Himalayan black tea

Fully oxidized tea leaves for a robust cup.


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May 19th, '15, 23:44
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Re: Himalayan black tea

by john.b » May 19th, '15, 23:44

Kind of an obvious thing so you might have considered it but using slightly below boiling point water temperature for that tea might also work. Of course if you already are getting the brewed-tea results you want then maybe not, but I'm always messing with those factors just for something to try.

Different tables or references list different temperature guidelines for black teas, some between 200 and 212 (down to 93 C for us in the rest of the world). Unless I'm mistaken it makes more sense for completely oxidized black teas to brew at full boiling than black teas of other types, like Darjeelings. I checked the last post I wrote for a black Darjeeling and the vendor recommended a brewing temperature range of 90 to 100, so essentially they've said within that range it's up to you. By definition black tea is fully oxidized but the reality is different, unless I'm mistaken (online sources also say that black teas exhibit a range of oxidation, especially for Darjeelings, but then they tend to say different things, and what to trust really).

To me it's just about preference and experimentation, and I'm a bit loose about all of it anyway. I try different things, brew different ways, and I'm inconsistent and don't really measure or set timers. Having brewed tea thousands of times it sort of all works out, but I can see why for someone else maybe I'm still not optimizing my tea in the end.

These are some good points for further review; thanks for mentioning it.

May 20th, '15, 09:09
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Re: Himalayan black tea

by ethan » May 20th, '15, 09:09

john.b,

I have tried water below boiling a few times & also gongfu a couple of times. The best results are always from the standard for black tea, boiling water w/ a modest amount of leaf per cup.

Steeping in boiling water for 2 minutes for the 1st & 2nd infusions, I have not lost any flavor that I seek but do lose any hint of bitterness as well as astringency--characteristics I like to avoid usually. From the 3rd infusion of 5 minutes or more, I get a modest amount of astringency that comes w/ pleasant aftertaste. At the end of a session, this feeling & flavor in my mouth is nice to carry w/ me (usually as I leave the apartment).

If I started the session w/ a long infusion, there would be slight bitterness. A long third infusion does not bring bitterness. (I am not usually interested in being so observant but drink this tea so much.)

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Apr 19th, '16, 17:02
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Re: Himalayan black tea

by CWarren » Apr 19th, '16, 17:02

Dusting the cobwebs off of this thread...

Finally able to enjoy a tea session of Himalayan Orange from Jun Chiyabari (HOR). 5g of leaf, 120ml bone china teapot, short 10-15s infusions at boiling temp. Highly aromatic, beautiful leaf wet and dry, delicious!

Thank you Ethan!

https://instagram.com/p/BEZQ3VNBUve/

Apr 21st, '16, 13:32
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Re: Himalayan black tea

by ethan » Apr 21st, '16, 13:32

CWarren wrote:Dusting the cobwebs off of this thread...

Finally able to enjoy a tea session of Himalayan Orange from Jun Chiyabari (HOR). 5g of leaf, 120ml bone china teapot, short 10-15s infusions at boiling temp. Highly aromatic, beautiful leaf wet and dry, delicious!

Thank you Ethan!

https://instagram.com/p/BEZQ3VNBUve/
Thanks for posting those photographs. In case anyone does not know, I have a phobia w/ technology. I do manage to e-mail & participate here but taking photos & dealing w/ attachments etc. is beyond me. Very glad you are stronger than I am, CWarren.

You are not the only one to enjoy the HOR w/ preparation totally different than mine. (You & some others have used much more leaf & much less time.) Because of your post I did try a very slight increase in leaf w/ a very slight decrease in temperature which was quite nice. (I like to keep an open mind but know that the very quick steeping does not work for me w/ the HOR)

Cheers

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Apr 21st, '16, 17:26
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Himalayan black tea

by CWarren » Apr 21st, '16, 17:26

ethan wrote:
CWarren wrote:Dusting the cobwebs off of this thread...

Finally able to enjoy a tea session of Himalayan Orange from Jun Chiyabari (HOR). 5g of leaf, 120ml bone china teapot, short 10-15s infusions at boiling temp. Highly aromatic, beautiful leaf wet and dry, delicious!

Thank you Ethan!

https://instagram.com/p/BEZQ3VNBUve/
Thanks for posting those photographs. In case anyone does not know, I have a phobia w/ technology. I do manage to e-mail & participate here but taking photos & dealing w/ attachments etc. is beyond me. Very glad you are stronger than I am, CWarren.

You are not the only one to enjoy the HOR w/ preparation totally different than mine. (You & some others have used much more leaf & much less time.) Because of your post I did try a very slight increase in leaf w/ a very slight decrease in temperature which was quite nice. (I like to keep an open mind but know that the very quick steeping does not work for me w/ the HOR)

Cheers
I used to western brew everything then I started experimenting with something between western and gong fu. Now it's always gong fu with everything. Black tea was the last thing I held onto with western brewing until I watched Hojo make his and then even black tea went the way of the fu. I like the different notes I get with each infusion and how many steeps I get is nice too, a cornucopia of flavors.

As for the photos, no problem. I still get weird with tasting reviews and photos and have deleted a few of them. Lol

Thanks again for the teas. I am happy to have them.

Apr 21st, '16, 20:56
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Re: Himalayan black tea

by daidokorocha » Apr 21st, '16, 20:56

CWarren wrote:
ethan wrote:
CWarren wrote:Dusting the cobwebs off of this thread...

Finally able to enjoy a tea session of Himalayan Orange from Jun Chiyabari (HOR). 5g of leaf, 120ml bone china teapot, short 10-15s infusions at boiling temp. Highly aromatic, beautiful leaf wet and dry, delicious!

Thank you Ethan!

https://instagram.com/p/BEZQ3VNBUve/
Thanks for posting those photographs. In case anyone does not know, I have a phobia w/ technology. I do manage to e-mail & participate here but taking photos & dealing w/ attachments etc. is beyond me. Very glad you are stronger than I am, CWarren.

You are not the only one to enjoy the HOR w/ preparation totally different than mine. (You & some others have used much more leaf & much less time.) Because of your post I did try a very slight increase in leaf w/ a very slight decrease in temperature which was quite nice. (I like to keep an open mind but know that the very quick steeping does not work for me w/ the HOR)

Cheers
I used to western brew everything then I started experimenting with something between western and gong fu. Now it's always gong fu with everything. Black tea was the last thing I held onto with western brewing until I watched Hojo make his and then even black tea went the way of the fu. I like the different notes I get with each infusion and how many steeps I get is nice too, a cornucopia of flavors.

As for the photos, no problem. I still get weird with tasting reviews and photos and have deleted a few of them. Lol

Thanks again for the teas. I am happy to have them.
Always gong fu? I honestly couldn't imagine shunning every way of brewing for one specific method. I'm curious if this has to do with the type of teas you drink, or do you even gong fu Japanese teas?

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Apr 21st, '16, 22:10
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Himalayan black tea

by CWarren » Apr 21st, '16, 22:10

Thanks again Ethan for making these teas available to Tea Chatters. I'm going to dig into the HOR again as well as the others this weekend.

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