first gaiwan experience

[nataly]

Hi teachatters,

My most recent step into the world of tea was purchasing a gaiwan. I got a 3.5oz one and two 3oz cups to use with it. Tried it twice with TGY oolong and once with dragon well green. I love this thing already. I didn’t have any problems with burnt fingers, which I was a little apprehensive about, but – hey – I’m good at cooking and pouring tea out of gaiwan not unlike pouring water out of a pot full of boiled potatoes, only easier 

So far I have encountered the following problems:

1. People were not joking when they said this was a two person gaiwan. Well… I guess it was just too much too fast. Going from a tiny 12oz teapot down to 3.5oz gaiwan and not being able to finish all of it in one go  It is perfect for two though. I tried it according to gong-fu instructions that seemed like a good starting point. Warmed, filled 25% of gaiwan depth with TGY, rinsed and did about 8 infusions (give or take one) between 30s and 1.5 min each. Each one of them was delicious, I noticed the tea leaves smelled nasty towards the end of it though. Not sure if it is to be expected. I can’t quite described the smell, but it seemed almost rubbery if that makes any sense? The tea didn’t smell that way though. Did I do anything wrong? Also, what do I do to produce half the amount of tea if I drink by myself? Should I look for a smaller gaiwan, like 2 oz? Do they even come in that size? I tried to reduce the amount of leaves and increase steeping time to go down on the number of infusions. The result wasn’t so good. May be I didn’t wait long enough. I used about ¾ tsp of leaves and 4 2 – 2.5 min steepings. Is that a good idea and I just need to adjust parameters? Or is it better to just cut the two-person leaf and water in half and brew more half-gaiwan portions?
2. The first time I brewed TGY, I did 3 infusions, then I had a break of about 40 min, came back and brewed another infusion. It was completely bitter and I had to dump it. What did I do wrong? I thought maybe I accidentally was a little water left on the bottom of gaiwan? I tried another infusion, but didn’t like it either. Maybe due to the aftertaste of the previous one. If this happens normally, do you just dump the leaves? I also noticed even the good infusions had some degree of bitterness in them when brewed with gong-fu style, which I haven’t noticed when brewed in the Western style. Is gong-fu bringing this out and it is just my particular tea or am I doing something wrong? I was using 190F water btw.
3. How much water do you normally fill in? In some videos it looks like people fill a little over the top of the lid in some just below. What do you do? Does it depend on the type of tea you are brewing?
4. For green tea – I brewed the dragon well, which is a new tea for me too (was shipped along with the gaiwan) – I filled about 20% of gaiwan, added 175F water and did 4 infusions: 2min, 40 sec, 1.5min, 2 min. The second infusion was wonderful, the last a little weak. Should I just increase time where it seemed weak? Do 4 infusions sound about right? Is it best to brew it with lid on or off? I kept it on, but not super tight and opened often to check on color. The good thing about this one it gave me a perfect amount of tea for one drinking.

Thank you,
Nataly

[AdamMY]

Several things. first for 25% full of TGY your infusions were definitely far to long. Often when brewing that strong the infusions start out closer to 5-10 seconds, and increase from there. Secondly with most rolled oolongs it can sometimes be a challenge to use the right amount in a gaiwan, as when they unfurl they can really expand. If the gaiwan is over packed that could also lead to a bitter taste.

With a gaiwan I fill nearly to the brim, place on the lid, then tip to pour off the excess to just above the lid level. It does not depend on the tea I am brewing.

For the dragon well your forth infusion should have definitely been longer. But at the same time how many infusions and steep times are very dependent on the tea themselves and your own personal taste preferences in later infusions. It is not unheard of for people to steep tea for 10 or more minutes to get the desired strength. And at the same time for teas such as greens where you would like to start below boiling, sometimes it also helps to slowly raise the water temp you are hitting the leaves with as infusions go on 3rd and later).

[MarshalN]

Even 5-10 seconds is probably too long for 25% full of TGY. Instant in and out is what I'd suggest - only lengthen the time IF the tea is showing weakness. Do not anticipate it by automatically adding 10 seconds or some random number to each infusion. It doesn't work well that way.

I have an old youtube video that explains a few little things to note when using a gaiwan, you may or may not have seen or, or find it useful.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqP3lFPd1bw

[the_economist]

Good questions.

1. The ugly leaf smell comes about for two reasons in my experience: a) lousy leaves, especially chopped up ones, b) abusive brewing - i.e. many infusions in quick succession without rest, or long long infusions at high temps. Often times of course, it also indicates the death of the tea (surely teas don't go on forever ).

I strongly suggest getting a smaller vessel for solo-drinking. Extending brew length or lowering leaf-water ratio (which you have tried) will not yield the same type of tastes and you'd be sacrificing some experience if you go that route. Another option is not to fill the gaiwan to the brim when brewing, although that might mean heat loss and other issues. All in all, a smaller vessel is in my opinion the more desirable method to work around this.

2. If you are using that kind of leaf-water ratio, you have to be quick. Its more a matter of technique than anything. Using 190F water gives you a small amount of leeway but you still need to be quick.

3. A matter of style/preference. I fill to the very brim and then tilt to pour away some, and then pour (what Adam said). Other people fill to just the lid (which may be useful if you want to go very fast, or you're still uncomfortable about burning fingers).

4. Tea dependent. Play with the tea by adding more leaf, using higher temps. I wouldn't extend the brew length further.

[wyardley]

Heavy roast teas will often have a rubber or burned kind of smell from the leaves themselves. While this may indicate a roast that's heavier and / or more recent than many of us usually like, it's not inherently a bad thing.

Often you can get a more pleasant aroma from smelling the gaiwan lid or from the empty teacup.

[Pekoechen]

Hi teachatters,

My most recent step into the world of tea was purchasing a gaiwan. I got a 3.5oz one and two 3oz cups to use with it. Tried it twice with TGY oolong and once with dragon well green. I love this thing already. I didn’t have any problems with burnt fingers, which I was a little apprehensive about, but – hey – I’m good at cooking and pouring tea out of gaiwan not unlike pouring water out of a pot full of boiled potatoes, only easier 

So far I have encountered the following problems:

1. People were not joking when they said this was a two person gaiwan. Well… I guess it was just too much too fast. Going from a tiny 12oz teapot down to 3.5oz gaiwan and not being able to finish all of it in one go  It is perfect for two though. I tried it according to gong-fu instructions that seemed like a good starting point. Warmed, filled 25% of gaiwan depth with TGY, rinsed and did about 8 infusions (give or take one) between 30s and 1.5 min each. Each one of them was delicious, I noticed the tea leaves smelled nasty towards the end of it though. Not sure if it is to be expected. I can’t quite described the smell, but it seemed almost rubbery if that makes any sense? The tea didn’t smell that way though. Did I do anything wrong? Also, what do I do to produce half the amount of tea if I drink by myself? Should I look for a smaller gaiwan, like 2 oz? Do they even come in that size? I tried to reduce the amount of leaves and increase steeping time to go down on the number of infusions. The result wasn’t so good. May be I didn’t wait long enough. I used about ¾ tsp of leaves and 4 2 – 2.5 min steepings. Is that a good idea and I just need to adjust parameters? Or is it better to just cut the two-person leaf and water in half and brew more half-gaiwan portions?
2. The first time I brewed TGY, I did 3 infusions, then I had a break of about 40 min, came back and brewed another infusion. It was completely bitter and I had to dump it. What did I do wrong? I thought maybe I accidentally was a little water left on the bottom of gaiwan? I tried another infusion, but didn’t like it either. Maybe due to the aftertaste of the previous one. If this happens normally, do you just dump the leaves? I also noticed even the good infusions had some degree of bitterness in them when brewed with gong-fu style, which I haven’t noticed when brewed in the Western style. Is gong-fu bringing this out and it is just my particular tea or am I doing something wrong? I was using 190F water btw.
3. How much water do you normally fill in? In some videos it looks like people fill a little over the top of the lid in some just below. What do you do? Does it depend on the type of tea you are brewing?
4. For green tea – I brewed the dragon well, which is a new tea for me too (was shipped along with the gaiwan) – I filled about 20% of gaiwan, added 175F water and did 4 infusions: 2min, 40 sec, 1.5min, 2 min. The second infusion was wonderful, the last a little weak. Should I just increase time where it seemed weak? Do 4 infusions sound about right? Is it best to brew it with lid on or off? I kept it on, but not super tight and opened often to check on color. The good thing about this one it gave me a perfect amount of tea for one drinking.

Thank you,
Nataly

The bitterness is likely to do with the quality of your tea leaves.

Handling the gaiwan can be clumsy at first, but a breeze once you use it regularly. I have a low threshold for burnt fingers and would normally fill my gaiwan up to 70% full. Otherwise, I will remove the lid and first enjoy the nice tea brew smell under it while allowing the rest of the cup to cool down first before pouring the tea out.

[MarshalN]

Often you can get a more pleasant aroma from smelling the gaiwan lid or from the empty teacup.

This is almost always true

[TIM]

Often you can get a more pleasant aroma from smelling the gaiwan lid or from the empty teacup.

This is almost always true

They lid represent the roof of your mouth, so they said. So the aroma is more pronounce, specially after cooling a bit.