Green Tea Forum

wehayley · Posted: Aug 05, 2006 5:24 am Post subject: Boiling Water...

Being new to fresh green tea, I have yet another question about the brewing process: most sources seem to recommend boiling the water and then allowing it to cool. Does it make sense to stop before the water boils or is there something about the act of boiling itself that adds to the process? Does boiling affect the water's oxygen content? I know the best way to figure these things out is trial and error, but there is also no need to reinvent the wheel... Thanks!

kayanl · Guest

I think boiling water actually deoxygenates the water. Isn't that a bad thing?

Bringing the water to a boil and then waiting X minutes for it to cool just provides a good estimate for water temperatures.

Kevangogh · Forum God Joined: 19 Jul 2005 Posts: 928 Location: Japan

I know it sounds crazy, but it actually does make a difference. Yes, it does have something to do with the oxygen content of the water. This is why if you boil water in the microwave and use it in your teapot, the tea will taste kind of flat.

def66 · White Belt Joined: 08 Aug 2006 Posts: 34

I'm confused. So is it better to boil and than cool, or stop heating the water before the boiling point?

Kevangogh · Forum God Joined: 19 Jul 2005 Posts: 928 Location: Japan

Boil and then cool. If you get into a routine where you first pour it into the teacups and/or into the teapot before adding the loose leaf tea, it pretty much brings the temperature down to the right ballpark. Plus, it warms everything up. There is some logic behind this thing where the Japanese transfer the water from one vessel to the other...

bluestem · White Belt Joined: 24 Oct 2007 Posts: 23

My favorite guide to boiling tea water is found in "The Book of Tea" by Kakuzo Okakura. I love reading the book because of the imagery.

Okakura quotes from the Ch'a Ching:

"...(LuWu) dwells also on the much discussed question of the degree of boiling water. There are three stages of boiling: the first boil is when the little bubbles like the eye of fishes swim on the surface; the second boil is when the bubbles are like crystal beads rolling in a fountain; the third boil is when the billows surge wildly in the kettle.
Salt is put in the first boil (the salt addition was later stopped), the tea in the second. At the third boil, a dipperful if cold water us poured into the kettle to settle the tea and revive the 'youth of the water.' Then the beverage was poured into cups and drunk. O nectar!"

I haven't tried LuWu's method from start to finish, but it reaffirms what has been discussed before, that you should bring it to a cool from boiling.
Usually I just let it get to the fish eye stage, (bubbles really do look like fishy eyeballs) then steep the leaves. Makes a lovely brew.

britt · 2nd Degree Black Belt Joined: 22 Oct 2007 Posts: 181

I use water that is steaming but has not hit the boiling point. I then cool it down in the pot and/or cups before brewing. This has worked good for me. I heat the water in a coffee maker (used only for this purpose) and it keeps the water at this temperature so it is consistent for additional brews. I never use tap water, otherwise I would bring it to a full boil.

This may not be the best way, but because it has worked so well I haven't tried any other method.

FataliTEA · Posted: Jan 22, 2008 1:34 pm Post subject:

Zojirushi smugness.

I actually did a physics project on H2O phase change liquid->gas. There definitely aren't just 3 stages. The bubbles are small, then bigger. Then one hits the surface, then two... Getting bigger all the while.

Meh, I just feel like hammer

syntheticpanda · 2nd Degree Black Belt Joined: 07 Nov 2006 Posts: 198

I don't think Lu Yu meant (uh oh, intentional fallacy?) three distinct stages- I think he meant it more like how we grow from infants to toddlers to children to teens, etc. Obviously you don't jump straight from infant to toddler. Smile

FataliTEA · Posted: Jan 22, 2008 2:46 pm Post subject:

syntheticpanda · 2nd Degree Black Belt Joined: 07 Nov 2006 Posts: 198

I don't plan on ever reaching that one. Smile

thehealthycup · Uh, Can I Add Sugar? Joined: 30 Jan 2008 Posts: 4

hey cool.. very good to know!

Kevangogh · Forum God Joined: 19 Jul 2005 Posts: 928 Location: Japan

More spam, this time the word "in"...we're on to you. Have a nice life. no no

Selaphiel · Posted: Feb 01, 2008 11:39 pm Post subject:

Your tea water should never go over 95 degrees celsius, the moment it reaches 100 degrees and starts boiling oxygen is lost and the water goes flat. I use a thermostat controlled water boiler that allows me preset the wanted temperature on the water and with a "hold" function that keeps it at that set temperature, that is really handy I have to say.
In the old days it was a science to get the correct temperature on the water, they could tell the temperature by viewing the size and intensity of the bubbles forming at the bottom of the pot.

Another way to keep the oxygen level of the tea at a maximum is to pour the tea with some altitude if you know what I mean. Hold the pot a bit above the cup and allow the tea to splash a bit when you pour it, that way the liquid absorbs some oxygen.

Enthrall · Uh, Can I Add Sugar? Joined: 12 Apr 2008 Posts: 18

Yes I've been wondering this myself. Usually I let bubbles form on the bottom and let a couple float to the top. This is just before the boil. My thermometer reads about 170 F here. Is their any better way? I strive to make the best.