Stage One: Extensive Experimentation and Exploration
I would describe these three stages as a metaphor for taking a walk around where you live. The first stage is that every day you choose a different path and time. You will see a variety of scenery and get a broad geographical view. But you can't remember what you just passed by. You only have a general idea of what they are.When I first started exploring tea, I was living in Berlin. Unlike in Taiwan, where I could easily find a teacher, I can only do research online for guidance and try to figure out by myself. In this period I bought tea from Taiwan and online tea shops in Europe. I found that there were so many different opinions on the internet. Some suggested 85 °C for black tea, while others said 100 °C is fine for good tea. Or from 35 seconds to 90 seconds for a ball-shaped tea for the first steep. That’s a very wide range. Almost no one really explains why, they just tell you how to do it. This made me very confused. I tried almost every single way of brewing tea. The result of my tea was not unpleasant, but only ordinary. And most importantly, I still didn't know why and how to improve it.
At this stage, out of curiosity, I wanted to explore different kinds of tea. I enjoyed to try a tea I had never heard of. But after I bought it, I didn't know if it was of high or low quality. I just knew that this tea might taste like this. After three years, I had come across a wide range of the six main types of tea in China and Taiwan. I knew how to prepare tea at a very basic level. Almost every time I brewed tea, I would do comparative experiments and write down my observations. I also learned to memorise the aroma of the common tea varieties in Taiwan.
The advantage of this stage is that you gain a broad overview of tea. However, it is difficult to specialise in it. I ended up with a very confused understanding of tea. I didn't know what is a good or bad tea, what is the right proportion and taste, and I didn't know how to improve my tea brewing skills.
At this stage, I didn't know anything about tea really – but I tricked myself into thinking the opposite based on the sheer number of teas and methods I had gone through.
Stage Two: Establishing a Tea Brewing Method to Anchor Yourself and Develop Awareness
In the second stage of walking, you take the same path every day without changing the route. You walk until you know the path so well that you probably don't even have to think, so you have more capacity to observe the scenery on the road. You see the different changes in the same path from day to day, from season to season. You know what house you will come across when you turn left. You remember the colours of the house and who lives in it. Even though it's the same road, the repetition of each day makes you see more details.After three years of confusion, I went back to Taiwan and met my tea teacher. He taught me an awareness-based method of brewing tea. This method has a fixed set of tea wares, mainly a Zisha tea pot, smelling cups, and drinking cups. Each time we brew tea, we only change one to two elements, such as changing the teapot, water temperature, the way we pour the tea, etc. I will share more in-depth information on this in the future.
When you practice with changing one to two elements, it helps you to set an anchor in the infinite variations of tea. You will be able to observe the changes in tea and compare the differences at a more subtle level. You will learn why teas change the way they do, rather than just seeing the changes. Tea is so varied, if you're too fickle or brew based on what seems right, you will find yourself walking in a maze. Or you will only see what you want to see, and miss a lot of the true beauty.
When you practice the same method until you don’t think, it helps you to quiet your mind and deepen your awareness. You will be aware of the moment as you boil, pour, and drink the tea. In fact, the way you control your muscles and what thoughts you have in the moment always affect the tea flavour. From the taste in the mouth, you can recognise your current state of being and thus know your deeper truths. The tea itself becomes a mirror that reflects who you are.
There’s one main reason why often times you can't progress in brewing tea. It is because you keep on repeating the same old habits. Therefore you keep tasting the same results and perspectives over and over again. It’s a big obstacle usually we don’t see. But with being aware of yourself, you have a chance to break the old habit of using your body and consciousness. As your awareness grows finer and deeper, you see more phenomena of tea. You see new perspectives by fine-tuning the way you apply force to your body. You then discover the infinite possibilities of tea.
Awareness takes tea drinking from the surface level of smelling and tasting to a deeper exploration of the mind, body and spirit. This is directly related to quieting the mind. The quieter you are, the more you learn about tea and yourself. You are no longer just using your five senses to understand tea, but also the inner eye of awareness.
Stage Three: Deeper Anchoring
In this stage of walking, you still walk on the same path. And every day you walk at the same time. Let's say you choose to walk at 8 AM. You see your neighbour leaving for work at this time. You notice that one day he is in a good mood and the next day he is flustered. And sometimes he takes out his girlfriend. Then you notice that he smiles in several ways, a polite smile, a big happy smile, or a small smile. When there are even fewer variables on the outside, you will see the same thing in a deeper state. You will find that the clouds on the road change from moment to moment. When the leaves turn yellow in autumn, there are actually many layers of colour, not just yellow.I've been practising this stage for about half a year now. The first thing I do every morning when I wake up at 7.30 AM is to sit down at the table and brew tea. Most of the time I drink the same kind of tea, to see the fuller changes of it.
Honestly, I've heard this method a few years ago. It sounds boring. It didn't suit my personality. Who would want to drink the same tea every day? But after I tried it, I realised that it is a very powerful method. It helps us to see things that we usually don't notice.
Firstly, because you drink the same tea every day, you remember the flavour very clearly. If there is a slight change, you knew it right away. 5.2 grams and 5.5 grams are only 0.3 grams different, but it makes a big difference in this way. Steep it for 5 seconds longer and you will feel the difference. With this practice, I am also more sensitive to adjust the rhythm of tea brewing. From there, I can control the flavour in a much finer way. Sometimes I choose a different tea for comparison. I also use different teapots, in which the clay, shape, and character of the pots will be more clearly presented in this subtle observation.
To summarize this method of tea brewing in one word: depth. In fact, as long as you have a deep understanding of one type of tea, you will be able to figure out the logic of the changes. Then you can apply the same logic to other types of tea. After all, they are all plants. They all have the same principles of growth and release. This method may seem boring, but actually it is not so difficult to keep doing. On the contrary, there are many surprises and discoveries every day. I think it is suitable for both beginners and experienced tea drinkers. Often, after doing this exercise in the morning, I will drink a different tea in the afternoon, so that I keep a fresh perspective.
Closing Words
Learning how to brew tea is actually a process of going from the outside to the inner world. I believe that if you enjoy tea, there is a part of you which appreciates the state of tranquillity that comes with it. The feeling that no matter how hectic and noisy the outside world is, as long as you are in the world of tea, your mind can find peace for a short while. It is the most fascinating part of drinking tea in my eyes.No matter what method you use, as long as you spend time with tea, you will see and learn a lot after a period of time. Tea is so forgiving that we can all relate to it in our own way. It has infinite possibilities for interpretation. At the same time, following basic laws of physics and chemistry can help you yield more delicious results. Through method and practice, we get to know these patterns, then we are free to use it to create. Our heart is also opened up day by day through practice. This is a simple and fundamental understanding that I have learned after years of practice.
I am sharing my perspective with you to help you find your own path. Whatever method you choose, the point is to stay aware, stay open, and enjoy the change. If you are clear that methods are only designed to help us break through and see, you will be able to use them freely, rather than being bound by them and becoming more and more stubborn. Practising a certain method can sometimes be a shortcut. It’s all about understanding cause and consequence from it. Until then you look at other people's methods, you will know that they are just variations of the same method.
This was the introduction to our brewing-guide series. If you don’t want to miss the release of the next part or other blog articles, subscribe to our newsletter below.