In your videos you always boil the water first, and then cool it down as appropriate for each tea.
I usually put a thermometer in my electric kettle and turn it off and pour when the temperature is right -- for most teas, the water never boils.
Is this an acceptable alternative to boiling/cooling? Or does boiling the water first yield a better cup of tea?
t.
Hi T
It is true that the Chinese always boil water when making tea, however they also talk about the size of the bubbles when boiling. The first size being a crab eye bubble, which is appropriate for green tea. I haven't measured the temperature when this bubble appears, but I would guess it is less then boiling. aside from green tea, almost all other tea required fish eye bubbles, which is boiling. About the water, something to consider is the minerals. I wonder if the taste of some of these minerals changes with boiling. The Chinese favor water with from a spring whose origin is the same as where the tea has been grown. Spring water is usually rich in minerals. Puer is changes it's charactor for when it is boiled over time, I think for the better. Here again I think we fine that there are no hard rules, the variations in tea and water be so great and the combinations being so complex. My general rule is that is you like your tea, you must be doing something right, and feel free to play around with it. Tea brewing is Chinese is called tea art, not tea science.
Austin
Okay, this answers my original question (and raises some others). In my mind, "boiling" means 212F (100C) and that's a full, rolling boil.
If the Chinese brew tea with "shrimp eyes," "lobster eyes," and "dragon eyes" then they're pulling the water off the fire before it gets to a rolling boil.
When I first learned of the Chinese water-temperature, eye-terminology I did a quick check with a saucepan on the stove -- alas I did not calibrate it with my thermometer -- I was just looking for the various size of "seafood eyes."
Perhaps it's time to do it again, this time with my thermometer in the pan!
Thanks again for your input.
T.
it can be difficult to do the bubble method with a kettle - you can't see the water! is the traditional method to boil water in an open pot or some other vessel where the water is visible?
I've got some more information on temperature. I put a pan on the stove, with a thermometer in it, and measured the various stages to boiling.
* Shrimp eyes (70C - 80C): little bubbles at the bottom of the pan
* Crab eyes (80C - 90C): bubbles are rising from the bottom
* Dragon eyes (100C): full boiling water
lucas: If you're using a traditional, stove-top metal kettle you can leave off the lid and watch the bubbles that way.
Adagio Teas (a great company for gadgets, but the tea is nowhere near Seven Cups') makes a great electric kettle -- I believe it's called the "UtiliTEA" -- with a variable temperature dial, which I use for all my tea. It takes some experimenting to figure out what dial settings correspond to what states of boil (there are no numbers on the dial), but once you figure out a good setting for a particular tea you can replicate the temperature every time without having to stand there and watch it.
I also often go by sound, having become familiar with what different states of boil sound like in my kettle.
What's so interesting to me is the in China the majority of tea being made is from water being poured from oversized thermos jugs having a big cork stopper.
If your pockets are deep enough, Zojirushi offers electric dispensing pots that will hold up to 5 liters of water at several different temperatures (140F, 175/195F, 208/212F). They are too rich for my blood, alas. (http://tinyurl.com/2asbrq)
And the problem with the Adagio kettle (and others that are similar) is that it shuts off when it reaches the set temperature and thus you still have to babysit the kettle.
At least for now my system works well for me: a cheap (plastic) electric kettle and a dial thermometer. Fill it up, turn it on, watch the temp. Turn it off and pour when the temp is right for the tea of the moment. Repeat as necessary, always using fresh water.
I actually like that the Adagio kettle shuts itself off, since then the water isn't sitting there losing oxygen. And provided I'm in a nearby room I can hear the click (but I can still go to another room while it heats up).
Again, my one issue with the Adagio kettle: no numbers. There's where a thermometer would actually come in handy. I actually suspect that its shutoff mechanism is pressure-based, so the settings are different at different altitudes. I noticed that higher settings seem to be appropriate now that I live in Tucson, compared to when I was at sea level.
Anyway.
Okay, I have some "definitive" heating/cooling times and temperatures for the thermometer-challenged members of this forum. Let it be known that judging the "seafood eyes" bubbles technique is HIGHLY subjective.
I put 2 cups (16 ounces) of cold tap water in a 1.5 quart saucepan and heated it on the stove with my thermometer in the pan:
Very tiny bubbles covering the bottom: 120F
Pinhead sized bubbles: 140F
Pencil lead diameter bubbles: 160F
Bubbles rising to the surface: 170F
Bubbles floating on the surface: 180F
Full rolling boil: 212F
Then I took the pan off the heat and put it on a folded kitchen towel and monitored it as it cooled:
200F: 0:45
190F: 1:25
180F: 2:45
170F: 4:00
160F: 6:15
Your mileage may vary, but this should put you easily in the ballpark; adjust as your tastebuds advise. I went through this exercise (A) to satisfy my own curiosity and (B) to help out my sister who's just discovering good tea and doesn't have a thermometer.
And, I can tell you, when those "Dragon Eyes" start staring at you it just sends a chill down your spine. (That's around 190F, about the time I'm making the sign of the tuocha to ward off evil spirits -- and reaching for my teapot!)
t.
WONDERFULL!!! A true service. You are a very good brother.
Austin
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