How much tea to use?

[Tea Noob]

I do not have a lot of success searching the site for answers to my questions and I am sure this has been covered by many in the past.

I want to know, in grams, what is the baseline amount of tea to use per cup? Some of the white tea samples I have are so fluffy while many of the blacks I have are small, dense and compact.

I have read some people talking about using a scale, coincidentally I have one and if that is the best method I would like to know the magic number. Once I get an idea of how much this special weight looks like I will stick with my Teaspoon, but in order to minimize my errors I would like to do it by the book in the beginning. Thanks.

[Herb_Master]

I do not have a lot of success searching the site for answers to my questions and I am sure this has been covered by many in the past.

I want to know, in grams, what is the baseline amount of tea to use per cup? Some of the white tea samples I have are so fluffy while many of the blacks I have are small, dense and compact.

I have read some people talking about using a scale, coincidentally I have one and if that is the best method I would like to know the magic number. Once I get an idea of how much this special weight looks like I will stick with my Teaspoon, but in order to minimize my errors I would like to do it by the book in the beginning. Thanks.

No magic number, you have to find your own.
Now regarding Oolongs - and using short steeps, measured in seconds, rather than long steeps measured in minutes. AND using water near to boiling.
A few people recommend 1gm to very 50ml of water, a few people recommend 1gm to every 30ml of water.

I tried them both and far preferred the 1gm to 3oml - purely as a starting point.
After your first session and first infusion you vary according to your notes.

My current method is slightly different. With near boiling water and initial steeps of 10 to 25 seconds depending on how the Tea wash/rinse water looks. If I imagine before I sample a tea that it is either 1, 2 or 3.
Then I try
1gm to 25ml for a 1,
1gm to 30ml for a 2,
1gm to 35ml for a 3.

Where
3 is a tea that I imagine to be Delicate and Light
2 is a tea that I imagine to be Delicate and Full
1 is a tea that I imagine to be Robust and Full

and take notes to start my next session with that tea.

[Pentox]

My baseline is a 1:1 ratio. 1g tea : 1 oz water.

From there depending on how that tastes I adjust. But I find that it is generally a good starting point. It tends to come out a bit strong with assams and ceylons though, that I normally use about 3:5.

[Tea Noob]

No magic number, you have to find your own.
Now regarding Oolongs - and using short steeps, measured in seconds, rather than long steeps measured in minutes. AND using water near to boiling.
A few people recommend 1gm to very 50ml of water, a few people recommend 1gm to every 30ml of water.

I tried them both and far preferred the 1gm to 3oml - purely as a starting point.
After your first session and first infusion you vary according to your notes.

My current method is slightly different. With near boiling water and initial steeps of 10 to 25 seconds depending on how the Tea wash/rinse water looks. If I imagine before I sample a tea that it is either 1, 2 or 3.
Then I try
1gm to 25ml for a 1,
1gm to 30ml for a 2,
1gm to 35ml for a 3.

Where
3 is a tea that I imagine to be Delicate and Light
2 is a tea that I imagine to be Delicate and Full
1 is a tea that I imagine to be Robust and Full

What is this technique called? Is it primarily for oolongs or for any type? I am only familiar with following the directions on the Adagio tins or the package that my tea comes in. I have read a few posts about this and am not sure I really want to prepare my tea that way. I am just asking in regards to the standard teaspoon recommendation and what the desirable weights are.

The technique is definitely a bit intimidating for a Noob like myself. I am intrigued though when you mentioned 'rinsing'. Should I be doing this no matter how I prepare the tea? I may stick to figure out what teas I like first, before I delve into the realm of experimentation. Thanks for the info.

[Tea Noob]

My baseline is a 1:1 ratio. 1g tea : 1 oz water.

From there depending on how that tastes I adjust. But I find that it is generally a good starting point. It tends to come out a bit strong with assams and ceylons though, that I normally use about 3:5.

How many steeps do you get out this ration. Am I the only doing about a teaspoon for 8 oz. ?

[Chip]

My baseline is a 1:1 ratio. 1g tea : 1 oz water.

From there depending on how that tastes I adjust. But I find that it is generally a good starting point. It tends to come out a bit strong with assams and ceylons though, that I normally use about 3:5.

How many steeps do you get out this ration. Am I the only doing about a teaspoon for 8 oz. ?

Just half the world is using the teaspoon per 6 ounces, 8 is a bit much water for 1 teaspoon.

The gram per ounce of water might be a bit of a leap for you. Some teas I will go 1:1, but many I will start lower, around .75:1 ounce water, and adjust up if I need to. Really depends on the tea.

How many steeps is debatable, I shoot for 5 at this ratio, again depending on the tea.

[Tea Noob]

Just half the world is using the teaspoon per 6 ounces, 8 is a bit much water for 1 teaspoon.

The gram per ounce of water might be a bit of a leap for you. Some teas I will go 1:1, but many I will start lower, around .75:1 ounce water, and adjust up if I need to. Really depends on the tea.

How many steeps is debatable, I shoot for 5 at this ratio, again depending on the tea.

I only use 1 tsp for blacks, and for the more fluffy stuff 2 or more. But even that is nothing compared to 1:1. I weighed out a tsp of a black tea I have and it was 2g, so basically I would need 4 tsp for 1 cup? Yikes, that sounds like I would be making jet fuel.

Apparently the 'golden rule' I read about in my free book is not optimum. This is really turning my world upside down. Every retailer uses the ratio to tell you how much tea you are buying and how much it will make, but no one really uses this guideline? Boy do I need to keep reading up. I know the place I go locally does not add 32g to the large InginuiTEA so they don't follow this.

If someone could please explain the fact that everything I have read and experienced up until this point is in complete contrast to what I am being recommended, I would be eternally grateful.

Guess I am sampling some Uber-weak Green Pekoe right now.

[Pentox]

My baseline is a 1:1 ratio. 1g tea : 1 oz water.

From there depending on how that tastes I adjust. But I find that it is generally a good starting point. It tends to come out a bit strong with assams and ceylons though, that I normally use about 3:5.

How many steeps do you get out this ration. Am I the only doing about a teaspoon for 8 oz. ?

Blacks - 1-2
Greens - 3-5
Whites - 2-3

I have yet to determine rules of thumb for oolong or pu.

Those are general ratios I use. Most of what I drink though is Japanese green, so that tends to be where this ratio works well at. It generates a white that has a nice punch to it.

[Chip]

If someone could please explain the fact that everything I have read and experienced up until this point is in complete contrast to what I am being recommended, I would be eternally grateful.

Because we are right, and they are wrong

To be honest, most vendor recommendations are just not right. There are exceptions, such as O-Cha has good recommendations for each tea. There are others I am sure. But generally, I wonder how vendors come up with their recommendations.

Often vendors recommend too much leaf, maybe an attempt to sell more tea?

[Tea Noob]

With these larger tea:water ratios I assume, like Herb_Master said, that the steep times are significantly less. If this is the accepted method of brewing tea, then I will gradually begin to increase the amounts.

Chip, thanks for dumbing down the ration for me @ .75:1 but I may need the short bus version .5:1 and work up. I wouldn't want to shock the system from flavor overload.

I really appreciate all the help thus far. Please continue to add anything that comes to mind, assume I know nothing and just shower me with knowledge.

[Herb_Master]

With these larger tea:water ratios I assume, like Herb_Master said, that the steep times are significantly less. If this is the accepted method of brewing tea, then I will gradually begin to increase the amounts.

Chip, thanks for dumbing down the ration for me @ .75:1 but I may need the short bus version .5:1 and work up. I wouldn't want to shock the system from flavor overload.

I really appreciate all the help thus far. Please continue to add anything that comes to mind, assume I know nothing and just shower me with knowledge.

Note that for water I was quoting ml and they were talking oz

[Tea Noob]

Note that for water I was quoting ml and they were talking oz

I picked up on that. 1:1 ration for g:ml would get pretty strong! That would wake you up.

[Tea Noob]

I just made some earl grey and tried it "the right way". I did a quick (maybe 5 sec) rinse, then filled it back up and steeped for 30 seconds. I did about 6grams (maybe 8, got too excited to remember) to about 8 oz of water. Very fragrant and flavorful. I may have to compare this and the "wrong way" side by side to see the difference.

Thanks to all for the info, now I guess it is trial and error time....

[Herb_Master]

What is this technique called? Is it primarily for oolongs or for any type?.

Generically called 'Gong Fu' brewing, in either a Small-ish Yixing clay pot or Gaiwan'.

Can be used for a number of teas, but particularly if used in a Yixing pot is the recpmmended method for oolongs and Pu Erhs

[Pentox]

I just made some earl grey and tried it "the right way". I did a quick (maybe 5 sec) rinse, then filled it back up and steeped for 30 seconds. I did about 6grams (maybe 8, got too excited to remember) to about 8 oz of water. Very fragrant and flavorful. I may have to compare this and the "wrong way" side by side to see the difference.

Thanks to all for the info, now I guess it is trial and error time....

Personally I only will rinse for chinese teas. I for flavored teas like an EG I would suggest less leaf and a longer infusion time. High leaf:water ratios don't seem to pull out the flavor as well from a flavored tea. A long soak does, but with high leaf to water you pull out to much tea power.