Where Are The Hot Tea Guru's?

[jarit]

What is the best way to measure these? Can't exactly make a teaspoon of needles!

I tried to eyeball it first but there's so much variety in volume between different teas I ended up buying a scale. I typically use 4-8gr. of tea for 5oz/150ml gaiwan. This is for gongfu style tea making where I use more leaf and several shorter infusions. For western style steeping one would use more water and longer steeping time.
I should add that I don't use the scale every time I make tea but it gives me good grasp on how much any particular tea is needed.

 

[pruss]

Hi gang, sorry for the delayed reply, I've been on holiday, and largely offline.
I'm glad to hear that everyone is enjoying their tea exploration. That's just awesome. While not every tea is a winner, it is nice to know that folks are finding favourites.
Fitzy, on the "Autumnal" Darjeeling... hit it with a dash of honey, and a splash of milk if it is too bitter for you. This will change the profile drastically, and I am hoping that it makes the tea more to your taste.

What is the best way to measure these? Can't exactly make a teaspoon of needles!

I use a small digital kitchen scale like this one: http://www.amazon.com/Hario-Coffee-Drip-Scale-Timer/dp/B009GPJMOU
Ironically, this is the same scale I use to weigh my pipes.
Cheers,
-- Pat

 

[ravkesef]

Here I am commenting, when I should leave it to Pruss, but my understanding is 2.25 grams per 6 oz. water. This allows for the fact that different teas have different densities. The tea scale sold by Upton has a setting for this. ,so if you wanted to make 8 oz of tea, you would weigh out 1.33 cups, and so forth. ,

 

[taerin]

Safflower Tea Rant

I am pretty serious about my tea and coffee, I have a very nice see through tea maker with a huge diffuser in it, where I put whole tea leaves. I have grown my own tea: mint, lemon balm, spearmint, ect... Purchased expensive designer teas from Teavanna, have had Chinese friends mail tea from China (Green/Oolong), and the best tea I have ever had consistently, especially with smoking is Safflower tea. It's a little pricey, but not as much so as Teavanna teas. You just gotta be careful to get the kind in leaf form, sometimes they sell it in a powder as like a cheap alternative to saffron spice, and it is very potent, you only want to use about half or a third of the normal amount of leaf in your brew. It's amazing with light aromatics because the flavor works really well with them and I even drink it with straight VA's and English blends.
@Sam The General amount of tea per cup of water is 1 teaspoon, but it greatly varies based on how many cups your making at one time and what type of tea it is (strength). My rule is to generally do about a third as much because I blend with very very strong tea and do not want the tea to be all that strong. The general rule for how long to cook tea also greatly varies, around 160-190 degrees depending once again on the type, you let it sit for around 3 minutes, my preference is about 6 and then to reuse the tea leaves for the next batch (I make two at once), which is another thing your not supposed to do, but it works well and saves lots of money. Whatever you do, just do not boil the tea, it's a big no-no as it releases tannons into the tea.

 

[pruss]

Heya,
I tend to go a little heavier than 2.25g per 8oz/250ml cup, but I also largely drink whole leaf. You'll find you get a more immediate extraction and, perhaps, a stronger finished tea (post-steep) with broken leaf, tea bags/sachets or dust and fannings. I throw about 3g per 8oz/250ml cup. The teaspoon per cup that Eric references also works, and will generally net you in a camp somewhere between 2 and 3 grams/cup.
As far as prep goes, I'll cut and paste what I was taught below:

"Stronger" in terms of flavour delivery really amounts to a couple things: freshness, and preparation.
Strength of steeped tea comes from the ability of the tea leaf to absorb water, saturate and then infuse the water with flavinoids. With coffee we describe this as extraction, in teas we're dealing with infusion, really this is the same thing... transfer of flavour from leaf, into water.
Tea which has been on a shelf for a long time, and which may have been exposed to light, air, moisture and temperature variation (either in a tea bag, or loose) will have lost most of its volatile flavours and aromatics. This is due to oxidation. The tea is stale.
So if you bought a commercially prepare tea, that has been sitting on a retailer's shelf for a long time, it's likely to be less fresh than a tea purchased from a boutique tea retailer (or online store) which turns over their volumes readily and regularly.
If your tea is fresh, the next thing that will deliver "strength" is how you prepare it. Here are tea brewing basics:
1. Use freshly drawn water – discard old water from your kettle. If the quality of your water is questionable, use spring water.
2. Bring water to a boil for black teas, oolongs and herbals (tisanes), 80C for white and green teas.
3. Measure one teaspoon measurement per cup of tea into a large infusor – it is important that your infusor is large enough to allow the leaves to unfurl and fully infuse their flavours. You should always refer to the brewing instructions of your specific tea for measurements as some teas will vary.
4. Pre-heat your teapot – this will keep your tea warmer for a longer amount of time as the teapot won’t steal the heat away from your tea.
5. Pour water OVER the tea leaves – allow to infuse depending on the infusion time of the tea you are brewing.
6. Remove tea infusor from water – sit back and enjoy.

-- Pat

 

[ravkesef]

Pruss misread what I wrote. I did not say 2.25g per 8 oz., i said 2.25g per 6 oz. this is a figure I got some years ago from a national body--don't recall which, but many tea scales have this value built in. YMMV.

 

[pruss]

Yep, I was reading too quickly, it sounds like you and I dose at about the same g/oz Ravkesef.
-- Pat

 

[winton]

I have enjoyed flavored black tea for many years. During the summer, a tea vendor at our local farmers market got me to branch into Oolong and green tea. After lots of research I spent all my Christmas $ gifts on tea:
Black: Lapsang Souchong

Oolong: Ti Kwan Yin & lemongrass

White: White with grapefruit

Green: Jasmine, Moroccan Mint, Mandarin (orange flavored), and White Monkey (also gave some to a Chinese friend, who was searching for real Chinese tea. She likes this blend)
I also bought the ingenuiTEA from Adagio Tea. This makes brewing easier.
FYI, my wife is now complaining that my tea collection is invading her kitchen space.

 

[mso489]

PG Tips, if it hasn't been mentioned, is a quality English tea from India that comes

in teabags. It's become our "house" tea and gives a great pot or cup for a reasonable

price. Of course, loose tea is the ticket, but is more trouble.

 

[hobie1dog]

Drank my first cup of hot tea today. Do all teas contain caffeine?

 

[pruss]

Do all teas contain caffeine?

If we classify tea as the prepared leaf of true tea (Camelia Sinensis Assamica or Camelia Sinensis Sinensis), which limits the definition to black tea, green tea, white tea (and yellow), puerh and the various preparations of the above then yes; all teas do contain caffeine unless they are put through a decaffeination process.
Many people, however, include herbal "teas" and tisanes as well as Rooibos "tea", in the common definition of "tea". Most herbal teas are caffeine free (depending on ingredients) as they are a blend of dried herbs, fruit, flowers and flavour extracts which are largely caffeine free. Rooibos, or red bush, tea is produced by harvesting and processing the leaf of the Rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) plant; Rooibos is also naturally caffeine free.
I hope that helps,
-- Pat

 

[jon39]

If you like black tea Lyons Gold Blend is in my opinion the best tea. I've tried several other Irish black teas bit Lyons is the best I've had. I order it from Amazon or Food Ireland.

 

[hobie1dog]

Thanks Pat for the explanation on caffeine, now you guys have me started on hot tea, that's all I need is another hobby to spend money I don't have on. :wink:
My wife has a Keurig coffee maker and she only has one blend of tea called "Awake" by Starbucks, so that's what I'm drinking now. My son brought back some tea from his trip to China, but I don't have any idea what it is until I take to a Chinese restaurant and have someone translate the writing on it, and then I wouldn't know how to prepare it. :crazy:

 

[hobie1dog]

Are there teas that are made for calming nerves, for relaxation? What about ones for medicinal purposes?

 

[yaddy306]

I also forgot to mention my love of Oolong Teas. Oolong teas are fermented and slightly oxidized (depending on the prep method, location of cultivation and processing, and history of preparation). Flavours in Oolong teas very widely. For something really crazy, see if you can find a Milk Oolong, it tastes like bright green tea with a splash of scalded milk in it. Or, if you can find it, go find some Ti Kuan Yin, or "Iron Goddess of Mercy" Oolong. It's my desert island tea. Just smelling it makes me happy and feel healthier.
-- Pat

Pat,

Based on your recommendation, I bought some Quangzhou Milk Oolong. I'm loving it. A little floral, which I didn't think I'd like, but that creamy flavour is great.
Not cheap, though. At David's Tea it's $4.80 for 20 grams.

 

[stayherewithme]

Right, oolong tea from guangdong China is great.

 

[logs]

Oolong is my favorite!

 

[lelik]

For regular tea try Black Assam tea,but i you like strong tea try Pu-erh Tuo Cha Bird's Nest.Very strong staff.

 

[Lyon0oq]

I really enjoy Black Assam tea with heavy Latakia blends. It's a perfect combo. I picked this up from Regis McCafferty's detective character Joshua Pitt in The Sherlock Holmes Adventure.

This was a cool literary find on your part! Gave up drinking the hard stuff, and became a friend of Bill, a bit over seven years ago. Very interested in tea pairings with pipes, so I will be trying this one for sure. Thanks.

 

[boston]

This...https://marktwendell.com/order-mark-t-wendell-teas/hu-kwa-tea


Super good ?.