Okay usually I just 'english brew' in a 300ml pot using a small quantity of leaves but I have been feeling as I ventured into trying some very special teas that brewing them this way is missing something...
So I want to try gongfu both with both a gaiwan and small pot but the question that comes to mind is what size cups should I be matching to the gaiwan? (or gongfu pot for that matter) I know quite a bit of the gaiwan's volume will be taken with tea leaves so that I won't be needing say two 50ml cups for a 100ml gaiwan... Anyway my question is what percentage of volume can I expect the tea leaves to take brewing gongfu so that I can match cups appropriately for different numbers of people sharing the tea?
Depends on how much leaf you use.
At work, I use a ~ 60 ml (roughly 2oz) gaiwan for myself, which just slightly overfills (to the rim) two cups before tea is added. Once I put tea in the gaiwan, it'll usually fill the cups to about where they should be (little more than 3/4). I pour the second cup over my little tea ornament (or, if the tea is expensive or tastes good, pour the second cup into the first). I have to really pack in the leaf before I would have a problem getting 2 reasonable sized cups out of it. Sorry - don't have anything to get a really precise measurement.
As a general rule of thumb, if the pot will fill all the cups you're using to the rim before tea is added, you should be good (keep in mind that I use a fair amount of tea most of the time).
If you have a 90-120ml gaiwan, you can get some slightly larger cups and then some really small cups - that should let you serve anywhere from 1-5 people pretty easily with the same gaiwan. I think 100 ml is a good general purpose size, though a little big for one or two people.
At work, I use a ~ 60 ml (roughly 2oz) gaiwan for myself, which just slightly overfills (to the rim) two cups before tea is added. Once I put tea in the gaiwan, it'll usually fill the cups to about where they should be (little more than 3/4). I pour the second cup over my little tea ornament (or, if the tea is expensive or tastes good, pour the second cup into the first). I have to really pack in the leaf before I would have a problem getting 2 reasonable sized cups out of it. Sorry - don't have anything to get a really precise measurement.
As a general rule of thumb, if the pot will fill all the cups you're using to the rim before tea is added, you should be good (keep in mind that I use a fair amount of tea most of the time).
If you have a 90-120ml gaiwan, you can get some slightly larger cups and then some really small cups - that should let you serve anywhere from 1-5 people pretty easily with the same gaiwan. I think 100 ml is a good general purpose size, though a little big for one or two people.
Mar 4th, '09, 20:05
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I guess the question is just how closely do you need to match things? Some empty space above the tea in the cup is a good thing - that will keep the rim cool. If you get a 100ml gaiwan, though, is there really anything wrong with getting cups that are 80ml?
Unless you're using an 8oz mug for 1oz of tea, it really shouldn't matter much - I've even used coffee mugs for 3-4oz of tea. I have a ~150ml cup that I use for drinking alone, and I use it with pots and gaiwans anywhere from 80ml to 130ml. The only time I don't use that cup is if I'm serving other people or if I just plain want to use a different cup for the tea I'm drinking.
Unless you're using an 8oz mug for 1oz of tea, it really shouldn't matter much - I've even used coffee mugs for 3-4oz of tea. I have a ~150ml cup that I use for drinking alone, and I use it with pots and gaiwans anywhere from 80ml to 130ml. The only time I don't use that cup is if I'm serving other people or if I just plain want to use a different cup for the tea I'm drinking.
You want some space. My point was that if you match the (non-to-the-rim) capacity of the gaiwan to the "to-the-rim" capacity of the cup, once tea leaves are added, you should (roughly) have the right amount of brewed tea (i.e., not to the rim).ABx wrote:I guess the question is just how closely do you need to match things? Some empty space above the tea in the cup is a good thing - that will keep the rim cool. If you get a 100ml gaiwan, though, is there really anything wrong with getting cups that are 80ml?
One other thing for the OP to keep in mind... different sellers measure differently, and sometimes simply provide bogus information. And sometimes measurements are already based on the capacity of tea the pot or gaiwan can brew. So don't put too much stock in measurements... to some extent, if you do mail order, you'll have to wait and see how everything works out.
Mar 4th, '09, 20:33
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Are you talking about brewing in the gaiwan and decanting directly into the cups, no middleman?
It's good to know I'm not alone. I tend to pour a little of each brew over the pot whilst it's on its next brew. I thought about an ornament but I figured it would just mean less tea for the pots.wyardley wrote: I pour the second cup over my little tea ornament
Yeah - I pour it over the pot if I'm using a pot, but we were talking about gaiwans.Proinsias wrote:Are you talking about brewing in the gaiwan and decanting directly into the cups, no middleman?
It's good to know I'm not alone. I tend to pour a little of each brew over the pot whilst it's on its next brew. I thought about an ornament but I figured it would just mean less tea for the pots.wyardley wrote: I pour the second cup over my little tea ornament
Mar 4th, '09, 21:21
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Hehe, when I first started writing my post I found myself just reiterating your post, so I meant mine as an addendum to yours - basically just get cups that are bigger, and don't worry too much about how much bigger they are as long as they're not huge. My main intent was just to try to alleviate any anxiety about the issue - it doesn't matter too much. Besides, eventually every enthusiast is going to have more than enough teaware anywaywyardley wrote:You want some space. My point was that if you match the (non-to-the-rim) capacity of the gaiwan to the "to-the-rim" capacity of the cup, once tea leaves are added, you should (roughly) have the right amount of brewed tea (i.e., not to the rim).
entropyembrace: Just make sure to get a faircup (pitcher) - you're going to want it for serving multiple people anyway. No matter what you do, though, you'll have to go through a certain amount of trial and error before you find your preferences. I'm sure you'll do just fine with your first set, and then you'll start finding new stuff and stuff for different occasions. If you're like most of us you'll probably anticipate serving more tea than you actually will at first, so you'll either want to get a bigger cup or just use a small (6oz) mug that you have around the house.
If you have a good Asian grocer in the area you might check them out. I usually see a good variety of cups there for cheap. There's the super thick ones that you see at Chinese restaurants (to go along with the typical giant stainless steel restaurant teapot), but then I also usually see some others that are a little nicer. You might get pickier later, but for now the important thing is just that they hold tea