Grandpa style tea brewing is far from mysterious. This method, often called "Farmer Style", celebrates the simplicity of tea. It strips away the ritual of the tea ceremony, focusing purely on the leaf and the water. And I’m sure we’ve all drunk tea grandpa style before, without even knowing it. Grandpa style tea brewing is very casual. A large cup, some tea leaves, hot water - that's it.
Gong Fu Cha Vs. Grandpa Style Brewing
When we are introduced to a quality loose leaf, Gong Fu Cha brewing is probably the best way to get the most out of the tea leaves. Many years of tea tastings and balancing the leaf ratio with the cup sizing and the water heating degree led to presumably the best way of extracting all of the best qualities of a loose leaf. The perfect formula that will leave you aghast.
When you travel to China, you might see the majority of people putting the same loose leaf... into big cups and pouring boiling water over it, and on top of that, letting it sit for preposterous amounts of time. And you might just think, "How could they!?"
In fact, a big majority of people in China don’t drink their tea gong fu style. Instead, they enjoy it in the more casual grandpa style.
What Is Grandpa Style Tea?
Brewing tea leaves directly in a large cup is the standard way people drink tea in China. In Chinese, it is called Pao Cha (泡茶) – "brewing tea", or Bei Pao (杯泡) – "cup brewing". The term "Grandpa Style" was coined recently by tea blogger Lawrence Zhang to describe this casual, unpretentious habit to Western audiences.
In Grandpa brewing, instead of using a gaiwan or teapot for the tea, it is brewed in a big cup. This is where many of the big mug tea lovers can rejoice! No strainers or teabags are used either. Instead, the tea leaf is dropped directly into the cup and poured over with hot water. Without much attention being given to the perfect leaf ratio or water temperature.
After 5, 10, or 15 minutes – yes, this part doesn’t matter either – you drink the tea without discarding the tea leaves. In general, you stop drinking the tea when about 1/3 of the cup is left, and then you add more water. This continues until you feel the taste is becoming too weak, or you no longer wish to drink any more tea. And when the taste weakens, a small amount of fresh tea leaves can be added to the mug.
Oh, and not all tea leaves will sink to the bottom; some might float to the top. So we just try to adjust ourselves to drinking it. (Otherwise, you can gently blow them aside and let them sink with time).
Grandpa style is a good choice for when you don’t have the time for a full traditional tea ceremony or perhaps you’re on the go or at work.
Usually, only white, yellow, and green teas are brewed grandpa-style because they don’t require a high tea-to-water ratio. However, those who enjoy a strong, caffeinated brew might try oolongs, pu-erh, and red teas as well to get the best taste. There is a large community of tea drinkers who prefer to drink these teas the grandpa style.
So if you’ve ever brewed some tea gong fu style and found you couldn’t get the taste out of it that you were hoping for, just try grandpa style! It might open new flavor profiles you weren’t expecting.
5 Easy Steps To Brew Grandpa Style Tea:
- Take a big mug and fill it with tea leaves of your choice. (There is no specific ratio. You will learn of the right ratio for you along the way)
- Pour hot water over the leaves. Usually, boiling water is used; however, if you are drinking a very delicate tea, you might want to lower the temperature.
- When using a lidded mug (optional), the lid serves a dual purpose: retaining heat during steeping and acting as a makeshift strainer. By tilting the lid slightly while drinking, you can keep the floating leaves at bay.
- Drink the tea when it has cooled enough that it won't burn you. If you prefer a stronger tea, let it brew for longer.
- Repeat until the tea starts to lose flavor. Then you can start adding a little more tea leaves if you prefer to keep drinking.