Tea Tasting Guide: Master the "Four Senses and Ten Steps" Method

chenyu
2025-10-12T23:07:56-07:00

1. Core Tea Tasting Method: Four Senses and Ten-Step Tasting

(1) Application of Four Senses: The Sensory Foundation of Tea Tasting

Tea tasting requires the precise use of four senses: sight, smell, taste, and touch. Hearing does not participate in tea tasting. The functions of each sense are as follows:

1.Sight

Dry Tea Observation: Before brewing, check the shape and color of the tea leaves. For example, Longjing tea is green with a yellowish tint, while Taiping Houkui has long, slender strips and a bright green color.

Tea Soup Judgment: High-quality tea soup should be clear and bright. Common standard descriptions include "clear and bright", "red and bright", and "golden and bright", with minimal turbidity.

2.Touch

Wet Leaf (Leaves after Brewing) Judgment: Gently pinch the brewed tea leaves with your finger pads. Softness directly reflects the freshness and tenderness of the raw materials. High-quality wet leaves should be soft, uniform in size, consistent in color, and free of impurities.

Dry Tea Touch: High-quality dry tea is tight and heavy. When held and shaken, it has a noticeable sense of weight, typical examples include Tieguanyin, Taiwan Oolong, and Longjing tea.

3.Smell

Inhalation Smelling: Directly smell the tea aroma emitted from tea sets (lid of teacup, covered bowl, teacup).

Exhalation Smelling: Hold the tea soup in your mouth and perceive the "aroma in water" by exhaling. This step is crucial for judging the quality of tea aroma.

4.Taste

Basic Tastes: Humans can perceive five tastes—sour, sweet, bitter, salty, and umami. Spicy is a pain sensation, not a taste.

Taste Characteristics of Tea Soup:

Umami: Prominent in green tea, reflected in the freshness and briskness of the tea soup.

Bitterness: Common in all types of tea, mainly derived from caffeine.

Sourness: Mostly caused by improper processing, more common in black tea.

Sweetness: High-quality tea often has a slight sweetness, and some may show a "hui gan" (sweet aftertaste).

Saltiness: Rarely present in tea soup.

(2) Five Core Tasting Dimensions

Dry Tea: Tightness and heaviness are the criteria for high quality. It can be judged by observing the shape (sight) and feeling the weight (touch) (e.g., the heavy texture of Tieguanyin and Taiwan Oolong).

Tea Soup: The core characteristic of high-quality tea soup is "brightness", such as clear and bright, red and bright, golden and bright, and it should be transparent without turbidity.

Aroma: Tasted in three temperature ranges

High-Temperature Smelling (Aroma Purity): Temperature 60-70℃, which can capture high-boiling-point off-flavors and judge the purity of tea.

Medium-Temperature Smelling (Aroma Type): Temperature 40-50℃, which can identify aroma types, such as floral, fruity, milky, chestnut, and grassy aromas.

Low-Temperature Smelling (Aroma Longevity): Temperature around 15℃ (lower than body temperature). The longevity of aroma reflects the total amount of aroma, and can trace the tea processing technology and production environment.

Taste: Master two tasting skills

Hold the tea soup in your mouth for 3-5 seconds to feel the richness (can be compared to the thickness of soy milk, rice soup, or chicken soup).

Use the "sip method" (siphon method): Inhale while holding the tea soup to disperse it evenly on different taste bud areas of the tongue. At the same time, combine with exhalation smelling to capture the aroma in water.

Hui Gan (Sweet Aftertaste): After swallowing high-quality tea, there will be a comfortable feeling in the throat, accompanied by saliva secretion and sweet aftertaste. Inferior tea will cause a tight throat, foreign body sensation, or rough feeling.

(3) Summary of the Ten-Step Tasting Method

Three Looks: Observe dry tea → Observe tea soup → Observe wet leaves

Three Smells: Smell at high temperature (60-70℃) for purity → Smell at medium temperature (40-50℃) for aroma type → Smell at low temperature (around 15℃) for aroma longevity

Three Tastes: Taste the richness → Taste the flavor → Taste the hui gan (sweet aftertaste)

One Touch: Touch the wet leaves to judge quality

Core Logic: Conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the "five dimensions" (dry tea, tea soup, aroma, taste, wet leaves) through the "four senses" (sight, smell, taste, touch) to achieve scientific tea tasting.

2. Knowledge Summary: Core Points and Confusing Points

Understanding tea is never about memorizing complex terminology, but rather understanding the natural laws and cultural context behind tea. From identifying the jagged edges of a genuine leaf to imagining the elegance of Song Dynasty literati brewing tea, every bit of knowledge can enhance your reverence for nature's gifts and your appreciation for our cultural heritage when you pick up a cup. When you can distinguish genuine tea from substitutes by its leaf characteristics, and connect tea drinking practices with the spirit of the Tang and Song dynasties, "identifying tea by its aroma" becomes more than a superficial aesthetic, but a profound cultural resonance.