Pre-warming the Pot

[kasey]

Does pre-heating the pot really make a difference?

I generally brew tea for myself in a guywan.

When I get a new batch of tea, I'll brew each measure 2-4X while experimenting with water temp and brewing time. I have found that the combination that results in the sweetest brew will always yield the best results no matter if the leaves are fresh or already brewed. Has anyone found otherwise?

I keep reading that one should heat up the teapot before brewing tea leaves so that the cold pot doesn't lower the water temperature. I've never bothered to do that, but lately I've been wondering how would one get the subsequent infusions done right or if it even worth the effort?

Because one would have to scrape the leaves from the guywan onto a plate, reheat the guywan with boiling water, wait until it's the right temperature, then put the cold, wet leaves back into the guywan. That would lower the water temperature considerably, which would seem to make the whole procedure irrelevant, but there doesn't seem to be any way around it. My experience is that raising the water temp for later brews will result in bitter tea.

It would seem that warming the pot would only work for the first brew.
Is it really worth the effort for later brews?

[wyardley]

I keep reading that one should heat up the teapot before brewing tea leaves so that the cold pot doesn't lower the water temperature. I've never bothered to do that, but lately I've been wondering how would one get the subsequent infusions done right or if it even worth the effort?
[....]
It would seem that warming the pot would only work for the first brew.
Is it really worth the effort for later brews?

The other infusions should generally follow the first quickly enough that the brewing vessel is still hot, or at least quite a bit warmer than room temperature. If you take an extended break, you can always do a quick re-rinse if you want.

Some people don't bother pre-heating the pot if they do a rinse before the first infusion, but I almost always do. If nothing else, it allows you to appreciate the fragrance of the leaves when you add them to the warm pot. You mentioned that you haven't tried pre-warming yet; if you want to argue with centuries of collective wisdom, that's fine, but experiment first, and see if you can tell any difference. If you can't, I'm sure the tea police won't come arrest you for not pre-warming.

If it takes you long enough to finish the first infusion that the pot is cold by the second, then your pot and / or cups are too big!

[kasey]

Actually, I sip my tea slowly so that my guywan is quite cold before I'm
finished my first cup.

I realized near the end of my last post that this is probably a useless
venture so I think I'll just drop it right here.

[Herb_Master]

When indoors, I use yixings between 120ml and 190ml.
When I want to sit at the bottom of the garden I use 240ml to 350ml Yixings, use a glass teapot as a Fair Cup and set it up in the garden on a tea warmer with a tealight. keeps it warm to the end, and I don't have to keep running indoors for a refill.

I don't perceive huge differences between pre-warming and not pre-warming, but If I know that I will be distracted enough that the pot will go cold I often use a tea boat, and bathe the teapot in hot water while the kettle is on it's next cycle.

[depravitea]

If nothing else, it allows you to appreciate the fragrance of the leaves when you add them to the warm pot.

Totally!
The first time I pre-warmed I was really surprised by how much it really affected the intensity of the smell of the dried leaves.
I always try to pre-warm, but I'd be a big-fat-liar if I said I did it all the time.