Gong fu green tea??

[coconut]

I'm wondering if any of you tried gong fuing green tea? I guess more leaf less water and shorter steeps? What results did you get?

Thanks for the input

[Proinsias]

I'm wondering if any of you tried gong fuing green tea?

Yes, 60 or 100ml gaiwan is just perfect.

I guess more leaf less water and shorter steeps?

Yip, I tend to aim for the vessel to be around half to three quarters full of leaf once the leaves have expanded.

What results did you get?

Great tasting ones

[Chip]

If I look at this based on weight, etc, then certainly. But most greens do not fill up the pot when expanded.

Most times I could refer to my brewing of greens more in the semi gong fu style brewing ... not quite so full throttle.

[woozl]

Semi-Gong Fu.
Never thought about that way.....
I guess that's kinda what I do.
More leaf, less H2o, less time = great taste, more infusions

[coconut]

Thanks all. Yeah I was thinking along less intense than oolong, especially after i found this little teapot: http://www.yunnansourcing.com/store/pro ... oduct=1387. Have any of you bought this one?? Good quality?

[teaisme]

I like gaiwan for chinese greens because it can be a little more easy to play around with temps and faster cooling if you want it to be (remove lid, or leave lid half on etc) , also can pour on walls easier which I like to do with chinese greens, just more comfortable to me in general

Maybe spend 5-10 dollars more and you can get a nice solid one
That lil teapot does look nice though

[debunix]

I rarely have green tea leaves filling the pot/gaiwan more than 1/3 full after brewing, so also 'semi-' gong fu. Very nice with Dragon well, Tai Ping Hou Kui, Mao Feng, quite a few others.

[Nathaniel87]

For the last week or so I have been brewing stronger and stronger up to around 1.5grams or slightly more for 1 ounce of water. I only do this for light steamed sencha and even then I think it works ideally only for Uji Sencha where the deeper tastes are emphasized in a positive way on this heavy brewing.

As for times, I have been starting at 60 second for the first steep and then quick pour offs for the second and third. As for temp, I have found it very important to start at around 155 F if brewing this heavily.

Overall, I have really come to love this brewing style just because it gives me very deep flavors and it remains very flavorful until the fourth brewing at least.

Just for reference, I have used this on both O-cha's kirameki as well as a high quality sencha from horaido.

[the_economist]

it looks like sencha can be enjoyed in true gongfu style too!

reference from horaido:

"SENCHA (way at tea break) How to make 4 cups
Put two heaping teaspoons(about 5g) into a teapot. Cool down boiled water (about 50cc) to about 80digrees before pouring into teapot. Let the leaves soak for one minute in the water before serving into very small cups.
This is a standard type of green tea. It has distinctive strong , bitter taste , and has delicate sweet taste too. Enjoy with cakes or cookies , or sometimes only tea."


http://www.kyoto-teramachi.or.jp/horaido/greentea.htm (under 'how to make tea')

i'm going to try my sencha this way instead i think

[Chip]

... sounds pretty much like what we have been saying on TC ... with some variation. He is going hotter, but he is not preheating his pot and thus using a hotter temp ... which is also what we have been saying.

Time depends on several variabled, such as how much leaf and how broken or steamed the leaf is.

I would still call this more a semi gong fu versus full throttle as the pot is never stuffed with leaf even after repeated steeps.

Gyokuro brewing the way many members do it (2 grams per ounce water) is more akin to full throttle gong fu brewing.

[the_economist]

chip he's doing roughly 3g for an ounce (5g for 50ml) though haha...that's pretty up there. That's almost as much as i use for roasted oolongs!

[Chip]

chip he's doing roughly 3g for an ounce (5g for 50ml) though haha...that's pretty up there. That's almost as much as i use for roasted oolongs!

oops, I think I thought 150 ml water, not 50. That will work only for good, or very good sencha.