Some questions on Taiwanese mountain oolong

[Tead Off]

Something like wuyi or other roasted teas can take any extra steam/heat, but with gaoshan you need to take the lid off.

Funny, I never had any trouble leaving the lids on. Another 'ol wives' tale?

[kyarazen]

Something like wuyi or other roasted teas can take any extra steam/heat, but with gaoshan you need to take the lid off.

still depends on the processing. most tender early spring tea will be cooked into vege soup autumn leaves are coarser, rougher, they handle heat incredibly well.

[bonescwa]

Something like wuyi or other roasted teas can take any extra steam/heat, but with gaoshan you need to take the lid off.

Funny, I never had any trouble leaving the lids on. Another 'ol wives' tale?

Just my own experience, and I think I have heard others say the same. To me, leaving the lid on it gives a weak, bitter, cooked taste (I use boiling water with all gaoshan, though, so maybe if I used lower temp water leaving the lid wouldn't be an issue)

[William]

Something like wuyi or other roasted teas can take any extra steam/heat, but with gaoshan you need to take the lid off.

Funny, I never had any trouble leaving the lids on. Another 'ol wives' tale?

Just my own experience, and I think I have heard others say the same. To me, leaving the lid on it gives a weak, bitter, cooked taste (I use boiling water with all gaoshan, though, so maybe if I used lower temp water leaving the lid wouldn't be an issue)

Agree. The few times a left the lid on, I always had hints of cooked spinach on my tongue, with a huge loss of flavors of the tea itself.

[Tead Off]

Something like wuyi or other roasted teas can take any extra steam/heat, but with gaoshan you need to take the lid off.

Funny, I never had any trouble leaving the lids on. Another 'ol wives' tale?

Just my own experience, and I think I have heard others say the same. To me, leaving the lid on it gives a weak, bitter, cooked taste (I use boiling water with all gaoshan, though, so maybe if I used lower temp water leaving the lid wouldn't be an issue)

Agree. The few times a left the lid on, I always had hints of cooked spinach on my tongue, with a huge loss of flavors of the tea itself.

on Wuyi teas? Never happened to me.

[bagua7]

...but with gaoshan you need to take the lid off.

It sounds like a rule...and rules are meant to be

Anyway, I don't experience that issue, maybe in the past with thick Yixing pots...but switching to thin-walled zhuni corrected this side effect. With gaiwan I never experienced this issue at all.

How long do you do you infuse the oolongs for? I like Chaozhou-style brewing (flash rinses/1,2,3 s) and then increased waiting time in further infusions.

'Spinach taste' no longer exists in my brewing dictionary.

[ethan]

Admiralkelvinat,
Your post about losing aroma w/ lid off is accurate for my experience. I often get much more aroma from the initial infusions of my teas, but the taste is not diminished w/ the lid off for subsequent infusions.
I must be a little different than many drinkers because aroma & taste do not seem to "combine" for me. I mean to say that I don't taste aroma. I enjoy it as a separate sense.
Lately I am trying to be attentive to emptying gaiwans & teapots completely of all of the liquid when I pour an infusion. Even a small amount left over-steeping could ruin the next infusion.

[wyardley]

I always leave the lid on, but I do use a very thin porcelain gaiwan.

[AdmiralKelvinator]

Admiralkelvinat,
Your post about losing aroma w/ lid off is accurate for my experience. I often get much more aroma from the initial infusions of my teas, but the taste is not diminished w/ the lid off for subsequent infusions.
I must be a little different than many drinkers because aroma & taste do not seem to "combine" for me. I mean to say that I don't taste aroma. I enjoy it as a separate sense.
Lately I am trying to be attentive to emptying gaiwans & teapots completely of all of the liquid when I pour an infusion. Even a small amount left over-steeping could ruin the next infusion.

A very good point and something I've been focusing on recently as well. Emptying out the pot as much as possible not only balances out future brews, but also gives you the fullest and most complex cup in the present as well. Which is to say the last part of the pour is definitely the most powerful. Must be why chaozhou style makes such a fine point about evenly distributing those last few droplets, eh?

I drank a Zhulu Alisan this morning and experimented with leaving the lid on between steeps (and draining the pot as fully as possible), but I can't say I noticed a significant change in flavor for better or for worse. Two caveats are that (1) the pot I use is a thin zhuni and (2) that I do not use fully boiling water, both of which could effect the results significantly.

[Tead Off]

For gaoshan, I do use thin walled pots, but always leave the lid on.

Another issue for Taiwan gaoshan is the drop in quality that I have noticed over the last few years. It is harder to find great teas and the price is certainly not getting less expensive. Perhaps a good thing for myself is the preference for roasted gaoshan, which if roasted well, satisfies me in a different way. Hard to explain.

[bagua7]

I always leave the lid on, but I do use a very thin porcelain gaiwan.

Maybe that explains things a bit, I also use a thin-walled gaiwan, not paper thin though, but thin enough that doesn't scorch my fingers and also quite light; anyway this vessel doesn't overcook Taiwan mountain oolongs.

[bonescwa]

Something like wuyi or other roasted teas can take any extra steam/heat, but with gaoshan you need to take the lid off.

Funny, I never had any trouble leaving the lids on. Another 'ol wives' tale?

Just my own experience, and I think I have heard others say the same. To me, leaving the lid on it gives a weak, bitter, cooked taste (I use boiling water with all gaoshan, though, so maybe if I used lower temp water leaving the lid wouldn't be an issue)

Agree. The few times a left the lid on, I always had hints of cooked spinach on my tongue, with a huge loss of flavors of the tea itself.

on Wuyi teas? Never happened to me.

No, not on Wuyi teas.

[Tead Off]

Something like wuyi or other roasted teas can take any extra steam/heat, but with gaoshan you need to take the lid off.

Funny, I never had any trouble leaving the lids on. Another 'ol wives' tale?

Just my own experience, and I think I have heard others say the same. To me, leaving the lid on it gives a weak, bitter, cooked taste (I use boiling water with all gaoshan, though, so maybe if I used lower temp water leaving the lid wouldn't be an issue)

Agree. The few times a left the lid on, I always had hints of cooked spinach on my tongue, with a huge loss of flavors of the tea itself.

on Wuyi teas? Never happened to me.

No, not on Wuyi teas.

I think I misunderstood which tea was being talked about. But, as I said above, I've never had this problem leaving the lid on gaoshan, and getting a weak, bitter, or cooked taste. Maybe it's because of the pots I use, or maybe the gaoshan is not of a high quality. I've noticed a fall-off in quality the last few years.