Brewing large quantities of sencha?

Made from leaves that have not been oxidized.


User avatar
Oct 14th, '08, 16:35
Posts: 77
Joined: Apr 21st, '08, 03:50
Location: Sweden

Brewing large quantities of sencha?

by battra » Oct 14th, '08, 16:35

I use to follow the normal directions for brewing sencha, given by online vendors or written on packages (about 8±2g of tea, 250±50ml water, 60±15 seconds, 80°C).
I get good results with this, but what if I need to make sencha for 8 people?
Of course I can make three infusions in quick succesion, and put all the tea in a large pot for serving, but what about other brewing methods?

When I was looking for an answer, I found this text on kaburagien.co.jp:
kaburagien wrote:If you purchase only one pot, a pot with a 250-cc capacity for premium Sencha is recommended. A teapot with 600-cc capacity designed for regular Sencha is also convenient, as it can be used for both purposes.
and in this thread I read the following regarding tea brewing in Nara:
Michael_C wrote: They eyeball the leaves in the teapot, pour hot water, wait a few minutes, and pour. No timing or weighing. The water is just warm, so they leave the leaves in the pot while talking and eating and drinking. It goes quickly enough that oversteeping isn't an issue. If the family drinks it quickly, they resteep, but that usually isn't the case.

Is there anyone who has any experience with brewing sencha in a large pot?

User avatar
Oct 14th, '08, 16:48
Posts: 20891
Joined: Apr 22nd, '06, 20:52
Scrolling: scrolling
Location: Back in the TeaCave atop Mt. Fuji
Been thanked: 2 times

by Chip » Oct 14th, '08, 16:48

I do mainly for iced tea all the time. I follow a ratio approach.

.7-1 gram leaf per 1 ounce of water and follow normal temp and times. I am currently using large Bodum presses, but do not press. I decant into a pitcher so everyone gets the same flavor profile.
blah blah blah SENCHA blah blah blah!!!

Oct 14th, '08, 18:39
Posts: 1978
Joined: Jan 14th, '08, 18:01
Location: CA
Contact: Pentox

by Pentox » Oct 14th, '08, 18:39

I believe the traditional way of brewing for multiple people is in the pouring. If you have a smaller pot you distribute the 1/8th to each cup and repeat 3 times. When you pour you snake it back and forth i.e. 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 2nd infusion 8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1 3rd infusion 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8.

User avatar
Oct 14th, '08, 18:45
Posts: 20891
Joined: Apr 22nd, '06, 20:52
Scrolling: scrolling
Location: Back in the TeaCave atop Mt. Fuji
Been thanked: 2 times

by Chip » Oct 14th, '08, 18:45

Pentox wrote:I believe the traditional way of brewing for multiple people is in the pouring. If you have a smaller pot you distribute the 1/8th to each cup and repeat 3 times. When you pour you snake it back and forth i.e. 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 2nd infusion 8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1 3rd infusion 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8.
Well, sort of. Each steep goes like that. Like for 3 people, the first steep would be poured 1,2,3,3,2,1 until all gone. This pretty evenly distributes amount and flavor. But for 8, that is a little too tricky I would think.

Still, it is acceptable to decant to a pitcher, fair cup, if you will. Thus everyone's cup is even and tastes the same.

User avatar
Oct 15th, '08, 15:02
Posts: 77
Joined: Apr 21st, '08, 03:50
Location: Sweden

by battra » Oct 15th, '08, 15:02

Well, I googled for 煎茶の入れ方 (how to brew sencha) and came up with a few pages that partly answered the question:

according to http://www.tomitaseicha.jp/irekata.html :
premium sencha for three people: 6g, 180 ml, 70°C, 2 minutes
ordinary sencha for five people: 10g, 450ml, 90°C, 1 minute

according to http://www.marukyu-koyamaen.co.jp/enjoy/sencha.html :
3 people: 7-9g
5 people: 11-13g

according to http://e-daisan.com/ocha-irekata.htm :
sencha for one: 5g
sencha for two: 6g
sencha for three: 9g
sencha for ten: 20g

+ Post Reply