Why Is My Green Tea Bitter?
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Green Tea Bitter
If it is your belief that green tea is bitter then something has gone horribly wrong, unless of course, this is how you like your green tea to taste! Perhaps it wasn’t brewed correctly or the quality of tea was poor? Whatever the reason, this shouldn’t be your green tea experience.
This popular beverage that’s packed with powerful antioxidants and offers so many potential health benefits deserves to be enjoyed at its best!
Is it bad to drink bitter green tea?
Correctly brewed green tea shouldn’t taste bitter. The steeping time, water temperature, and quality of tea used will all influence the flavor. When prepared carefully your green tea should be smooth and refreshing so why settle for less?
Green tea can have a range of tastes from sweet or nutty to vegetal or floral, but “undrinkably” bitter should not be one of them otherwise, how are you going to fall in love with this emerald green super drink and take advantage of all it has to offer?
If you want to know which green tea is best for taste, the answer to this question will very much come down to personal preference. With so many varieties of green tea available you really are spoilt for choice. However, it’s important to get the basics right whatever your predilection. So if you want to get the best out of your cuppa let’s explore a little further.
Why Can Green Tea Taste Bitter?
Green tea is made from the Camellia sinensis plant and is one of the least processed types of tea. For this reason, it is known to have the most significant effects on health. However, this also makes it the most susceptible to bitterness as not only does it contain flavonoids and caffeine but it has a higher amount of health-promoting catechins.
Although green tea contains bitter compounds which can enhance bitterness and astringency, it doesn’t follow that it needs to taste bitter once served.
There are a number of reasons though that your green tea may taste bitter if you don’t take care with your tea drinking practice from start to finish:
Poor Quality Tea
The lower the quality of tea you buy the more likely you are to yield a bitter-tasting brew. Green tea can be bought as fresh leaves or in teabags and is often found blended with other complementary flavors.
Many tea drinkers will opt for teabags as they offer ease of use and are more convenient for the busy consumer. However, they don’t always contain the highest quality tea leaves especially when it comes to green tea.
Teabags can be made of low-grade material, contain broken leaves, tea fannings, and tea dust which can all see the flavor of your tea take a turn for the worse and even result in reducing the health-giving properties of your brew.
The teabag can prevent the leaves inside from fully expanding and therefore impede the full infusion of the tea’s complete flavor profile. Teabags also brew up much quicker than a loose leaf but the faster extraction can result in a more bitter-tasting drink.
If you’re making your green tea with loose leaves then it can be difficult to judge just how much tea you need in your cup or pot. Using too much tea can produce a strong bitter-tasting brew.
When buying tea, avoid older leaves. Tea will inevitably deteriorate with age and eventually expire so the longer it sits the less flavorful it will be and the higher chance of a bitter-tasting brew.
Storing tea incorrectly once it’s been opened could lead to a loss of flavor. This is usually due to excessive exposure to heat light and moisture which degrades tea quality.
Inadequate Water Quality And Temperature
Your green tea flavor starts with the quality of tea leaves used but the quality of your water and its temperature are also very important when you are trying to brew the most flavorsome cup of tea you can.
If you find yourself thinking that your tea tastes funny, then keep in mind the water you are using. If the water you drink is heavily treated, gives off any strong smells, or simply just doesn’t taste great, then neither will your green tea.
Boiling water doesn’t suit most green teas as their leaves are not oxidized and they are therefore easily burnt. If your water temperature is too hot, more catechins, chlorophyll, and caffeine will be extracted resulting in a really bitter-tasting green tea that can leave you with a dry feeling in your mouth.
Hot brewed green tea left to go cold before drinking may not be as good as hot green tea or cold brewed green tea. So take note, the temperature you choose for your green tea has a significant impact on its taste.
Incorrect Steeping Time
Naturally, everyone has their own preference in tea flavor and intensity, and every tea is unique in its flavor profile and consistency.
If you allow your green tea to soak in the water for too long it will release more tannings which will produce strong, bitter almost acidic flavors.
Too little brewing time is also not a good idea. If the leaves don’t infuse in the water for long enough you won’t extract the good stuff and your brew will be weak and insipid.
How To Reduce The Bitterness Of Green Tea
With so many wonderful tea types and flavors available there is really no excuse not to enjoy a really delicious brew. Here are some things you may wish to consider to help you in your quest to make the perfect cup for you!
Use Better Quality Tea
If you want to unlock the most amazing taste sensations and release fewer bitter properties into your beverage then loose leaf tea tends to be the better option. Loose leaf tea is usually a superior product and tends to stay fresher for longer.
If you opt for teabags then you may want to consider a pyramid shape bag which gives the leaves more room to expand. It is even possible to buy some teabags that are made with whole-leaf tea, for example, Teapigs Mao Feng Green Tea Bags, which are made with whole leaves.
Tea can taste very different depending on a number of factors including where it was grown, the soil it was grown in climate, etc. Depending on how far you want to explore the background of your chosen tea you may even want to consider the date and area of the harvesting of your leaves. A quality tea seller should be able to help you with this type of information.
Take care with the amount of tea you use. It will depend on the tea you are using and your personal preference for the depth of flavor you wish to experience. The more leaves you add the more intense flavor you will get. Be sure to read any accompanying instructions for guidance or ask a specialist for their recommendation as a good starting point. Make subtle changes to the quantity you use until you get it just right for your palate.
Top Tip
If you get it wrong you can always try adding a little more water to dilute the tea or even add a bit of sweetener. The added sweetener can mask the bitter flavor of any mistakes made in your tea-making process. It can even bring out different flavors that you didn’t expect.
If tea leaves are stored correctly they don’t tend to go bad. As a rough guide when stored properly they can last 6-12 months past their “best before” date. Keeping their freshness for longer will help to maintain flavor, protect its wonderful aroma and antioxidant properties.
Adequate Water Quality And Water Temperature
You need good quality water to make a good quality cup of tea. It’s important to use fresh water each time you brew up. Try not to use water that has been previously boiled or left sitting in the kettle for hours.
Depending on the type of tea you are brewing, the water temperature plays an important role in extracting flavor. Delicate green tea fares better with warm and ambient temperatures. This will help to ensure that its sweet and complex flavors will not be overpowered with bitterness whilst also helping to retain its antioxidants.
If you follow the recommended brewing guide for your chosen tea but still find your tea bitter, try lowering the water temperature further to see if that results in a better flavor for you. Or another option to consider is cold-brewing your green tea. This will typically require a longer amount of time but results in a flavorful beverage with naturally less bitter notes.
Correct Steeping Time
The more attention you give to brewing your green tea the better as it is one of the most delicate tea types available.
Different teas need different brew times but on average 2-3 minutes of steeping is considered a good general guideline to follow initially. Anything over 5 minutes is usually a bad idea as the longer green tea is steeped the more bitter it will become.
As green tea infusion times can be so varied be sure to also check your tea’s packaging or ask your tea vendor for even more detailed brewing instructions if you’re still uncertain.
Try reducing or increasing steep times to find what works best for you. Usually, all it takes is a little trial and error to arrive at the perfect cup!
Conclusion
The resulting flavor of your green tea depends on many factors, including the quality of tea used, water temperature, and how exactly you steep it. Green tea can be one of the hardest types of tea to brew properly but one of the most rewarding when you get it right.
If you feel you have tried everything and your green tea still tastes bitter, maybe it’s time to try a new tea blend. But whatever you do, don’t give up as green tea is high in antioxidant polyphenols, which are known to protect the body against disease and improve health.
As the popularity of green tea increases, more and more health benefits are emerging. So any would-be tea drinker should stick with this wonderful brew; it will be worth it when you get it just right!
Is Tea Supposed To Taste Bitter?
A common problem especially with mass-produced teas is their tendency towards bitterness. However, there are many ways to overcome this problem such as shortening the brewing time or lowering the water temperature.
How Can I make Green Tea Taste Less Bitter?
If you have already addressed some of the most common problems associated with bitter green tea such as steeping time or tea quality, you may want to consider adding something to your brew to counteract any bitter flavors. Lemon or honey are both very popular with green tea. Herbs and spices are other options you can explore yourself or look to a few tried and tested combinations such as green tea with mint or ginger.
Can You Put Milk In Green Tea?
Milk in green tea can decrease the health benefits making it less effective. However, if it is your preference to have milk in your tea it’s a good compromise to make if it encourages you to keep drinking it. This way you will still be gaining at least some of the benefits green tea has to offer as well as enjoying your brew.
