How to Brew Delicious Tea

Learn the basics and love tea even more. Here is how to brew delicious sencha at home.

Basic Sencha

Here are the fundamental steps to brew the most common type of Japanese tea, "Sencha." With a few small tips, your usual tea will become exceptionally delicious. Enjoy the changes from the sweetness of the first infusion to the refreshing astringency of the second.

What You'll Need

  • Tea Leaves ... Approx. 4g for two people (2 tsp)
  • Hot Water ... Freshly boiled
  • Kyusu ... One teapot
  • Yunomi ... Tea cups for each person
Tea utensils including a teapot and cups

Basic Brewing Steps

Pouring hot water into teacups to cool it down

STEP 1

Cool the Water

Pour the boiled water into the teacups until they are about 80% full. This cools the water to the optimal temperature (around 80°C or 176°F) for sencha and warms the cups at the same time.

POINT

Higher temperature water tends to draw out more astringency (shibumi). Cooling it slightly is the key to bringing out the sweetness (umami).

Putting tea leaves into a kyusu teapot

STEP 2

Place Tea Leaves in Teapot

While the water is cooling in the cups, place the tea leaves into the kyusu (teapot). For two people, a good measure is two light teaspoons (approx. 4g).

Pouring the cooled water from the cups into the teapot

STEP 3

Pour Water and Steep

Gently pour the water from the teacups into the kyusu over the tea leaves. Put the lid on and wait for about one minute for the leaves to open up.

POINT

For deep-steamed tea (Fukamushi-cha), we recommend a shorter steeping time of about 30 seconds.

Pouring tea into cups in small increments back and forth

STEP 4

Pour Evenly

To ensure each cup has the same strength, pour a little bit into each cup at a time, alternating back and forth until the teapot is empty. This is called "Mawashi-sosogi."

POINT

It's important to pour out every last drop, as the most concentrated flavors of the tea are in these final drops.