10 Common Mistakes People Make When Brewing Pu-erh Tea

Most disappointing cups of pu-erh come down to a handful of fixable habits: the wrong water, cooled water, steeps that are too long, too little leaf, or leaves left sitting in water. Even experienced tea drinkers slip into some of them. Here are the ten we see most often, and how to fix each one.

1) Using tap water instead of filtered water

Tap water often contains chlorine and other additives that change the tea's aroma and can leave an unpleasant aftertaste. Very hard water can also make the liquor dull and flat.

Filtered water gives a cleaner cup and lets the tea's own aroma come through. A simple jug filter is enough. If your tap water tastes good on its own, it will usually make good tea too.

2) Brewing with the wrong water temperature

Water that has cooled too much can't open up pressed leaves, and the tea tastes thin.

We use water just off the boil (100°C / 212°F) for both raw (sheng) and ripe (shou) pu-erh. Don't wait for it to cool, for either type.

If a young raw pu-erh tastes bitter, shorten the steep rather than lowering the temperature.

3) Over-steeping the tea leaves

It's easy to assume that a longer steep gives a better, stronger cup. With pu-erh brewed gongfu style, it usually gives a bitter, harsh one instead.

When steeped correctly, pu-erh is smooth and mellow. Left in the water too long, the leaves release too much bitterness and astringency.

For gongfu brewing, start with about 5–10 seconds for the first infusions after the rinse, then add a few seconds each time. A deep, dark color doesn't mean a better cup. Short infusions also let you taste how the tea changes over many steeps.

4) Using too little tea for the pot size

Too little leaf gives a weak, thin cup that doesn't show what the tea can do. This is especially common when people move from Western brewing to gongfu brewing and keep the same small amount of leaf.

For gongfu brewing, use about 5–7 g of pu-erh in a 100–120 ml gaiwan or teapot. For a mug or Western teapot, use about 3–4 g per 250 ml.

Adjust from there to your taste. If the tea is too strong, shorten the steeps before you cut back on leaf. Good pu-erh gives many infusions, so a full measure of leaf goes a long way.

5) Not rinsing the leaves before brewing

Rinsing pu-erh is a step many newcomers skip. Fill the gaiwan with boiling water, then pour it off after 5–10 seconds.

The rinse washes off dust from the pressed cake and wakes up the leaves so they open evenly in the first real infusion. Without it, the first cup can taste dusty or uneven.

Rinsing does not make moldy tea safe, though: fuzzy white, green or black mold with a musty smell means the tea was stored too damp and should not be drunk.

6) Leaving the leaves sitting in water between steeps

After each infusion, pour out every drop. Leaves left sitting in a little water keep brewing, and the next cup comes out bitter and stewed. The same goes for Western brewing: take the infuser basket out or pour the whole pot off the leaves when the steep is done.

Between infusions, leave the gaiwan lid slightly open so the hot, wet leaves aren't steaming under a closed lid. If you stop partway through a session, drain the leaves fully, put the lid back on and come back to it within the same day.

7) Using a teabag instead of loose leaves

Teabags usually contain broken leaf or tea dust, which gives up its flavor quickly and tends to turn bitter. The bag also gives the leaves little room to open.

Whole leaf broken from a cake has room to unfurl and gives a fuller, smoother cup. It also lets you adjust the amount of leaf to your taste, and it holds up to many infusions, while a teabag is usually spent after the first cup or two.

8) Discarding the first steep after the rinse

Some people rinse the tea, then throw away the first real infusion too. There's no need. Rinse once quickly and discard the rinse, then drink every infusion after it.

The first infusion after the rinse often has the highest aroma of the session. If you're worried about dust, the rinse has already taken care of it.

9) Breaking the cake into dust

Chipping at a cake from the middle or snapping pieces off by hand turns a lot of leaf into small fragments and dust. Broken leaf brews fast, turns bitter and makes the liquor cloudy.

Use a pu-erh pick and start at the edge of the cake or at the dimple on the underside. Slide the pick in between the layers and lever gently, so the leaves come away in flakes rather than crumbs. Our guide to breaking and rinsing a pu-erh cake shows the technique step by step.

10) Prying the cake with a kitchen knife toward your hand

A sharp kitchen knife is the wrong tool for a pressed cake. It slips easily on the hard surface, and if you are pushing toward the hand that holds the cake, that is where it goes. A sharp blade also cuts through leaves instead of separating them.

Use a blunt pu-erh pick or a dull, round-tipped knife. Lay the cake flat on a table, hold it from the side, and always push the pick away from your hand and body. Work slowly, a little at a time.

Put it all together with our step-by-step gongfu brewing guide.