What Temperature Water Should I Use to Steep Tea?...
How Much Does Water Temperature Really Matter when Steeping Tea?
Water temperature is one of the keys to enjoying a perfect cup…
When you are steeping tea and looking to make every cup of all that it can and should be, water temperature is…important.
Ideally, you want to use the hottest water you can when steeping tea. The steeping process softens the surface of the leaf, which, in manufacturing, has been dried to about 3% moisture content to avoid molding.
When we extract the goodness of the leaf, we of course start by wetting the surface and allowing water to penetrate deeper into the leaf material. Hot water penetrates more quickly, reaching the water-soluble material in the leaf, releasing it into the water.
When we add hot water, there is no immediate change in the water color. The leaf surface needs to soften before we begin to see wisps of color emerging from the leaf. As the softening continues, the extraction accelerates, and the leaf material relaxes, releasing more ingredients into the broth.
All this leads us to think that the hottest possible water will release the goodness most quickly, which is correct. However, the quickest way to steep tea is not always the best.
Some factors require us to adjust water temperature when steeping tea and pursuing that perfect cup...
Green teas are the best example. They are delicate. Using too-hot water will force out too much water-soluble ingredient too quickly, making our cup overflavored to an unpleasant point. While it is possible to steep green teas with the hottest water, the opportunity for over-steeping is very likely.
To avoid this mishap and widen the tolerance for steeping delicious green tea, lower your water temperature to 170-180°F. The process of steeping tea will be much more forgiving and increase your likelihood of success.
Certain tea types can stand hotter water...
The processing of black tea leaves them more sturdy & tolerant to most temperatures of water. This means we can steep them just below a boil. Even though the leaves processed into most black teas will allow steeping with water from 205-210, I usually steep even my blacks and dark oolongs at about 195. The reason is that, although it will take slightly longer to get the broth color I desire (my sweet spot), the tea will drop in temperature into my tasting temperature tolerance range much sooner, which means I can enjoy the cup sooner.
Broth that is too hot shuts down our tasting mechanisms, which prevents us from understanding the character of the tea...
Because they range from Jade to Medium to Dark, temperatures for Oolong Teas range from 185° for the jades to just under boiling, 212°, for the darks.
Most herbal infusions have a desirable medicinal purpose, so we want to be sure to steep with hotter water, 205° to just under a boil, and to allow enough steeping time (or multiple steepings) to extract all the intended goodness.
The bottom line is…water temperature matters a lot, and controlling yours will be well worth the effort when steeping tea.