How to Brew Aged Raw Pu'er: Awakening the Aged Aroma
After 10 or 20 years, raw tea's liquor turns from yellow-green to orange-yellow and chestnut red, its aroma shifts from floral and honey to aged, woody, and herbal notes, and bitterness and astringency become mellow. Aged raw tea is more reserved, and the key to brewing it is the exact opposite of young raw tea: give it enough heat and time to let its aroma slowly wake up.
How Many Years Makes an Aged Tea?
There's no agreed number in the tea world. A common view: up to 3–5 years of storage is young tea, roughly 5–15 years is mid-aged, and from 15–20 years on it starts to be called aged. These divisions are just for convenience; with different storage environments, the pace of change varies greatly. More discussion is in Drinking Windows.
Before Brewing: Rest the Tea
When aged tea has sat in a cabinet for a long time, it's as if its aroma has gone to sleep, and waking it before brewing really helps:
- Pry it and wait a few days: pry 1–2 sessions' worth from the whole cake, put it in a ceramic jar or paper bag, and leave it somewhere clean and ventilated for 3 days to 2 weeks. Storage taste dissipates and the aroma opens up.
- Warm the dry leaves: before adding the leaves, heat the gaiwan or pot, add the tea, cover, and give it a shake so the residual heat brings out the aroma, then lift the lid and smell.
- Rinse slowly: you can first fill halfway with slightly cooler hot water, let it sit 20–30 seconds, pour it off, then start brewing properly with boiling water.
Resting and rinsing are covered in detail in Rinsing and Awakening Tea.
How Many Rinses?
Rinse aged raw tea once or twice, about 5 seconds each. If the tea has an obvious storage taste (common in tea stored in damper environments), make the second rinse a little longer, or rest it a few days more. After rinsing, lift the lid and smell; if it smells clean with an aged aroma, you can start brewing.
Is a Yixing Pot Better?
Aged raw tea suits a pot very well. A Yixing pot holds heat and has thick walls that keep the water temperature high, bringing out the aged aroma and body more fully and making the liquor seem rounder. A pot dedicated to aged raw tea becomes more of a pleasure to use over time.
A gaiwan works perfectly well too, especially the first time you try an aged tea: a white porcelain gaiwan doesn't absorb smells and shows the tea's true character, liquor color, and spent leaves best. If you use a gaiwan, choose one with thicker walls and heat it before every infusion. Choosing a pot is covered in Yixing Pots and Pu'er.
The Rhythm of Each Infusion
| Infusion | Time | What you'll taste |
|---|---|---|
| Rinse | 1–2 times, 5 seconds each | Wakes the aroma |
| Infusions 1–3 | 10–15 seconds | Aged and woody notes come first, orange-red liquor |
| Infusions 4–8 | Add 5 seconds each | Fullest body, best sweetness |
| Infusion 9 onward | Add 10–20 seconds each | Sweet, smooth, and lingering |
| Final infusions | 1–3 minutes | Draws out the last sweetness |
Leaf: 7–8 grams in a 110 ml gaiwan; 8–9 grams in a 150 ml pot. Water at 100°C throughout.
Can Aged Tea Be Boiled?
It's ideal for it. Aged raw tea's bitterness and astringency have already softened, so boiling doesn't easily make it too bitter, and its woody notes and sweetness actually come through more. Two ways:
- Boil it directly: 5 grams of aged raw tea with 800 ml of water, adding the tea to hot water and simmering over low heat for 2–3 minutes.
- Boil after brewing: once you've brewed 10-plus infusions in a gaiwan, put the spent leaves in a pot, start from cold water, and simmer over low heat for 3–5 minutes.
Details are in Boiling Pu'er.
Things to Notice When Brewing Aged Tea
- Liquor color: good aged tea has a clear liquor like amber or red wine; be wary if it's cloudy and dull.
- Aroma: a clean aged aroma that isn't pungent; if it smells musty, don't drink it. For telling smells apart, read Storage Taste, Aged Aroma, and Mold.
- Spent leaf: still springy after brewing; if the leaves have become hard and brittle like charcoal or turn to mush when pinched, the tea may have been stored too damp.
Drinking One Aged Cake Over Many Sessions
Aged tea is precious, and many people can't bear to pry off too much at once. You can pry off 2–3 sessions' worth at a time, keep it resting in a small ceramic jar, and take out one session each time. That way you experience the changes resting brings every time you drink, and the whole cake isn't repeatedly exposed to air. Prying technique is in How to Open a Pu'er Cake.
FAQ
How should aged tea be brewed? 7–8 grams in a 110 ml gaiwan, boiling water at 100°C, rinse once or twice, 10–15 seconds for the first 3 infusions, then lengthen with each infusion.
How long does aged tea need to rest? Keep pried tea in a ceramic jar or paper bag for 3 days to 2 weeks; just before brewing, warm the dry leaves in a heated gaiwan, or rinse first with slightly cooler water for 20–30 seconds.
Is a Yixing pot better for aged tea? Yixing pots hold heat well and suit aged raw tea; the first time you try a tea, a white porcelain gaiwan shows its true character best.
Can aged tea be boiled? Yes. 5 grams with 800 ml of water, added to hot water and simmered over low heat for 2–3 minutes; or boil the spent leaves for 3–5 minutes after brewing.