http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ Seven Cups Tea Forum Tag: brewing en Thu, 20 Nov 2008 12:58:53 +0000 http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/49#post-182 Wed, 19 Nov 2008 20:09:57 +0000 corrine 182@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>Company: Zui Chun Hao Jasmine Tea Co., LTD<br /> Office Address: 7/F, Huaxia Industry Center, NO43, Tiyu Road, Xiamen, Fujian, China.<br /> Telephone : eight six-zero five nine two—two six six three three nine six<br /> Fax: eight six-zero five nine two—two six six three three nine seven<br /> Site:http://www.chinajasminetea.com<br /> Contact: Corrine Ke<br /> Email: <a href="mailto:sumgokxy@gmail.com">sumgokxy@gmail.com</a> <a href="mailto:Trade@mrentea.com">Trade@mrentea.com</a><br /> MSN: <a href="mailto:sumgokxy@gmail.com">sumgokxy@gmail.com</a></p> <p>Jasmine Tea (Also called Jasmine scented tea) is honored as the most fragrant and popular Chinese tea in the world. This tea is light, delicate, slightly sweet and every cup comes with a distinctive fresh jasmine fragrance. Jasmine tea is readily available in Chinese markets, and it can often be obtained from big grocery stores or specialty tea shops as well. Many people may be familiar with jasmine tea because it is a frequent offering at Chinese restaurants.</p> <p>The jasmine flowers are harvested during the day and stored in a cool place until night. During the night, the flowers bloom with full fragrance. The flowers are layered over the tea leaves during the scenting process. The quality of jasmine tea is determined by the quality of green tea used as its base and the effectiveness of the scenting.</p> <p>Zui Chun Hao Jasmine Tea is one of product lines by Xiamen Sumgo Tea Co. LTD that focus on Jasmine Tea manufacturing in Fuding, Fu’an, Ningde regions in Fujian provience from 1998. Now Zui Chun Hao is one of the major Jasmine Tea manufacturing in China with ten years development. To meet the international import requirements and food safety standards, we produce jasmine tea strictly based on the EU standard, Japan standard. All the pesticide residues meet the import requirements in the world. </p> <p>Our jasmine tea garden is located at the high mountain which is more than 40kms away from the city. The garden has sufficient light ,great difference in temperature ,condign rainfall and fertile ground. It's fit to grow tea and the tea here has good quality and contains many efficient elements. Our jasmine tea has gained good reputation from our customers and our products are on sales to European countries, Japan, North Amercian regions, Australia and some other countries and regions.</p> <p>Besides the production, we also cooperate actively with colleges and tea research institutes to experiment and popularize new tea species.we work with Fujian University of Agriculture in order to study how to deal and process tea after harvest, and establish the standard quality system. We also engage in the experimental model base for the significant project.</p> <p>Following the principle of Quality and Credit rack first, Innovation stands company`s life. With the fair trade, we sincerely welcome more and more partners to work with us to develop a new field in the Tea Industry. </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/6#post-43 Thu, 01 Mar 2007 10:19:31 +0000 Colin 43@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>I like to use a filter that attaches to the faucet directly. That way I'm not using water that has been sitting in a container, and so it has plenty of oxygen to enhance the "structure" and help bring out the flavors in the tea. Whether or not you need a filter at all depends on the quality of your tap water, I would think -- mine's pretty hard so I like to filter out some of the minerals. It's good to have a few minerals remaining though, or you can end up with tea that tastes flat.</p> <p>I believe at Seven Cups they use bottled water that's been carbon filtered only (gets out microbes while leaving in some minerals). Is that right, Austin? Do you aerate the water before using it to restore some oxygen? </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/5#post-40 Wed, 28 Feb 2007 22:42:13 +0000 admin 40@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>Wow! That's a bunch of questions.</p> <p>Ok, the method I would suggest to start is using a nice thick water glass. Almost everyone has one and it's cheap. Start simple and easy. If you have good tea, it will be forgiving and the brewing as the will stop before the tea over brews. You can also do this in a cup. Making tea is not that difficult. You can learn how to get the best results later. Here is some more info. <a href="http://sevencups.com/culture/tea-culture-guide/how-to-steep-tea/" rel="nofollow">http://sevencups.com/culture/tea-culture-guide/how-to-steep-tea/</a></p> <p>There are cupping standards for black tea cupping. 5 minutes with boiling water. I'd say for most people, forget about this. Usually, the tasters are evaluating tea for blending. This whole process have less relevance for Chinese tea that is unblended.<br /> Austin </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/5#post-39 Wed, 28 Feb 2007 18:12:13 +0000 lucas 39@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>Allow me to refer you to <a href="http://www.metafilter.com/comments.mefi/52447">this post</a> on a different forum, which has several useful links. </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/6#post-25 Wed, 28 Feb 2007 04:46:03 +0000 andrew 25@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>Undoubtedly the water used in a cup of tea plays a big role in its final flavor. Are there any general guidelines in selecting water for tea? </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/5#post-24 Wed, 28 Feb 2007 04:44:24 +0000 andrew 24@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>For a novice tea enthusiast, what method of brewing do you suggest? What are the general guidelines in terms of water temperature, leaf quantity and steeping time? Is there a “cupping standard” you apply to these factors when evaluating tea? </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/3#post-21 Mon, 19 Feb 2007 08:57:12 +0000 lucas 21@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>I guess I can't ruin the pot just by brewing tea in it! Thank you for the poetic encouragement. </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/4#post-20 Mon, 19 Feb 2007 08:50:18 +0000 lucas 20@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>It's true - when trying a new tea, I don't usually like to go with just a sampler of a few grams. I try to get 50 or 100 grams , and then I have a chance to really understand that tea through many brewings. If I brew it a few times and it comes out too bitter or too weak or strong I have a chance to brew it again and get it right. After several tries, I get a sense of how much time that particular tea wants to sit in the water, how many infusions it will take, how long to leave for each infusion. Of course, this means that I don't try very many teas - it takes time to drink through that much tea and it can get too expensive. But that way I really have time to learn from each tea.</p> <p>Also, I generally do increase steeping time for each successive infusion, and usually that time varies between 30sec-1min. It's hard to give exact times because I usually time it by watching the water evaporate off the outside of the pot or other less precise methods. </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/4#post-19 Sun, 18 Feb 2007 14:54:22 +0000 tmaynard 19@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>You are exactly right, Austin. I usually brew the first batch (or maybe only the first infusion) according to the suggested/recommended time and temp ... and then go from there depending on my reaction.</p> <p>For new teas, I keep a journal of what I found I enjoyed the most so I can either resume my experimentation or just record the best "settings."</p> <p>When you said, "Let the tea teach us," you were dead on the mark. I only wish I were good enough to tell from the smell of the dry leaves where I should start (and thus skip the usual recommendations altogether).</p> <p>t. </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/4#post-18 Sun, 18 Feb 2007 11:01:51 +0000 admin 18@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>It seems to me that you guys have a pretty good grasp on the process. I just wanted to add a couple of points.<br /> First, the infusion time is determined primarily by the tea/water proportion. The extreme in China is the Chaozhou Kungfu process that uses the most tea in relationship to water, and the shortest infusion time. They like there tea strong and often. It doesn't bother them too much that the first couple of infusions are light, you hair will be standing on end soon enough. (Which I like.) The other extreme is the English method where a small about of tea is thrown in a big pot, with a lot of water, and infused a long time.</p> <p>Second, and perhaps the most imortant, is that what is a good cup for one may not be for another. It is clear that you guys understand this, but I feel that it is important to say again. This is so true with both tea and wine. Because everyone's chemistry is different, everyone's experience is going to be different. I think that a large part of the fun is playing around and experimenting. This is exactly what tea masters do. I heard from masters that I really respect, that we should let the tea teach us whatever we need to know about that tea. In other words, we ought to approach a tea as a student, and the questions we have should be directed to the tea, keeping in mind that the lessons are for us personally. I think this is the guideline, that if we follow, will always lead us in the right direction.<br /> Austin </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/4#post-17 Sat, 17 Feb 2007 15:06:41 +0000 tmaynard 17@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>I've never tried the gong fu brewing style as lucas does, with lots of leaves in a small gaiwan or pot -- but I can easily see how keeping the steeping time constant would yield successive, good cups.</p> <p>I weigh my leaves at the "tea standard" of 2.25 grams per 6 fluid oz of water ... which works out to 3.75 grams for a regular 10 oz mug. I use a mug with a removable infuser this way.</p> <p>Alternatively, I put 5.25 grams in my French Press (cafetiere) and use 14 fl oz of water -- the volume of my thermal travel mug.</p> <p>Like you, Colin, I adjust the time (and occasionally the temperature) for successive infusions, and 30 additional seconds is my typical increment -- or 5F if I'm changing the water temperature instead (with constant steep time).</p> <p>Try it both ways and see which one you prefer.</p> <p>t. </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/3#post-13 Thu, 15 Feb 2007 23:46:55 +0000 admin 13@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>Hi Lucus<br /> At home, since we are not that rich, and not organized enough to keep track of the right tea in the right pot, we have pots we use for general categories of tea, though I could easily see a pot for each of the Wuyishan teas, but as I was thinking about it, it might be interesting to mix it up a little, like some baijiguan with some meizhan. You are right, have fun. The robe of tea culture should be worn lightly with some grace, and not too much rigidity.<br /> Austin </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/4#post-11 Thu, 15 Feb 2007 14:04:10 +0000 Colin 11@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>Thanks, Lucas... It's interesting that you use the same infusion time for all successive infusions after the first. I've always gone up a little more with each infusion. With Tie Guan Yins and Bao Zhongs, for example (two of my favorites), I typically start with 30 secs to a minute for the first and second infusions, and then go up by 30 seconds or so for each successive one. I can usually get 5 pretty good infusions that way, using about 5 oz of water and probably 3-4 grams of leaves (this could be off, since I've never weighed the leaves -- it's generally about 2 level teaspoons). I don't know if that's a typical ratio for gong fu or not... maybe I should try a little higher. I do tend to like the tea a little on the strong side though -- my tastebuds are pretty insensitive to bitter.</p> <p>I'm especially interested in the differences in good brewing times for different kinds of teas, particularly oolongs. Anyone have any differential tips? </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/4#post-8 Wed, 14 Feb 2007 17:47:47 +0000 lucas 8@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>I brew a lot of oolong teas, mostly gongfu style in Yixing pots or a gaiwan. This involves a small amount of water per brew (3oz) and a large tea/water ratio. For my tastes, I have found that most of them are good with a very quick first brew, maybe 10-20 seconds. I tend to avoid the "wash" that is often advised; I like to drink all the tea! So this quick first brew may be very smoky or more bitter (depending on the type of tea) than later brews. For the second, third, and forth brews I tend to go 30 seconds to 1 min, depending on the type of tea. With short, small brews I can often get six to ten cups out of each batch of leaves, and each brew has slightly different flavor characteristics. </p> <p>When brewing larger cups or pots (8oz) I find that it either takes way too much tea or that i am not able to brew as many times, since with a lower tea/water ratio the brew time must be longer.</p> <p>I suggest you experiment, and find a brewing method that produces good results for you. You don't need to be an expert to enjoy good tea! </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/4#post-7 Wed, 14 Feb 2007 12:52:20 +0000 Colin 7@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>Is there a good rule of thumb, or set of guidelines, for how to adjust infusion times for successive infusions of different teas? I know that it's a matter of preference to a large extent, and that it's also highly dependent on what type of tea you're brewing, and whether you're doing it in a Western method or gung fu method, etc...for example, I've heard that for some teas the second infusion should actually be shorter than the first, I suppose because the leaves are unfurled and have a greater surface area, though for most teas the infusion time should be gradually increased with each infusion. Are there any general tips for broad classes of tea, and what kinds are exceptions?</p> <p>Thanks! </p> http://www.sevencups.com/forum/topic/3#post-6 Tue, 13 Feb 2007 19:04:28 +0000 lucas 6@http://www.sevencups.com/forum/ <p>I have recently dedicated one of my Yixing pots to one of my favorite teas, Da Hong Pao. I have read that it is best to restrict each pot to one kind of tea, but I am wondering how far does one really need to take this? Is it okay to reserve a pot just for oolongs? If I experiment with different Da Hong Paos (traditional style vs seasonal, different makers, etc), should I be doing that in a gaiwan and not the Yixing pot? I guess I am free to make any decision I wish, but I am wondering what i may lose or gain by being more or less strict about what tea goes in what pot. </p>