, warm the Chinese teapot with a small amount of hot water, and then pour it out. Chinese teacups may also be warmed this way. (By the way, your teapot should never be subjected to scouring powder or other harsh cleansers, which can leave a residue that destroys the taste of the tea. Simply rinsing the pot well after each use is sufficient.)
4. Measure the tea. Figure about 1.5-2 g (or 1 level teaspoon) of loose tea per cup of water. If tea bags are used, figure one tea bag per cup of water. Put the tea leaves in the pot first, using either a mesh or bamboo strainer or a wire mesh “tea ball” that can be easily removed once steeping is completed. (“Tea balls” should be filled only about halfway, since the leaves expand when boiling water is added. If the tea ball is filled up at the start, it will be too tightly packed to infuse properly.)
5. Steep. Add the appropriate amount of hot (just-to-the-point-of-boiling) water. The water causes the tea leaves to unfold (poetically referred to as “the agony of the leaves”), releasing their essential oils and other ingredients to create the characteristic flavor, aroma, and color of the tea. For best flavor, green tea leaves should be steeped for 1-3 minutes. Oversteeping can produce a bitter brew. Remember that the smaller the leaf, the more quickly the infusion is produced, and the shorter the steeping time should be. Tea bags, especially, can be filled with fannings or dust, which make very fast infusions. So unless you like drinking the juice of stewed leaves, pay strict attention to the steeping time! On the other hand, be aware that it takes at least three minutes for all the catechins in tea leaves to make their way into the liquid. It’s up to you: for best flavor, steep 1-3 minutes; for greatest health benefits, steep slightly longer.
6. Pour the tea. Some teapots have a wire mesh screen across the neck of the teapot. This allows the loose leaves and water to mix in the pot, but prevents the leaves from pouring out through the spout. This can be very convenient, but if you have such a pot, remember that you must pour all of the tea out of the pot as soon as it’s finished steeping, or it will continue to brew. (Not so in other pots, where you can just lift the leaves out when steeping is done.)
The Japanese believe that the tea should be poured a little at a time into each tea drinker’s cup, round-robin style, until all the tea in the pot has been dispensed. That way the quality of the tea in each cup will be equal and no one’s cup will be too strong or too weak.
