Tuesday, TeaDay to you 8/05/08 Gongfu/gender bias?

[Victoria]

I mostly brew western, I like it; it fits my drinking style and my teaware and my drinking locations. But I have begin a little gongfu and we'll see where that goes.
As for semi gongfu - not usually. Either one or the other.

This morning's cup was a Competition Red from NCTG.
Mild and enjoyable as a breakfast cup.

Have a nice day everyone!

[Michael_C]

No gongfu. No yixing, just off the shelf Japanese teaware. Gongfu seems more about the ritual than the actual tea, so no go over here. I do enjoy watching it, though.

[Chip]

In my topic introduction post, I was careful to not include the ceremonial aspects in what I consider gong fu for this particular topic. Mainly, I am concerned with brewing parameters today.

By parameters, I will often gong fu (though generally in a gaiwan) Chinese oolong and sometimes green and most Taiwan oolongs. But I often semi gong fu as well. And if I am really feeling crazy, I might go traditional.

I had Adagio Golden Monkey, traditionally brewed earlier. Yutaka Midori currently...I would have to say Japanese greens I prepare semi gong fu based solely on parameters and number of steeps.

[bi lew chun]

I gongfu oolongs and Chinese greens when I want to taste them, and go semi or western when trying to be fast.

[Angela Justice]

Re: Yay Gong Fu! Spontaneous Shui Xian reflections. Posted: 8/5/08 12:42 pm Reply with quote Edit/Delete this post Delete this post View IP address of poster
Angela Justice wrote:
... shui xian means water immortal and refers to twisted leaf, medium to dark roasted oolongs from the Phoenix Mountain area of China.
I have heard that the Shui Xian varietal originated in the Phoenix Mountains in Guangdong and certainly some Shui Xian leaf still comes from there, but isn't Shui Xian nowadays mostly associated with the Wuyi Mountain region in North Fujian and considered a yan cha tea? The Guangdong examples I have had are generally presented as exceptions to the rule, and generally not as heavily roasted.

Or have I gotten it wrong again somewhere along the way?

Hi Salsero,

This is a question I will send to our farmers. Both Wuyi and Phoenix have been processing their oolongs in a similar manner for many hundreds of years. It has been my experience that Water Immortals are more specifically tied to Phoenix Mountain than Wuyi. Also my experience that the phoenix teas tend to be lighter roasted than Wuyi. On Phoenix Mountain there are over 108 varietals that are processed in the Water Immortal Style. The city of Chaozhou in Phoenix Mountain is credited with being the birthplace of gong fu tea. Some of the most famous are the Orchid, Honey, and Yellow Stem. Altitude tends to be very important.

With the Wuyi tea, it tends to be classified mostly by cliff, harvest time, and the tea master without as much regard to varietal or variation in roasting.

In response to your question, are Phoenix teas the exception rather than the rule for the Water Immortal style (shui xian)? I would say Phoenix teas are definitely not exceptions but a well established and primary source of water immortal teas in China.

Wuyi teas are also very important, historically and as a category within oolongs. One of the original oolongs.

While many people refer to them as water immortal teas, they were presented to me in a separate but equal fashion in my formative training. I will ask contacts in both areas to see which they consider the definitive water immortal teas and get back to you.

Best,
Angela

[Grubby]

No gongfu. No yixing, just off the shelf Japanese teaware. Gongfu seems more about the ritual than the actual tea, so no go over here. I do enjoy watching it, though.

I disagree with this. From what i know gong fu is all about making a good cup of tea, and hence there are lots of different ways to gong fu (some use faircup, some don't etc.). Are you sure youre not confusing it with the japanese tea ceremony?

I would say that gong fu is all about the tea, experiencing the nuances of each infusion. This is why i like gong fu, even though i don't like the japanese tea ceremony.

[laran7]

[quote="Grubby
I disagree with this. From what i know gong fu is all about making a good cup of tea, and hence there are lots of different ways to gong fu

I would say that gong fu is all about the tea, experiencing the nuances of each infusion.

(Hi Grubby - I do not mean to change your meaning by selecting different parts of your statements to quote.)

I'm female, and a "newbie" here - my ways of brewing and what I am drinking
is changing all the time as I discover more. I like tea that has a strong flavor - I tend to brew things too long rather than quickly - but if I know the " correct timing " I use a timer and pay attention. I like to add extra tea (leaves) for the same reason. I just bought a very cute , and tiny teacup at a consignment shop that I was told is quite old - " pasteware " and it looks and feels exactly the correct size to hold 2-3 oz of tea. I can make small amounts of tea to drink at home in the evening when I am not looking for tons of energy; I am interested in the "nuances of each infusion" (or cup or type). I actually find it fascinating -

I don't know anyone around here who was interested in the green teas - or gongfu - or any aspect of this. I have not looked in the yellow pages . . I sent several friends certificates to Adagio - and I do not believe any one has used one yet. and they are all smart tea drinkers.

My intention is to gong fu when I'm home - I've been drinking oolong at the end of the day for quite some time - it will be a difference in how.

My order from Uptons arrived this afternoon - green tea with toasted rice.
I am quite thrilled.

[Selaphiel]

Having some Da Hong Pao as my evening tea today. Think it was the discussions about Wuyi in here that triggered it :p

[Salsero]

Both Wuyi and Phoenix have been processing their oolongs in a similar manner for many hundreds of years.

Thanks, Angela, I look forward to hearing what they say. I also echo Pentox's comments about the cool photo of you and the ancient tea tree. I for one would love to hear more of your travels and even get to see a few more snapshots! Muy exciting!

As long as you are getting the straight dope from the tea farmers, maybe you could also check on my preconception that the Feng Huang or Phoenix Mountains are mostly associated with Dan Cong.

----

Holy smokes, while doing a mid-post Google search on "Water Sprite, Narcissus, Shui Xian" I hit on a Google book search of page 157 of All the Tea in China that treats the exact topic. It won't copy so I can't paste it here, but if you have a copy of the book at hand, you can check it out. Course, I don't know how much we can trust any of these Western books when they talk about Chinese tea. Their errors are -- I suspect -- legion.

Anyway, it looks like a fine book, but the Amazon reviews are not too impressive. Do I buy it? Anyone else have a copy? The reviews suggest that it is a good book for beginners but not much use to people with a bit of experience.

In my cup at the moment: Indian grocery store orthodox Assam. It puts hair on your chest and feels like it puts a fair amount on your tongue as well.

[Angela Justice]

Dan Chong refers to single grove teas from mid to high altitudes and is used to refer to Phoenix teas specifically.

Dan Chong are higher grade phoenix teas that come from older plants.

Non dan chong teas from Phoenix area come from flatter areas and may be mixed batches from many farms.

[Salsero]

Dan Chong refers to single grove teas from mid to high altitudes and is used to refer to Phoenix teas specifically.

Dan Chong are higher grade phoenix teas that come from older plants.

Non dan chong teas from Phoenix area come from flatter areas and may be mixed batches from many farms.

Many thanks, Angela!

[Angela Justice]

My pleasure. I'm a big fan of the Dan Chong teas. Had a wonderful time visiting the Chaozhou area in 2005.

Who would like to see Adagio carry them?

[chamekke]

I would say that gong fu is all about the tea, experiencing the nuances of each infusion. This is why i like gong fu, even though i don't like the japanese tea ceremony.

You are welcome not to like the Japanese tea ceremony, but I do want to comment that when someone drinks tea within that context, it is all about the experience of drinking the tea - the taste, the smell, the sensations. For the guest who is receiving the matcha, nothing should exist but that experience, at least for that moment.

However, as I think you're implying, a lot of othe things surround this moment, such as the appreciation of the items the host has chosen (tea utensils, the scroll and flower arrangement in the tokonoma, etc.), and not least the communication (mainly unspoken) between host and guests. But the making and drinking of tea is the linchpin upon which absolutely everything else turns.

[omegapd]

Great Tea Day here today. Must be getting back to my old self...

Started this morning with a couple of steeps of a very nice Pu erh, compliments of Salsero (2007 Haiwan Old Nugget) and then a new favorite from Uptons, China Black Gunpowder. I like this one so much, I'll have to review it in the black tea section in the next couple of days...

Gonna finish the day off with some grapefruit flavored white tea, also from Uptons. Smells great in the baggie, we'll see how well it turns out.

Take care,

EW

[Katrina]

Holy smokes, while doing a mid-post Google search on "Water Sprite, Narcissus, Shui Xian" I hit on a Google book search of page 157 of All the Tea in China that treats the exact topic.

Anyway, it looks like a fine book, but the Amazon reviews are not too impressive. Do I buy it? Anyone else have a copy? The reviews suggest that it is a good book for beginners but not much use to people with a bit of experience.

I have this book but must admit I haven't given it a thorough read through. It has some interesting content, but like many of the other books on the market I feel that it's biggest problem is trying to cover too much territory. As a result, most of the information is pretty cursory.

The section you're referring to is a chapter on "Fifty Famous Chinese Teas" which encompasses about 40 pages. Most teas get about 1/3 - 1/2 page of text and a few get 1 - 2 pages. This is probably the most interesting section of the book IMHO. I think it depends on the price you can find to decide if it is worth purchasing for this chapter. (I bought it used for next to nothing.)