Water Temperature & Brewing Tea

Water temperature and brewing tea may seem simple, but if you’ve ever experienced that bitter or watery flavor, you can likely trace it back to your water temperature. Sometimes, we forget to factor in the importance of water temperature when we’re brewing our blend to achieve that bold flavor. The best way to brew is to follow a simple tea guide we’ve provided below and adjust accordingly to your personal taste and preference. Below are some common teas and their correlating water temperatures we’ve found useful in brewing our perfect blends:

Green Tea — 150-180 °F
Black Tea — 180-212 °F
Oolong Tea — 190-200 °F
Pu-erh Tea — 205-212 °F
Herbal Tea — 200 °F

Note: When heating your water, it’s actually better to bring water up to (rather than down to) the appropriate temperature. When you heat water and let it cool, it removes oxygen from the boiling water and decreases the flavor of tea. Who knew more oxygen means more flavor?

Creating the perfect cup takes practice, and we believe it truly is an art to brew tea right. Experiment, be mindful, and use the tools you already have (like timing and your taste buds). When you feel more inclined to get closer to that perfect cup, invest in a simple tea thermometer, making water temperature and brewing tea that much more simple. Or to reach the highest levels of accuracy, you could invest in a Japanese electric water heater, but it’s certainly not necessary to simply enjoy a cup of tea.

In any case, once you brew your first cup of tea using the correct water temperature and find that flavor that you’re coveting, you’ll never go back.