Dragon Well (Longjing) steep time and temperature

By exactee · Updated 2026-10-13

Brew Dragon Well with water at 75–85 °C (167–185 °F) and about 1 g of leaf per 60 ml (3 g in a 200 ml glass, 5 g in a 300 ml pot) for about 2 minutes. Re-steep two or three times, adding 30 seconds each time. In a tall glass, “grandpa style”, use about 3 g, let the leaves sink and top up with hot water when the glass is a third full.

What Dragon Well is

Dragon Well, Longjing in Chinese, is a pan-fired green tea from around Hangzhou in Zhejiang province, and one of China’s most famous teas. Its leaves are pressed flat in hot woks, which gives them their smooth, sword-like shape and a toasty, chestnut-like flavour that sets it apart from steamed Japanese greens such as sencha. A good cup is sweet, nutty and buttery with very little bitterness.

Brewing parameters

Why 75–85 °C (167–185 °F)?

Pan-firing makes Longjing a little more robust than steamed greens, so it handles 80 °C (176 °F) well, and some people like 85 °C (185 °F) for a nuttier cup. Boiling water still scalds it: the chestnut sweetness disappears and astringency takes over. For high-grade, early-picked tea, go cooler (75 °C (167 °F)); for everyday grades, 80–85 °C (176–185 °F). No thermometer? Here are four reliable methods.

Step by step (western)

1. Warm your pot or mug.
2. Weigh 1 g per 60 ml; for 300 ml that is 5 g. The calculator does other sizes.
3. Pour on water at about 80 °C (176 °F).
4. Steep 2 minutes and strain completely.
5. Re-steep with 2:30, then 3 minutes.

Grandpa style: the glass method

In much of China, Longjing is drunk straight from a tall glass. Put about 3 g in the glass, pour in a little 80 °C (176 °F) water to wet the leaves, wait a few seconds, then fill. The flat leaves stand upright and slowly sink. Sip as it cools; when about a third is left, top up with hot water. Because there is a lot of water for the leaf, it stays drinkable rather than bitter. It is also beautiful to watch.

Grades and origins

• Xi Hu Longjing: from the protected area around West Lake in Hangzhou; sub-areas like Shi Feng and Mei Jia Wu are especially prized.
• Pre-Qingming (Ming Qian): picked before the Qingming festival in early April; small, tender leaves and the highest prices.
• Zhejiang Longjing: the same style from the wider province; usually better value for daily drinking.

Expensive pre-Qingming tea is delicate; brew it cooler and shorter. Everyday Longjing tolerates more heat and time.

Why does my Dragon Well taste bitter?

Usually water above 85 °C (185 °F) or a steep over 3 minutes. Too much leaf in a small mug is the next suspect. See why tea turns bitter.

Storage

Like all green teas, Longjing is best fresh. Keep it airtight, dark and cool, and try to drink it within a few months of opening. Much of it is harvested in spring, so new-season tea arrives in late spring.

Caffeine

Dragon Well contains caffeine like other green teas. Shorter, cooler steeps extract a little less, but it is not an evening tea for caffeine-sensitive people. For more on Chinese and Japanese green teas, see the green tea guide.

Dragon Well with food

Its nutty, gently toasted flavour makes Longjing one of the easiest green teas to drink with meals. It works well with steamed fish, prawns and other seafood, with lightly dressed vegetables, and with mild cheeses. In Hangzhou there is even a classic dish, Longjing shrimp, in which river shrimp are stir-fried with freshly brewed tea leaves. Avoid pairing it with very spicy or heavily sauced food, which overwhelms its delicate sweetness; a roasted oolong or a black tea is the better match there.