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Tea Sommelier’s Guide to Starting a Career in Tea

Want to explore tea but don’t know where to begin? This guide gives practical tips and a step-by-step method to brew and taste tea confidently.

Pouring hot water into a mug with tea.

Getting Into Tea

One of the most rewarding parts of earning my Tea Sommelier certification was learning proper tea tasting. Tasting tea thoughtfully is an excellent way to begin your tea journey.

Below are straightforward recommendations and habits that helped me learn to appreciate tea.

Drink a lot of tea

  • To understand and enjoy tea, you need regular exposure. Aim to drink tea several times a week.
  • When possible, spend a little time each day preparing tea properly. For many people, the ritual is part of the pleasure.

Stop using tea bags

  • Move away from conventional tea bags and try loose leaf tea. Loose tea typically delivers higher quality flavor and aroma.

Drink one tea for a week

  • Learn a tea deeply by drinking the same type for a week, two weeks, or even a month. Repeated tasting helps you recognize its characteristics later.
  • This focused practice helps you identify a tea’s flavor profile months after first trying it.

Don’t add milk or sugar

  • Avoid milk and sugar when you’re learning a tea’s flavor. They can mask delicate notes and alter perception.

What You’ll Need

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Mug with Infuser

Photo Credit: amazon.com

A small mug with a large infuser is ideal when you’re starting—it’s simple and effective for single-cup brewing.
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Electric Kettle with Temperature Setting

Photo Credit: amazon.com

Controlling water temperature is essential for proper brewing. A kettle with settings makes brewing consistent and repeatable.
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Water Filter

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Good water quality makes a noticeable difference. Use filtered water for cleaner, truer tea flavor.

How to Make Tea in a Mug with Infuser

Hot tea tools.

If you’re starting out, brewing in a mug with an infuser is approachable and effective. It’s less intimidating than traditional teapots but can produce great results when you follow proper steps.

Use a mug sized for a single cup (about 8 oz.) so you can focus on one serving at a time.

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STEP 1: Boil filtered water.

Reference your tea’s brewing guidelines for the ideal temperature and set your kettle accordingly. Boil a bit extra to warm the mug and for a quick rinse.

STEP 2: Warm the mug.

Pour hot water into the mug and swirl to warm it, then discard. Warming prevents the steeping temperature from dropping when you add hot water to the leaves.

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STEP 3: Add tea and hot water.

Place about 2 teaspoons of loose tea into the infuser. Take a moment to inspect the dry leaves—their shape and aroma tell you a lot. For precision, professionals weigh leaves, but a teaspoon works well when you’re learning.

Add hot water to the mug after adding the tea.

STEP 4: Rinse for 10 seconds and discard.

Steep for roughly 10 seconds, then remove the infuser and discard the water. This quick rinse wakes the leaves and removes dust or any packing residues.

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STEP 5: Add 1 cup water and steep 45 seconds.

Pour 8 oz. of hot water into the mug and cover while steeping for 45 seconds. Because you’ll do multiple short steeps, this timing helps extract flavor without bitterness.

Use a timer for consistency and a measuring cup the first few times to learn the right volume.

STEP 6: Remove infuser and enjoy.

Remove the infuser promptly at the end of the steep to prevent over-extraction. The removable infuser makes it easy to stop the brew at the right moment.

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STEP 7: Re-steep for 1 minute 15 seconds.

After you finish the first cup, return the infuser to the mug and add another cup of hot water. This time steep about 1 minute and 15 seconds. The leaves will open further and new flavor notes often emerge in the second infusion.

OPTIONAL STEP 8: Additional steeps

You can continue re-steeping, adding about 30 seconds to each subsequent steep until the flavor weakens. Many teas offer two to four enjoyable infusions; beyond that, flavor diminishes.

8 Teas to Try

Try one of these well-known teas for a week each, brewed in a mug with an infuser, to build a baseline of flavors every tea enthusiast should recognize.

  1. White tea: White Peony (Bai Mudan)
  2. White tea: Silver Needle
  3. Green tea: Dragonwell (Lung Jing)
  4. Green tea: Sencha
  5. Oolong tea: Iron Goddess of Mercy (Tie Guan Yin)
  6. Oolong tea: Oriental Beauty
  7. Black tea: Darjeeling
  8. Black tea: Assam

Tea Tasting Tips

  • Steeps are also called infusions; each infusion will reveal different aspects of the tea.
  • If drinking a full 8 oz. per steep is too much, use 1 teaspoon of tea with 1/2 cup of water to create smaller steeps and extend tasting.
  • You can continue steeping loose tea until the flavor fades; most teas give multiple usable infusions.
  • Once leaves have fully unfurled, flavor tends to decline quickly, so note changes across steeps.
  • If you have leftover leaves after a couple of infusions, try cold brewing them in the refrigerator for a refreshing second use.
  • Buy loose tea in modest amounts and store it properly to keep flavors fresh.

Related

  • How to Make Oolong Tea in a Clay Teapot
  • Where to Buy Tea Online
  • Difference Between Loose Tea, Tea Sachets, and Tea Bags
  • Oolong Tea Starter Guide
  • Green Tea Starter Guide