To boil or not to boil?

[thediminished5th]

Hey guys,

I often hear people talk about bring water to a boil, and then letting it cool down to the appropriate temperature for a particular tea. I have been using a thermometer in my kettle and heating the water directly to the desired temperature. While I understand the benefit of boiling water when preheating teaware, is there another reason you'd want to bring the water to boiling first?

Thanks,

Jon

[debunix]

Given the many frequent directions not to reboil water, because the boiled water will have a flatter taste or the pH will change or the hardness will increase as steam is released during boiling and/or all of the above, I can't imagine the boiling is supposed to in any way improve the taste of the resulting tea.

I think this is a legacy of lack of clean, safe drinking water, and because I live in an area with pretty good water and have a good immune system, I try to get my water before it comes to a boil when making white, green, and oolong teas.

[IPT]

I think this is a legacy of lack of clean, safe drinking water, and because I live in an area with pretty good water and have a good immune system, I try to get my water before it comes to a boil when making white, green, and oolong teas.

I've asked that question around China and from what I have been able to figure out it is as Debunix says, it is left over from when there was not clean drinking water. Even though there are now filtering systems and bottled water, most restaurants in China offer "tea" to drink. It's horrid stuff and doesn't really resemble tea, but it is done to show that the water was heated hot enough to brew the tea and therefore it is safe to drink. I don't think there are any benefits to boiling the tea first, but I'm not positive on that. I usually heat the water up to the proper temperature as well, instead of letting it boil and then cool down. I find that the tea tastes better when done this way.

[iannon]

..and to add..if you read some of the old tea drinkers writings before they had fancy tea-wares and digital thermometers and all they will talk about looking for certain characteristics in the water and when to use it..such as fish eyes for green tea and such. fish eyes being the very small bubbles prior to a real boil if I can recall correctly. for me when i started with japanese greens that like, for the most part, somewhat lower temps than Chinese i DID use a thermometer but got to be able to tell fairly quickly by the sound of my kettle and the look of the steam when to get it off the flame. for instance "lazy" or wafting steam was about right while straight up shooting steam i was too hot already. I still spot check myself tho!

[Chip]

I am a boiler, virtually every session starts with a boiling pot of water. I just don't reboil. An advantage, the kettle keeps the water hot enough w/out reheating for the first 4 steeps of green tea. So, I heat once and cruise.

I even have a variable temp electric kettle which tbh is useless to me. I have been boiling for 11 years, and I ain't changing.

Seriously though, just works for me.

[debunix]

My problem with full boil is that I have to wait that much longer for my morning sencha, at a time when my patience is at a low point for the day.

But my lovely simplex kettle does not give me much hint until the tea is nearly at a boil, so I do boil more often than not....but would prefer not to!

[gingkoseto]

Scientifically speaking, boiling helps kill whatever in water, if there is anything there.

Superstitiously speaking, many Chinese people believe half-way boiled water is between yin and yang, which is worse than either cold water or boiled water (I don't know the theory behind it, or if there is science behind it too?)

[brad4419]

If your tap water is safe/clean then you don't need to boil it for greens unless you want to. I buy into the idea of boiling the water removes more oxygen from the water and making it more flat but that being said I can't really taste a difference when I accidentally boil my water and have to let it cool to the right temp. Oh yea and if you boil the water first it means a few more seconds you have to wait to drink it.

Either way its yummy

[Chip]

Flat water would likely not produce bubbles in the Kyusu. This happens when you microwave the water and pour it into the kyusu, mic'ing really flattens the water.

But when I boild then pour, lots of bubbles in the kyusu.

I learned this tid bit from Kevin at O-Cha ... interesting and another good reason to not mic your water.

Bringing water to a boil and then turning off should not.

[tenuki]

the microwave phenom is actually due to lack of defects (nucleation sites) in the containers usually used to microwave, it can actually cause the water to get above 100 without boiling - fix by putting something like a bamboo chopstick in the container. Works for me.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superheating

[wbb4]

I think I can perceive a difference in some very high quality japanese greens between boiled and not-boiled water, but I have a zoji and it boils then cools, and I'm fine with that. The convenience of having ready water outweighs any potential difference for my everyday drinking.