Brew calculator and timer

Choose a tea, a method and the size of your pot or mug. The calculator scales the leaf, then lists the water temperature and steep times. Each steep has a timer. All figures are typical estimates: start here, then adjust to taste.

General rules of thumb

• Western brewing uses more water per gram of leaf and fewer, longer steeps.
• Gongfu uses roughly twice the leaf in a tiny pot, with short steeps that lengthen a little each time.
• Cold brew is gentle: low bitterness, low caffeine, and forgiving of timing.
• Hotter water extracts faster. If a tea is bitter, cool the water or shorten the steep before you change the leaf.

Each tea page also carries its own table, for example the Afternoon Blend Style page. Browse by green, oolong or dark for the methods that differ most.