Tool
Japanese tea calculator
Pick your tea, strength and how much you are brewing. The calculator gives you exact grams, water temperature and time.
Tea
Strength
Volume
Your brew
- Tea leaves
- 3 g
- Water temperature
- 70°C
- Time
- 1 min
Lower temperature brings sweetness, higher lifts umami but risks bitterness.
Temperature and time for Japanese tea
Japanese green tea is brewed below boiling: sencha at 65 to 75 degrees Celsius for about a minute, genmaicha at 80 degrees for a minute, and hojicha at 90 to 95 degrees for 30 seconds. The hotter the water, the faster both flavor and bitterness extract from the leaves.
The base rule for dosing is simple: about 2 grams of leaves per 180 ml of water, roughly one heaped teaspoon. If you want a fuller cup, increase the leaf rather than the time. More leaf gives more flavor; more time mostly gives more bitterness. That is the same logic the calculator above uses.
The water matters too. Fresh tap water is usually excellent, but let just-boiled water cool in the pot or cup rather than guessing: each pour between vessels drops the temperature by roughly five degrees. A thermometer is nice but not necessary.
Common mistakes when brewing green tea
- Boiling water on sencha. This is the most common mistake and gives a sharp, bitter cup no matter how fine the tea is. Let the water cool below 75 degrees.
- Leaving the leaves sitting in water. Always pour off the entire brew, including the last drops. They are also the most flavorful.
- Too little leaf and too much time. That gives a thin yet bitter tea. Stick to the dose and time, and adjust strength with the amount of leaf.
- Old tea. Opened bags lose aroma within a few months. Store tea dark, airtight and cool, and buy smaller amounts more often.
Frequently asked questions
- What water temperature should green tea have?
- Japanese green tea is brewed below boiling. Sencha does best at 65 to 75 degrees Celsius, genmaicha around 80 degrees, and roasted hojicha handles 90 to 95 degrees. Boiling water pulls too many catechins out of unroasted green leaves and turns the cup bitter.
- Why does my green tea turn bitter?
- Almost always one of three causes: water too hot, steeping too long, or too much leaf. Lower the temperature by five degrees and shorten the time by 15 seconds before you change the dose. Bitterness extracts faster than flavor, so small adjustments make a big difference.
- Can I brew Japanese tea in an ordinary teapot?
- Yes. A kyusu with a built-in strainer is convenient, but any teapot works as long as the leaves have room to unfurl and you can pour off all the water when time is up. Leaves left sitting in water keep extracting and turn bitter.
- How many times can I re-steep the same leaves?
- Japanese tea leaves are made for multiple infusions. Good sencha gives two to three cups: brew the second infusion almost immediately, with slightly hotter water and half the time. Hojicha and genmaicha usually handle two infusions.