Single Tea Packet in a Book Box, Northanger Abbey

Water Temperature

Water temperature plays a major role in the development of great tea flavors. Some teas should be brewed in boiling water while others should be brewed at lower temperatures. White tea and green tea are more delicate true teas and they require lower water temps during brewing. If you brew these with boiling water, you'll get a bitter blend. As a rule of thumb, use the following temperatures for brewing different tea types:

• White tea: 160°F to 185 °F
• Green tea: 150°F to 170°F for steamed green teas and 170°F to 180°F for roasted green teas
• Oolong tea: 185°F to 205°F
• Black tea: 200°F to 212°F
• Pu-erh tea: Around 195°F
• Herbal Tea: 212°F 

Steeping Times

The fastest way to get a crappy, bitter cup of tea is to leave a teabag soaking in a cup of water for an hour. For the perfect cup of tea, you want to steep the tea leaves only as long as is necessary. Different types of tea should steep for different lengths of time to avoid bitter notes. In general, the longer the steeping time, the stronger the flavors. Here are some guidelines for the recommended tea steeping times:

• White tea: 1 to 3 minutes
• Green tea: 1 to 3 minutes
• Oolong tea: 2 to 3 minutes
• Black tea: 3 to 5 minutes
• Pu-erh tea: 2 to 5 minutes
• Herbal tea: 4 to 5 minutes