为何泡茶时第一泡是倒掉的？

茶道里喝茶，第一泡都是倒掉的，仅仅是因为清洁原因么？还有没有其他的原因？

1

为了清洁

喝茶时把第一泡倒掉，目的是洗去茶表面的灰层和脏东西。这一习惯与功夫茶道有关。功夫茶茶道的泡法在广东、福建、台湾等南方地区比较多，喝功夫茶一般选乌龙茶。这些茶是需要炒制的。古时候工业技术没这么强，炒茶都是在一个铜鼎里用手炒，甚至还有人是用脚踩的。

所以，为了卫生起见，人们在泡茶时习惯性地洗洗茶，把第一泡茶倒掉不喝，久而久之，这一习惯成了功夫茶道的一道工序。在泡茶待客时，主人先冲掉一遍，用茶碗盖刮去漂在上面的泡沫，一是清洁茶表面的灰层，二是表示对客人的尊重。

2

为了醒茶

醒茶分干醒和湿醒。干醒是在冲泡前，湿醒则是第一次冲泡时，用适宜的水及温度使叶片舒展，洗去茶叶表面的浮灰，使茶能够达到最佳的冲泡状态，相当于给茶做个热身运动。

以铁观音为例，制作铁观音有一道工序叫“揉捻”，即在杀青后，制茶师傅用手将原叶包揉成颗粒状。此道工序是成就铁观音外形特征的关键，即我们常说的“蜻蜓头，螺旋体，蝌蚪尾”。

泡铁观音时，首泡茶的作用就是醒茶。第一次冲泡，铁观音的叶片在热水的滋润下舒展开来，达到热身后的状态；接着再次冲泡，茶叶开始充分接触热水，茶的内含物质才慢慢地渗透出来。流行的说法是，第三泡的铁观音最好喝，无论是香气还是滋味口感，都是最佳的。

3

烘托气氛

招待客人时，客人主人面对面坐着，第二泡的茶还没冲好，第一泡洗茶的茶汤虽然清淡，但也有茶香，洗完茶杯后淋在茶盘上，茶香飘出来，还没开始喝，就闻到了，让人急不可待想品一品，品茶的气氛马上就来了。

值得注意的是，不是泡所有茶，第一泡都要倒掉的。像原料等级高，原料越嫩的茶，就不需要洗。

比如大多数绿茶（龙井、碧螺春、黄山毛峰），原料比较嫩的红茶（金骏眉），它们是由全茶芽或一芽一叶制成的，原料等级高，第一泡开始就可以喝了。

像原料等级低，多为粗老叶制成的茶，如老白茶；还有加工工程比较复杂，需要渥堆发酵，长期存放的黑茶类，还是洗洗再喝的好。

When drinking tea in the tea ceremony, the first brew is poured out, is it just for cleaning reasons? Is there any other reason?

1

for cleaning

When drinking tea, pour out the first brew in order to wash away the gray layer and dirt on the surface of the tea. This habit is related to the kung fu tea ceremony. The brewing method of Kung Fu tea tea ceremony is more common in Guangdong, Fujian, Taiwan and other southern regions, and oolong tea is generally selected for drinking Kung Fu tea. These teas need to be fried. In ancient times, industrial technology was not so strong. Fried tea was fried by hand in a copper tripod, and some people even stepped on it with their feet.

Therefore, for the sake of hygiene, people habitually wash the tea when making tea, and pour out the first tea without drinking it. Over time, this habit has become a process of the kung fu tea ceremony. When brewing tea and entertaining guests, the host first rinses it off and scrapes off the foam floating on the tea bowl cover. One is to clean the ash layer on the surface of the tea, and the other is to show respect for the guests.

2

to wake up tea

Wake-up tea is divided into dry wake-up and wet wake-up. Dry awakening is before brewing, while wet awakening is the first time brewing, use suitable water and temperature to stretch the leaves, wash away the floating ash on the surface of the tea leaves, so that the tea can reach the best brewing state, which is equivalent to Warm up with tea.

Taking Tieguanyin as an example, there is a process called "kneading" in the production of Tieguanyin, that is, after the tea is finished, the tea maker will knead the original leaf bag into granules by hand. This process is the key to the achievement of Tieguanyin's shape and characteristics, that is, what we often call "dragonfly head, spiral body, tadpole tail".

When brewing Tieguanyin, the function of first brewing tea is to wake up the tea. For the first brewing, the leaves of Tieguanyin stretch out under the moisturization of hot water, reaching the state after warming up; then brewing again, the tea leaves begin to fully contact the hot water, and the substances in the tea slowly permeate. A popular saying is that the third brew of Tieguanyin is the best, both in terms of aroma and taste.

3

Heighten the atmosphere

When entertaining guests, the host of the guest sits facing each other, the second tea has not been brewed, the tea soup for the first brew is light, but it also has a tea fragrance. Before I started drinking, I smelled it, which made people eager to taste it, and the atmosphere of tea tasting came immediately.

It is worth noting that not all teas are brewed, and the first brew must be poured out. Like tea with high-grade raw materials, the more tender the raw materials are, there is no need to wash.

For example, most green teas (Longjing, Biluochun, Huangshan Maofeng) and black teas with relatively tender raw materials (Jinjunmei) are made from whole tea buds or one bud and one leaf. The raw materials are of high grade and can be drunk from the first brew .

For example, the low-grade raw materials are mostly made of crude and old leaves, such as old white tea. There are also more complex processing projects, which need to be fermented in a pile and stored for a long time. It is better to wash and drink.