A note before we begin.
Chinese tea culture spans several thousand years. In that time, no single school of thought, no dynasty, no master has produced a definitive answer to how tea should be brewed. The parameters in this guide are TeaTach's own — drawn from the teas we source, the people we learn from, and the cups we've made. They are not a textbook. They are a starting point.
We share them because we've found they produce good results. But tea is not a subject that rewards anxiety. Follow the guide if it helps. Ignore it when it doesn't. A cup brewed with slightly cooled water and drunk in good company will always be better than a technically perfect cup made under pressure.
And if you ever visit China, here is something you'll notice quickly: even green tea — perhaps the most temperature-sensitive type in this entire guide — is routinely brewed with boiling water and left to steep for hours. A glass or a thermos, topped up throughout the day, carried to work, shared with a neighbour. The flavour may not be what a tea educator would call ideal. But when you're thirsty and that cup reaches you — warm, familiar, freely given — it delivers something no perfectly calibrated brewing ratio can. That, too, is tea.
Brew the tea you enjoy. Drink it the way that works for your life.
Most guests who order Chinese loose-leaf tea have never been told how to brew it. Not because the instructions are complicated — they aren't — but because the category is genuinely unfamiliar to most of the world outside China. Walk into a specialty coffee shop and the barista knows exactly what to do with a bag of single-origin beans. Hand the same person a packet of oolong and they'll likely guess at a temperature and a time, and produce something that tastes nothing like what the tea is capable of.
This guide is for anyone who works with or serves Chinese leaf tea — and for any guest who wants to understand why the same leaf can taste completely different depending on how it's brewed. The six categories covered here — green, white, yellow, oolong, black and dark — each require a different approach. Get the temperature right and Chinese tea rewards you with extraordinary complexity. Get it wrong by 15 degrees and a green tea turns bitter in the cup.
The One Variable That Matters Most
Before going through each type, one principle applies across all of them: water temperature is the single most important brewing variable in Chinese tea. More than steeping time, more than the ratio of leaf to water. The reason is chemistry: different compounds in the leaf dissolve at different temperatures. Polyphenols — responsible for bitterness and astringency — dissolve rapidly at high temperatures. Amino acids, including L-theanine, responsible for sweetness and smoothness — dissolve at lower ones.
Green and white teas are minimally processed and have a high proportion of heat-sensitive compounds. They require cooler water (75–85°C) to produce a sweet, clean cup. Fully oxidised black tea and post-fermented dark tea can handle near-boiling water and benefit from it. Using boiling water on a green tea doesn't just make it bitter — it destroys the compounds that make the tea worth buying in the first place.
One practical note on water: avoid heavily chlorinated tap water where possible. Chlorine suppresses the delicate aromatics that distinguish quality Chinese loose-leaf tea. Filtered water, or water with a low mineral content, makes a noticeable difference.
Green Tea — Light, Fresh and Low in Caffeine
Chinese green tea is the country's most produced and most varied tea category. The defining characteristic is minimal oxidation: after picking, the leaves are quickly heated — pan-fired in a wok, or steamed — to halt the enzymatic process that would otherwise turn the leaf darker. The result retains the fresh, slightly vegetal character of the original leaf, with a light body and clean finish.
Green tea is well suited to afternoon service and wellness menus. Its caffeine level is genuinely low — around 20–30mg per 100ml, roughly half the level of a standard matcha serving — and it works equally well served hot or cold-brewed. For iced service, steep at the recommended temperature, allow to cool, and serve over ice. Cold-brewing overnight in the fridge produces a naturally sweeter result with even less bitterness.
The critical rule: never use boiling water on green tea. At 75°C, a quality green tea produces a clean, sweet, gently grassy cup. At 95°C, the same leaf produces something harsh and unpleasant.
Per 200ml. Re-infuse 2–3 times.
White Tea — Delicate, Subtle and Very Low in Caffeine
White tea is the least processed of all Chinese tea types. The leaves are simply withered and dried — no heating, no rolling, no oxidation. The result is the purest expression of what the leaf tastes like: pale golden in the cup, with a naturally sweet, almost honeyed character and a very clean finish. No vegetal notes, no bitterness when brewed correctly.
White tea is an excellent choice for spa menus, wellness venues and late-afternoon service. Its caffeine level is lower than any other true tea — typically 6–18mg per 100ml — making it genuinely suitable for guests who are managing caffeine intake but still want a quality experience. A good white tea re-infuses exceptionally well: the same leaves yield three or four cups, with each infusion developing a slightly warmer, richer character.
Per 200ml. Re-infuse 3–4 times.
Yellow Tea — Rare, Smooth and Genuinely Exclusive
Yellow tea is the least-known of the six categories — and genuinely rare. After picking and initial heating, the leaves undergo a slow, controlled process called men huang (sealed yellowing), during which the leaf is wrapped and allowed to very slightly oxidise at low temperature over several days. This step distinguishes yellow tea from green: the result is smoother and rounder, with less of the vegetal freshness of green tea and more mellow depth.
For cafes and restaurants wanting a talking point — something almost no other venue stocks — yellow tea is the most defensible choice. Demand for it outside China is genuinely low simply because most buyers have never encountered it. Its brewing parameters are close to green tea, and require the same care with water temperature.
Per 200ml. Re-infuse 2–3 times.
Oolong Tea — Complex, Layered and Built for Multiple Infusions
Oolong is partially oxidised — somewhere between green and black — and this creates the broadest flavour range of any tea category. Depending on oxidation level and processing, oolong can taste floral and green, or dark, roasted and complex. Chinese oolong from Fujian province tends toward the floral end: aromatic, layered, and capable of remarkable development across multiple infusions.
Oolong is the natural choice for premium tea service and fine dining. Brewed with a higher leaf ratio and shorter steeping times — the gong fu approach — it creates genuine table theatre and gives attentive guests something to engage with over the course of a meal. The higher leaf dose is not an error: more leaf and shorter time is precisely how oolong is meant to be brewed. Each subsequent infusion reveals a different character.
Per 150ml. Add 30 seconds with each subsequent infusion. Re-infuse 3–5 times.
Black Tea — Bold, Smooth and Highly Versatile
Chinese black tea is fully oxidised — the same category as English Breakfast or Assam — but differs substantially in character from the blended commodity teas most people encounter. Chinese black tea, particularly from Yunnan province, is smooth and naturally sweet with a deep amber colour and almost no bitterness. It works well served straight, with lemon, or as the base for milk tea.
Black tea is the most practical loose-leaf option for high-volume morning and all-day service. It is forgiving of minor brewing variations, produces a consistent result at scale, and appeals to the widest range of guests — including those who have never ordered loose-leaf tea before. Full oxidation means it can handle near-boiling water without the bitterness risk of green or oolong.
Per 200ml. Re-infuse once.
Dark Tea — Earthy, Post-Fermented and Genuinely Different
Dark tea, including pu-erh, is the only tea category that improves with age. After initial processing, the leaves undergo a controlled microbial fermentation — sometimes for years — that develops rich, earthy, woody flavour compounds found nowhere else in the tea world. The brewed liquor is deep reddish-brown, smooth and complex: guests often describe it as somewhere between a strong tea and a very smooth dark roast coffee.
Dark tea is a natural choice for after-dinner service and for venues catering to guests who normally drink coffee rather than tea. Its depth and low bitterness make the crossover genuinely accessible. The rinse step below is standard practice: a brief first steep for 5–10 seconds primes the leaf and removes residual dust from the fermentation process before the first proper infusion. Don't skip it.
Per 200ml. Rinse once for 5–10 seconds and discard before the first infusion. Re-infuse 3–4 times.
Re-Infusion: Why Chinese Tea Is Different
Unlike a tea bag — which extracts most of its flavour in a single steep — quality Chinese loose-leaf tea is produced with multiple infusions in mind. The flavour doesn't always peak on the first infusion. In many cases, the second or third cup is considered the best: the leaf has opened fully, the harsher compounds have been softened by the first steep, and the more complex aromatics can develop.
For a service context, this is a practical advantage as much as a quality point. A single 3–5g serving of quality Chinese loose-leaf tea can yield three to five cups of 200ml. The cost per serve is correspondingly lower than the raw leaf price suggests — and the conversation around a second infusion is a natural, genuine interaction between service staff and guests.
The general rule: add approximately 30 seconds to each subsequent infusion. The water temperature stays the same. The leaf will extract differently as it opens, and the character will shift — often for the better.
Chinese tea was built for this. The leaf has more than one story to tell.