Quick answer
Write the brew setup first, then record aroma, body, sweetness, bitterness, astringency, flavor associations, finish, and the next adjustment.
Practical guide
How to Build a Tea Tasting Note
A useful tasting note helps you repeat or change a brew. Specific observations matter more than an impressive list of flavor words.
Begin with reproducible facts
Record leaf amount, water volume, temperature, time, vessel, and infusion number before describing taste.
Separate sensation from association
Body, dryness, sweetness, and intensity are sensations; orchid, cocoa, peach, or toasted grain are associations.
End with a next-brew decision
For a repeatable first-infusion comparison, use fresh portions of the same tea and change one planned parameter. If you reuse the leaves, label the cup as a later infusion; its starting condition has changed.
Checklist
- Setup
- Tea, producer, leaf, water, temperature, time, and vessel.
- Aroma
- Dry leaf, warm leaf, and liquor.
- Cup
- Body, sweetness, bitterness, astringency, flavors, and finish.
- Next brew
- Choose a next question. Keep a later infusion separate from a fresh-portion comparison.
Working notes
- One-line note
- Combine the actual setup, sensations you noticed, any associations, and next move. Leave an unobserved result blank.
Example: Fictional wording example, not a tasting result: 75°C kettle setting; light body, gently drying; reminded the writer of pea shoot. Add actual dose, water, time and infusion number before reusing the note.
References
- Tea preparation and types
Tea and Herbal Association of Canada. Tea categories and preparation context. Tea labels and brewing examples vary by producer, leaf style, water, vessel, and personal taste; use the source as a starting framework.
- Tea classification overview
International Organization for Standardization. Standards context for tea terminology and classification. Tea labels and brewing examples vary by producer, leaf style, water, vessel, and personal taste; use the source as a starting framework.
Next pages
- Oolong vs black tea
Use the tasting-note format to compare categories without changing several brewing variables at once.
- Temperature cheat sheet
Record one clear variable to adjust on the next cup so the tasting process stays interpretable.
- Multiple-infusion tasting sheet
Record successive steeps of the same leaves, including timing, new water and your own observations.