Dan Cong - the bottom of the bag

[Herb_Master]

Had a great fortnight on Dan Cong, then moved on to TGY for 3 weeks, then a week of Yan Cha and back to Dan Cong.

The first pot I brewed I did not consult my notes and even worse forgot to consult my recent memory. I tried 5 gm in a 140 ml Yixing and could not enjoy it , however I adjusted my subsequent infusion times.
It seemed to have all the negative qualities that posters who decry it on these boards complain of.

Not to worry - back to my notes - I usually use about 8 gm in a 140 ml pot, and when I am on YanCha this can go up to 10gm.

I needed a good reward after that so chose to finish off my really expensive Ginger Flower from Imen.

There was only a little left in the bottom of the canister after I had weighed out 8 gm, so topped it up to 10.7 gm to finish the packet/canister. - I still have an unopened one from Imen in reserve.

Now this would normally be too much for my regular DanCong infusion strategy - so I had intended to follow my High Packed YanCha strategy (as introduced to me by Abx)

But this last 10gm of leaf was all broken and bitty - I was unable to do anything close to a flash infusion, and even worse the leaf particles were clogging up the spout exit and even after half a dozen infusions I could not get an extract that was satisfactory.

Perhaps 2 valuable lessons, but what have I learned about broken and bitty DanCong ?

More important what have you learned ?

Maybe I should

a) Only use a Gaiwan when the leaf size is small and broken - perhaps - to increase infusion control ?

b) use a lighter packing density Not sure about that, the bitter elements seem to come out more readily in longer infusions, and lower packing density requires longer infusions - perhaps a lower temperature to go with the longer infusion ?

[AdamMY]

I've noticed in doing Yancha with lots of leaf, that some yancha's are still rather weak... (or rather weak comparatively). A way I have been taught by Brandon to remedy this, usually just to use up the leaf faster, and make the remaining sessions all the more enjoyable, is to crush a bit of the leaf, (quite like your broken bits), but the trick is to place them at the bottom of the pot, and I usually do one step more, I try and gather them on the bottom on the opposite side of the spout. I find the larger leaves form somewhat of a net and hold back the tiny pieces, while your still getting the slightly stronger infusion from them.

[gingkoseto]

Being a highly thrifty person, I've pondered on the "bottom of the bag" problem. I heard it from some older people that traditionally (when people couldn't afford throwing away the bottom of the bag), people in Chaozhou would spread 1 serving of dry tea leaves on a piece of paper before they put them in a pot. On a piece of paper, broken leaves are separated from whole leaves. Then using a gaiwan (which works better than a teapot for broken leaves), one would put broken leaves at the bottom (I guess, so that they won't be stirred up), and whole leaves on top.

I tried it and it somewhat works. But I do dump the last 1/5 of each infusion from the gaiwan (which is supposed to be the most bitter part).

Another solution I am trying is, I've just ordered 1 pound of my favorite dan cong in 2 big 250g jars. Supposedly in bigger jars, the proportion of broken leaves and debris is smaller

[Herb_Master]

.......... ......... ............ .......... ........
but the trick is to place them at the bottom of the pot,
....... ........... and I usually do one step more, I try and gather them on the bottom on the opposite side of the spout.

I find the larger leaves form somewhat of a net and hold back the tiny pieces, while your still getting the slightly stronger infusion from them.

My problem was that they were nearly all bits and bobs, so as well as being near the bottom, they were in the middle and at the top.

And when pouring, the bits were so small as to clog up the spout filter holes. I also overpacked on this occasion, compounding the problem

[Herb_Master]

I heard it from some older people that traditionally (when people couldn't afford throwing away the bottom of the bag), people in Chaozhou would spread 1 serving of dry tea leaves on a piece of paper before they put them in a pot. On a piece of paper, broken leaves are separated from whole leaves.

Then using a gaiwan (which works better than a teapot for broken leaves), one would put broken leaves at the bottom (I guess, so that they won't be stirred up), and whole leaves on top.

Thanks, this gives me good food for thought, my housekeeping practices should maybe be adjusted.

When I get a new packet, I tend to open it and select from the top the finest, choicest whole leaves and prepare a brew.

It is only after the brew has finished that I attend to transferring the contents to a canister.

Maybe I should use a piece of paper for each and every brewing session, to make sure I am not left with a last brew solely of bits.

Maybe I should use a piece of paper when tranferring the contents to more than one small canister, to make sure each canister has it's fair share of whole leaves.

[Herb_Master]

I tried it and it somewhat works. But I do dump the last 1/5 of each infusion from the gaiwan (which is supposed to be the most bitter part).

Another solution I am trying is, I've just ordered 1 pound of my favorite dan cong in 2 big 250g jars. Supposedly in bigger jars, the proportion of broken leaves and debris is smaller

I am reluctant to discard part of an infusion, but if the first one is bad, then it is worth trying with subsequent infusions.

Large Jars How do you store them, room temperature, or cooler?

[wyardley]

Just use the poker / needle thing to clear the spout after the first infusion or so, and then once the leaves have been steeped once, they should expand in size, and settle in a way that they won't end up clogging the spout much.

You can also try to use the bottom of the bag when you still have some longer leaves left... put all the leaves (small and big) in the pot, tap the pot gently to settle the leaves and send the smaller ones to the bottom, and then just pour more gently than usual.

Remember that the smaller leaves are more potent, so if you're doing the amount by sight, you may need to reduce the quantity of leaf you're using.

[Herb_Master]

Thanks Will,

the poker / needle thing

that comes with my accessory sets remains largely unused, I must pay it more attention.

Does amyone know the correct terminology for the

the poker / needle thing

Yes to mixing and layering the leaves, with larger on top, but on this occasion I had used all the larger leaves on previous brewing sessions

I have only had this problem with one other tea and that was a shui xian from Hou de, fortunately nearly all the teas that I have bought have had very few small broken bits.


I must also remember to pour gently if I do come across this problem again. But no doubt if the next 20 teas that I drink don't have this issue, i will forget all the good advice

[gingkoseto]

Large Jars How do you store them, room temperature, or cooler?

I am not sure yet. But I guess I can finish it within a year so my regular tea cabinet in room temperature is ok. It didn't cost a fortune so I will see how it turns out without much worry.

Usually the broken leaves happen near the wall and bottom of the jar. Soft bag will cause more broken leaves. So it helps to use a jar for storage.

[gingkoseto]

Just saw this and think it's pretty neat! ( scroll down the page and see the pictures of the home-made teabag)

http://teabbs.zjol.com.cn/viewthread.ph ... ra=&page=3

I don't know how well it works for dan cong (especially those that get bitter when leaves are broken), but at least can be good for debris from broken tea cakes or CTC black tea