Liyang Sheng explains what shrimp eyes have to do with temperature of tea. She is a tea expert and columnist for t-magazine
I am often asked about water temperature during tea workshops. What is the right temperature for tea? Do I need a special kettle with a temperature gauge? Many participants have at least heard about the existence of rules, and are confused because they can’t remember exactly what these rules are.
I have to admit that I am not too particular about water temperature. Except for green tea, I brew almost all teas with water at just under 100 degrees Celsius, and I tend to play around with brewing time. Many tea lovers have their own rules regarding temperature, and the subject has definitely sparked a lively debate or two. Three tea drinkers, seven brewing methods.
I would say this as a rule of thumb: the smaller and more delicate the leaves, the more sensitive they are to heat, as is the case with many green teas and especially Japanese green teas. (Anyone who has ever brewed a Gyokuro at 100 degrees will probably not forget this unpleasant experience.)
Today, many tea lovers have kettles with a temperature display, which may be tuned to the degree or even more precise. But how do you determine the water temperature without a display or thermometer? The people in ancient China knew how to observe the bubbles that formed in the heated water. Based on the size and arrangement, they were able to estimate the water temperature. These different stages have quite amusing names.
Shrimp eye – small, fine air bubbles
Crab eye – slightly larger air bubbles
Fish eye – large air bubbles
String of pearls – a long line of many air bubbles
Raging torrent – boiling water
Fish eye, string of pearls and raging torrent were already mentioned in Lu Yu's ‘Cha Jing’, the first book on tea culture ever (8th century). Three centuries later, the sentence: ‘When the crab eyes dry up, the fish eyes rise’ can be found in a poem about tea by the famous poet Su Dongpo. The complete list of terms can be found in Zhang Yuan’s “Tea Chronicle” from the Ming Dynasty (end of the 16th century). It is likely that the authors adopted familiar terms from the vernacular.
One of my first designs from the ‘Tea Culture on Postcards’ series helps to visualize the different temperature stages. I myself could never remember what ‘eyes’ go with what temperature. With the illustration, it's quite simple.
By the way: the raging torrent (i.e. violently boiling water) should be avoided if possible. Also, other cultures have different methods. Repeatedly pouring the boiling water into cooling vessels, adding cold water and observing the steam rising from the teaware are just a few of them.
References:
Lu Yu – 《茶经》 Cha Jing
Su Dongpo - Poem《试院煎茶》 Shi Yuan Jian Cha
Zhang Yuan - 《茶录》Cha Lu
You can find out more about Liyang on her website www.teeregen.de or Insta @teeregen You can also order products such as postcards on the website.