How to brew tea (H)

This page introduces how to brew the following types of tea.

Target tea

Flavored teas *Other than Gold Rush {Jasmine Tea, Jasmine Silver Needle, Snow Jasmine, Pu'er Jasmine Pearl}
Flower tea, Damask rose, ancient tea flower
Flower Flag, Shanlin River Oolong, Alishan Guihua Oolong
Uji brown rice tea

The above teas are available in the following ways:

For beginners / Brewing method suitable for large groups
How to make cold brew
Recommended brewing method for those who want to limit caffeine

We will introduce them in order.

1. Brewing method for beginners/for large groups

This is an easy way to make finely ground tea, such as black tea or green tea. It requires a teapot with a practical capacity of around 300ml.

When it comes to green tea, it is generally thought that it should be brewed at a lower temperature, but green tea brewed at a higher temperature can also be surprisingly not bitter, and has a rich aroma and a surprisingly delicious taste.

In particular, HOJO focuses on teas that are rich in minerals and polyphenols. The higher the temperature, the more efficiently polyphenols are extracted, so brewing with boiling water is the best way to go.

There are many different types of teapots, including those for Chinese tea, Japanese tea, and black tea, but as long as you are mindful of the material, they can be used in any tea room.

Materials used for teapots and teacups

Pottery:

It is often thought that ceramic teapots improve the taste, but surprisingly, more than half of ceramic teapots have a bitter taste that cancels out the richness of the tea. If you feel that the taste lacks depth, it may be that the teapot is the cause, so you need to be careful.

Porcelain and glass:

It is often thought that porcelain and glass are neutral and do not affect the taste, but leaching tests have shown that minerals are leached out from them, and in fact, they have a significant effect on the taste of tea. The more you drink high-quality tea, the more carefully you need to choose your materials.

Regardless of the type of ingredients, be sure to choose them with the understanding that the quality will affect the taste.

For more information, please refer to "How to Choose a Teapot and Teacup."

How to choose a teapot and teacup >

Materials of teapots and teacups
Pottery It is often thought that ceramic teapots improve the taste, but surprisingly, more than half of ceramic teapots have a bitter taste that cancels out the richness of the tea. If you feel that the taste lacks depth, it may be that the teapot is the cause, so you need to be careful. Porcelain and glass It is often thought that porcelain and glass are neutral and do not affect the taste, but leaching tests have shown that minerals are leached out from them, and in fact, they have a significant effect on the taste of tea. The more you drink high-quality tea, the more carefully you need to choose your materials. Regardless of the type of ingredients, be sure to choose them with the understanding that the quality will affect the taste. For more information, please refer to "How to Choose a Teapot and Teacup." How to choose a teapot and teacup >
Water temperature
100℃ (boiling water) Use water that has been boiling for about 3 to 5 minutes. By continuing to boil for a while, the calcium bicarbonate in the water will change into calcium carbonate, making the tea taste sweeter.
Amount of water and tea leaves
Amount of water: 300ml (practical capacity) Amount of tea leaves: 3-5g Please adjust the amount of water and tea leaves to your liking using the above guidelines as a guide. As a guideline, 5g can be used to brew 1 liter (or more) of tea. *As another guideline, 2-3g of tea is appropriate for 1-2 people, and 5g for 3-4 people.
Step 1: Warm the teapot
Pour boiling water into the teapot and preheat it (let it stand for 10 seconds). Once the teapot is sufficiently warm, pour out the water and empty the teapot. *Putting in as much hot water as possible will allow the teapot to preheat properly.
Step 2: Brew the tea
Put an appropriate amount of tea leaves into a teapot and pour in boiling water. The steeping (steaming) times after adding the hot water are as follows. First brew: about 1 minute Second and subsequent brews: within a few seconds to 10 seconds The first brew requires time to let the tea leaves open. Please adjust the time to your liking. If you preheat the tea leaves by running hot water over them, the flavor and aroma will come out in 1 minute, but if you do not preheat the tea leaves, you will need to let them steep for about 2 minutes. To stabilize the aroma and flavor of the tea, use a teapot or similar and combine the first and second brews to achieve the perfect strength. From the second brew onwards, the tea leaves have opened up, so even a few seconds of steeping time will bring out the full flavour. Chahai (Taiwanese tea utensils)

2. How to make cold brew

For more information on how to make water brewing, please refer to this article.

How to make cold brewed jasmine tea that even children can easily do >

Water used
Water that has been boiled once and cooled By boiling the water once, the calcium bicarbonate in it changes to calcium carbonate, bringing out the sweetness and aroma. Please be sure to use water that has had chlorine removed. *If you use tap water, the taste will be slightly watery.
Amount of tea leaves
5g per liter
Infusion time
After 4-6 hours in the refrigerator, remove the tea leaves. *If it becomes too thick, dilute it with water.
Storage method
Please store in the refrigerator (around 5°C). *Using the above method, it is possible to maintain freshness for up to 3 days.

3. Recommended brewing method for those who want to limit caffeine

Caffeine is easily extracted when the water temperature is 80°C or higher, but is difficult to extract when the water temperature is below 80°C.

By utilizing this property, it is possible to brew tea with as little caffeine as possible.

Specifically, you make cold-brewed tea using cooled boiled water. However, the key is to make a strong tea concentrate (5 times concentrated) by steeping it for a long time using a small amount of water.

The method is to dilute the concentrate with boiling water in the same way as Calpis and make tea. By applying this method, you can make delicious tea that tastes like it was freshly brewed not only at home but also at work.

Please also refer to the following article.

How to enjoy tea brewed at home at work >

Water used
Water that has been boiled once and cooled By boiling the water once, the calcium bicarbonate in it changes to calcium carbonate, bringing out the sweetness and aroma. Please be sure to use water that has had chlorine removed. *If you use tap water, the taste will be slightly watery.
Amount of tea leaves
5g per 100-200ml
Infusion time
Refrigerate or store at room temperature for 4-6 hours
How to drink
Brew the tea by diluting the extracted tea by five times in the same way as Calpis. Please use boiled hot water.

Enriching your life with tea

Our goal is to convey the charm of authentic Japanese tea to people all over the world and to spread the culture of enjoying tea in everyday life.
By working with artisans who have inherited traditional craft techniques and providing carefully crafted tea utensils, we aim to make tea time richer and more special.

Carefully selected tea leaves and tea utensils

Our tea experts partner with tea plantations all over the world and provide tea that makes the most of the unique characteristics of each region.

We also stock special items such as Nanbu ironware teapots, which are renowned worldwide.

A lifestyle with tea

We don't just sell tea and tea utensils, we propose a lifestyle that includes tea.
The physical store offers tea tastings and experiential workshops, providing a place where you can experience the profound depth of Japanese tea.