I want to make sure I have this straight.
Gaiwans are used for most anything but things like Japanese greens and rooibos because of how small the leaves are. It's like a little curvey cup with a lid and saucer.
A kyusu is mostly for Japanese greens, especially senchas. It has some sort of filter (obi-ami, ita-ami, or sasame) and absorbs flavors. It has a little handle on the side. I'm a little confused, because I read that this is good for Japanese greens because of the small size, but I've also read that it's good for everything because it's larger. ???
A yixing teapot is smaller and better for gong-fu teas, like puerh and oolong.
Is this right? I really need advice, as I have basically no idea what I'm doing. What teaware is essential for starting my collection? I plan on getting lots of different teas. Also, what sorts of cups should I get? What are glass teapots good for? Just flowering teas?
What do you brew herbal teas or flavored teas in? Also, what does Gong Fu mean?
Even if you think something is obvious, please explain it to me. I'm trying to learn everything! Thank you all so much!
If you are anything like the rest of us, you are going to need it all. Let's start with gong fu.
"Gong fu cha" can be a rather rehearsed tea ceremony. You may know about the Japanese tea ceremony which prescribes every movement. Around here, we are mostly interested in extracting the practical elements. The most important part of this is using small teaware to create a high leaf-to-water ratio.
This allows for many infusions, because it takes less time to brew with more leaf, and less tea for you to drink. Masters are very interested in the slight nuances between each infusion.
You can start out by practicing with lots of leaf, small batches by getting a porcelain gaiwan. It doesn't pick up flavors from your other teas, and it is good for trying new things.
If you are a big fan of chinese tea and the gong fu method, you might want to find two small Yixing pots to dedicate to your favorite tea (jade oolong, shou puerh?). How granular you get here is up to you, just don't mix puerh and light oolongs in the same pot as a habit. These pots have rather good heat retention, and the natural properties of the clay are said to produce a more mellow cup.
I am sure plenty of people here will chime in on sencha.
As far as teaware is concerned, the side handled kyusu with a hand made clay sasame is the way to go. A mesh strainer is usually a sign of a lesser pot, but this is only my experience. For the best value, you really need a Fukugata (red clay kyusu from Tokoname, Japan) sold in the US by Rishi. The Tokoname region is the Yixing of Japan and produces the best in hand crafted pottery tea ware.
"Gong fu cha" can be a rather rehearsed tea ceremony. You may know about the Japanese tea ceremony which prescribes every movement. Around here, we are mostly interested in extracting the practical elements. The most important part of this is using small teaware to create a high leaf-to-water ratio.
This allows for many infusions, because it takes less time to brew with more leaf, and less tea for you to drink. Masters are very interested in the slight nuances between each infusion.
You can start out by practicing with lots of leaf, small batches by getting a porcelain gaiwan. It doesn't pick up flavors from your other teas, and it is good for trying new things.
If you are a big fan of chinese tea and the gong fu method, you might want to find two small Yixing pots to dedicate to your favorite tea (jade oolong, shou puerh?). How granular you get here is up to you, just don't mix puerh and light oolongs in the same pot as a habit. These pots have rather good heat retention, and the natural properties of the clay are said to produce a more mellow cup.
I am sure plenty of people here will chime in on sencha.
As far as teaware is concerned, the side handled kyusu with a hand made clay sasame is the way to go. A mesh strainer is usually a sign of a lesser pot, but this is only my experience. For the best value, you really need a Fukugata (red clay kyusu from Tokoname, Japan) sold in the US by Rishi. The Tokoname region is the Yixing of Japan and produces the best in hand crafted pottery tea ware.
In regards to a kyuusu. If the kyuusu is clay it is best not to mix say, sencha and black tea. But, if the kyuusu is a glazed ceramic, you can use any tea you so desire.
As far as the infuser, I don't agree that if the infuser at the spout is made of stainless steel it is a lesser pot. That being said, if you buy one with stainless steel mesh, try to buy one that is just at the spout, and does not go all the way around the inside.
The question is effectiveness. Stainless steel mesh at the spout will make just as fine a cup of tea as clay infuser at the entrance of the spout. In that sense, I do not buy that one is superior to the other and I've used both.
As far as the infuser, I don't agree that if the infuser at the spout is made of stainless steel it is a lesser pot. That being said, if you buy one with stainless steel mesh, try to buy one that is just at the spout, and does not go all the way around the inside.
The question is effectiveness. Stainless steel mesh at the spout will make just as fine a cup of tea as clay infuser at the entrance of the spout. In that sense, I do not buy that one is superior to the other and I've used both.
Re: Just checking...
The cups don't matter so much. Having some small chinese cups, some japanese yunomi, and a japanese chawan(tea bowl) is a very complete selection. Yet I only have a chawan, some chinese cups, and big american cups, I do fine.Prismac wrote:what sorts of cups should I get? What are glass teapots good for? Just flowering teas?
What do you brew herbal teas or flavored teas in?
Glass teapots are usually giant, and because of their size are good for english style brewing of black teas. Glass in general is good for flavored teas because it doesn't absorb or change any of the flavor.
I brew herbal blends in my glazed gaiwan, and use a mesh filter to keep little bits (like rooibos and chamomile) from entering my cup. On the rare occasion that I drink a flavored tea, I brew it with my glass infuser. Yuzucha(which is a flavored), I brew in my tokoname, but feel guilty about it.
I also think it's worth noting, be mindful about the size of the teaware you buy. For example, my primary kyuusu will hold 6 ounces tops. And, for personal use, anything over 8 ounces would be too large.
For some reason, teapots out there are often just gigantic. So, be mindful of what your ideal amount of tea is and if you drink tea alone or with others mostly
For some reason, teapots out there are often just gigantic. So, be mindful of what your ideal amount of tea is and if you drink tea alone or with others mostly
Dec 3rd, '07, 17:21
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When it comes to what kind of teaware to use for what kind of tea, the main thing would be to use teaware that was developed in the country of origin for the tea you are drinking. So use Japanese teapots for Japanese teas and Chinese teaware for Chinese teas. You can certainly mix things up, but if you start with that then you will have a better idea of what you can use for what later on.
Glass is alright, but it's a poor conductor of heat. It has a tendency to keep the heat in until it reaches a certain point before releasing it (and not necessarily evenly), which is why glass frying pans tend to burn food (perhaps the cooks among us can elaborate). I just wouldn't use it until you have a grasp on the basics except perhaps, as mentioned, for some black teas.
The main thing that's going to make a difference is the heat properties of each vessel. A gaiwan is very thin and allows heat to dissipate quickly. A gaiwan can be used for just about any Chinese tea with good results, but especially for the lighter teas like greens. The yixing teaware (they make yixing gaiwans) retain heat very well and so will do even better for teas on the darker end of the spectrum - even some of the jade oolongs can sometimes turn out a bit better. Things like yixing will extract the deeper flavors, so the lighter teas would likely just get oversteeped. Lots of blogs, as well as the chat, go into how to brew different teas. Look around, and don't be afraid to ask if you need or want help on any particular tea.
Gong fu is another spelling of kung fu, and just means "to do with skill". When it comes down to it, though, all you're really doing is brewing with smaller vessels. It does take a little getting used to (eg getting the amount of leaf and steeping time for each tea), but it's really not as difficult as it may seem at first.
Hope that helps.
Glass is alright, but it's a poor conductor of heat. It has a tendency to keep the heat in until it reaches a certain point before releasing it (and not necessarily evenly), which is why glass frying pans tend to burn food (perhaps the cooks among us can elaborate). I just wouldn't use it until you have a grasp on the basics except perhaps, as mentioned, for some black teas.
The main thing that's going to make a difference is the heat properties of each vessel. A gaiwan is very thin and allows heat to dissipate quickly. A gaiwan can be used for just about any Chinese tea with good results, but especially for the lighter teas like greens. The yixing teaware (they make yixing gaiwans) retain heat very well and so will do even better for teas on the darker end of the spectrum - even some of the jade oolongs can sometimes turn out a bit better. Things like yixing will extract the deeper flavors, so the lighter teas would likely just get oversteeped. Lots of blogs, as well as the chat, go into how to brew different teas. Look around, and don't be afraid to ask if you need or want help on any particular tea.
Gong fu is another spelling of kung fu, and just means "to do with skill". When it comes down to it, though, all you're really doing is brewing with smaller vessels. It does take a little getting used to (eg getting the amount of leaf and steeping time for each tea), but it's really not as difficult as it may seem at first.
Hope that helps.
Last edited by ABx on Dec 3rd, '07, 17:27, edited 1 time in total.
Dec 3rd, '07, 17:26
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It seems the longer we drink tea, the smaller our teaware becomes.
I have a bunch of completely impractical, oversized teaware from when I began drinking tea in 1999 that for the most part adorns the very back of my upper most cabinets for good reason. I may lay my eyes on this stuff once a year and think I should get rid of it, but it was so frickin' expensive.
I have a bunch of completely impractical, oversized teaware from when I began drinking tea in 1999 that for the most part adorns the very back of my upper most cabinets for good reason. I may lay my eyes on this stuff once a year and think I should get rid of it, but it was so frickin' expensive.
blah blah blah SENCHA blah blah blah!!!
Dec 3rd, '07, 17:38
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Space Samurai
I reccomend starting off with a glaxed teapot (I'd get one between 8-13 oz, but its up to you), and experiment and see what kinds of tea you like and go from there.
I have none of the teapots I started off with, not even my first Tokoname purchases. This is because it took me some time to figure it all out (I did most of this before I had discovered the benefit of TeaChat), and I went through six - seven teapots before I got to the ones that started my current collection. So unless money isn't an issue for you, start with an affordable all purpose pot.
Since artisan teapots tend to be porous, if you want a collection of that nature, you will need a pot for each type of tea at least. So experiment, and if you find you really like a specific tea, start by picking out a nice pot for that type.
Abx's advice about matching the tea ware and the tea with the country they are from is sound advice, though I think you can use Japanese teaware for Chinese tea with better results than if you were to try it the other way around.
Bamboo and I have different ideas about kyusu size. I like to make tea 7-8 oz at a time, so I'm quite happy with a pot between the above mentioned 8-13 oz. (For gong fu though, I like 3-5 oz, 5 oz being absolute tops.
As you can see, we all have different ideas about what's best, so remember these are just guidelines and find out what works best with you, and don't spend too much on one pot before you are reasonably sure.
I have none of the teapots I started off with, not even my first Tokoname purchases. This is because it took me some time to figure it all out (I did most of this before I had discovered the benefit of TeaChat), and I went through six - seven teapots before I got to the ones that started my current collection. So unless money isn't an issue for you, start with an affordable all purpose pot.
Since artisan teapots tend to be porous, if you want a collection of that nature, you will need a pot for each type of tea at least. So experiment, and if you find you really like a specific tea, start by picking out a nice pot for that type.
Abx's advice about matching the tea ware and the tea with the country they are from is sound advice, though I think you can use Japanese teaware for Chinese tea with better results than if you were to try it the other way around.
Bamboo and I have different ideas about kyusu size. I like to make tea 7-8 oz at a time, so I'm quite happy with a pot between the above mentioned 8-13 oz. (For gong fu though, I like 3-5 oz, 5 oz being absolute tops.
As you can see, we all have different ideas about what's best, so remember these are just guidelines and find out what works best with you, and don't spend too much on one pot before you are reasonably sure.
Dec 4th, '07, 09:24
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I agree with Space about starting off with a glazed teapot, not too large. The 6 cup ceramic teapot I have is used mostly for when company comes, so I also have a 2 cup (12 oz) one. These are great because they won't retain flavors and you can use just about anything in them. Herbals, flavored teas, etc. Just rinse your infuser well...
For the glass teapots, you can use them with various kinds of tea - not just the blooming. They tend to work best with a warmer to maintain temp. Makes a pretty presentation!
During the day, I change up my tea selection frequently and keep it as simple as a favorite mug and a cylindrical infuser, or lately, my little gaiwan for a great bao zhong I received as a gift.
For the glass teapots, you can use them with various kinds of tea - not just the blooming. They tend to work best with a warmer to maintain temp. Makes a pretty presentation!
During the day, I change up my tea selection frequently and keep it as simple as a favorite mug and a cylindrical infuser, or lately, my little gaiwan for a great bao zhong I received as a gift.