The secret to delicious tea is the water

There is even a proverb that goes, "Tea is all about the water," and no matter how high-quality the tea is, if the water tastes bad, the flavor will be ruined.

This is especially true for new tea, but I have written about the inseparable relationship between tea and water.

Water

Water is essential for new tea and tea in general, but at the same time, it is tea's biggest enemy. Even if the tea is good, it will be all for nothing if the water tastes bad.

What is delicious water?

So, what kind of water is good-tasting water? It is "soft water" that contains the right amount of minerals. Water that meets these conditions is good-tasting water and is ideal for making tea, and most of the water in Japan is suitable for this purpose.

On the contrary, it is no exaggeration to say that it was precisely because Japan is blessed with moderately soft water that the tea with its delicate taste and aroma, that is, the drink known as green tea, was created and became so popular.

Even if water meets all of the above conditions, if there are impurities or it has an odor, it will no longer taste good. Water in Japan is originally delicious, but the water source is polluted and disinfected, giving it an odor, ruining the taste of the water. This means that if we can just remove the odor, we can have water that tastes just fine.

If you do this with tap water...

As you know, the culprit that makes tap water taste bad is the chlorine used for disinfection, which is the source of the so-called chlorine smell. There are several ways to get rid of the smell, but the quickest is to let the water sit overnight. If you leave it overnight, the chlorine smell should be almost gone by the next morning. It is also said that if you put water in a clear glass container and expose it to direct sunlight for about 30 minutes, the ultraviolet rays will break down the chlorine and the chlorine smell will disappear. Another easy way is to boil water. Once it boils, do not turn off the heat immediately, but remove the lid of the kettle and boil it on low heat for 2 to 3 minutes. It is said that this will not only remove the chlorine but also trihalomethanes (carcinogens). In any case, the first step to enjoying new tea is to secure delicious water. Try various ingenuity and enjoy the refreshing aroma and taste that only the season can provide.