Do you rinse your oolongs?

[teaguy]

Washing oolongs should depend on the quality of the leaf involved. A general guideline is, if you're comfortable with your source and are sure it's a fairly high-grade product, it's much better to drink the first steep. Part of producing oolong tea includes tossing or breaking the leaves so that they release moisture, etc. During this process, the leaves get very sticky; after repeated drying, rolling, and roasting, the leaves become coated in their own juices, which contain most of the vitamins and theanines that you want to drink. Rinsing this off the tea leaves removes a big part of the nutritional value (although that shouldn't be the only reason to drink tea ). Thanks to ABx for also mentioning this fact.

Also, good work Mr. goomba! I have only skimmed the article you linked, but I think I'll keep it for reference. My guru basically supported this research when the topic came up last month. He told me that, if you're really concerned about the caffeine, it's better to drink the first 2-3 steeps, dump 4 & 5, then drink 6-8. That's assuming, of course, the tea can go 8 rounds!

Taiwan teas (semi or tightly rolled, such as High Mt. or Dong ting mentioned a few posts ago) don't need to be 'opened up'. Try this routine:

1st steep 1 minute
2nd steep 40-50 seconds
3rd steep 1:10
4th steep 1:25

I rinsed all oolongs for years because 'everyone did it that way'. When I learned the above method a few years ago, it really changed my life!!! Another technique that you can try is to do the 1st & 2nd steeps back-to-back, pouring them together in a pitcher before serving. It mixes the aroma from the 1st with the fuller flavor of the 2nd, and makes a more balanced cup, although not suitable for all teas.


Cheap quality teas are poorly produced, so rinsing often makes them more palatable. It also means you probably get about 3 rounds (steeps) before you need to change leaf. With high-quality leaf, you can drink 5-7 rounds, so this actually makes it more cost effective.

The exception to the rule is with aged teas. If the tea has been stored for a number of years, you should probably rinse it once quickly, but it also depends on the storing conditions.

[shogun89]

I rinse to clean the leaves, prepare them for brewing and to heat the teaware. I give the rinse to my yixing to make season it.

[augie]

Especially of their are some potential "unknown" chemicals.

Like toe jam. i am a rinser.

[Oni]

I tried both ways, by rinsing your rolled oolong for 15 seconds you don`t lose flavour and the brew that follows it will be more pronounced, it simply makes the tea taste better. On the other hands DO NOT rinse green tea, white, yellow tea, and japanese tea never rinse.

[greenisgood]

there was that thread a while ago about the weirdest thing found in pu, there should be one about rolled oolongs, i totally found a long black hair rolled right up with the leaf. it was a cheap tea but still, i rinse. and it makes your first steep better i think.

[edkrueger]

I rinse all teas .. ALL of them.

As do I, for opening, removing chemicals [including off tastes,] and for releasing aroma. I consume about %54.5 oolong %44.5 pu-erh and %1 other. [This only for Chinese teas, I consume about %89.5 Chinese teas and %9.5 Japanese and %1 other. [of this %1 other, 79.5 percent is Nilgiri and 19.5 percent is Darjeeling. [Of Nilgiri teas, %70 are black and %30 are green.]]]

Edit: I don't rinse Japanese teas.

[Oni]

Man are you working in statistics?

[toastedtoads]

I've started doing what Dae at The Tea Gallery seems to do, and that is to rinse the tea, (oolongs and puerhs at least) and keep it. Go about your normal tea drinking ritual, taste how the tea progresses through each infusion, and then when you're done, taste the rinse.

For most of the oolongs I've tried this with most of them seem to get sort of drying (mouth feel) toward the last few infusions, as well as having a residual floral taste in your mouth. When you taste the rinse afterward it brings you back to the initial taste, as well as being very thick and sweet in comparison.

I love taking the journey of a tea full circle.

[Janine]

I usually do a quick, flash rinse first - but that is just to cover the tops of the leaves - never pouring a full gaiwan or pot. This I throw out.

I would never skim bubbles; those hold aroma in the tea oils. This tea dust and whatever else you'd like to rinse off is in the water.