Tea on the go

[Deleted User #27345]

Dear Tea people,

I'm a designer and currently have a project concerning tea kettles. I'm choosing to look at tea drinking on the go with tea enthusiasts as my target market.

I've been looking at the topic, Tea at Work - http://www.teachat.com/viewtopic.php?t=6495

And while some of the set-ups look cool, none look to practical, and I think there's room for improvement. Especially when you consider being on the go, weekend away, travelling, day out, whatever. I'm thinking of something that you can fit in your bag, no hassle but as good as anything else out there. And most importantly I don't want to lose that DIY experience, from what I've read you guys seem proud of the fact that you're tea experts and are proud to show it.

So since I'm not big tea drinker (sorry) I was hoping you could answer a few questions?
- What exactly do you need to make a good cup of tea, am I right in thinking you need the kettle to brew the tea, container for tea leaves, electric kettle to heat water, spoon (i love the little timers btw) etc etc. An explanation into whats going on here would be great:


- Are there any products out there similar to what I'm dreaming of here?
- What do you guys do on the go? Would you like a more dedicated product?
- Am I treading on your guys toes here, would you prefer a dedicated product?
- what do you think of the sorapot? sorapot.com



I think user research is vital in a project like this since my tea experience isn't the greatest. So any help on the subject would be much appreciated...

Thanks for your time,

J

[cheaton]

For me I would say the kettle is the most important thing. Teaware, especially gong fu Yixing style stuff is small and portable. It would be nice to have a small electric kettle (something in the neighborhood of 4 cups). Also important to me would be to limit the use of plastics in construction to parts that don't contact the water. Not only is there a potential to affect the taste, but also leech off chemicals. So a steel, ceramic, or glass lined kettle that heated water quickly, small enough to fit on a small cubicle desk, insulated enough to prevent burns from touching the outside, and as "organic" as possible with no plastics where it contacts the water.

For what it's worth.... Sorapot looks cool but it's a bit more complex than a teapot needs to be in my opinion. Classic teapot design works just fine.

[Deleted User #27345]

Thanks for the quick reply Cheaton. Don't know if you knew but there's a international design competition going on right now for tea kettles, quite popular in the design community. So I don't really want to give away the direction I'm considering right now since this forum is fairly easy to find through a google search. But your opinions and ideas have defiantly been took on board. Your right about the materials, infact the comp limits you and your only allowed to use ceramic, metal or glass...

... What is important at these early stages is I know the process you guys go through, say your off on a trip out tommorow, I don't know, lets say a picnic, and you want some good tea, what would you take with you and what process would you go through? Pics would be great, but any help much appreciated!

[Deleted User #27345]

oh and also I'm a bit confused when it comes to boiling the water... Do you guys boil water with a normal kettle then pour the hot water into the tea kettle along with the leaves?

Or are the kettles used to boil the water aswell?

[shogun89]

jase.coop you wouldn't by any chance be going to Philadelphia University would you? My sister is there and told me she is doing a similar project. Just wondering.

[Deleted User #27345]

Miles off, i'm in London, UK. But I'm not suprised, its a good project and i imagine a lot of college professors will use it as projects for students...

... Now you can see why I'm going to keep my ideas as quiet as possible, the design community is a small world.

[scruffmcgruff]

Kettles are always used to heat/boil water. Tea pots are what contain the leaves, and is where you pour water that has been heated in the kettle.

I think it's a bit odd that you call our setups impractical, say there's room for improvement, and then admit to not knowing the difference between a tea kettle and a tea pot. I know you didn't mean it to be offensive, I'm just saying. The "impractical" tea setups you see are not designed to be completely streamlined, they are designed to give the best results.

I guess the most important question I have for you is whether you are designing tea kettles or pots, as there is quite a distinction.

The absolute least amount of teaware you need is a cup and a kettle. A very common method of drinking tea in China is simply dumping some leaf in a cup, filling it with hot (but not boiling) water, and refilling as needed. That said, I think most of us prefer to have more control over steep times, which necessitates a brewing vessel (be it a teapot or gaiwan) separate from the drinking cup.

[Deleted User #27345]

Scruff, Thanks for schooling me and clearing up any confusion.
i knew I may offend people using the word 'inpratical', though i didnt mean to, sorry. i'm looking at this from a non-drinking designers point of view. It's our job to be critical. So apoligies for my ignorance. If I say something totally stupid, just tell me.

Kettle/Pot. thanks for that. its exactly why i'm here. the competition is for a tea kettle. though its early stages and radical concepts are the way to go, so i dont see why a kettle and pot can't be one.

The "impractical" tea setups you see are not designed to be completely streamlined, they are designed to give the best results.

It is my aim to design something that is 'steamline' and gives the best results, taken you, the user, into as much consideration as possible. As you can see I need guidance, this is the research stage and I need to know as much as I can about tea before progressing.

Sorry again for being offensive. But hopefully I can design a product that we're both happy with with your guys help.

So set me straight if I'm chatting rubbish!

[scruffmcgruff]

I'm not offended, don't worry.

I suppose you *could* combine a kettle and pot in one, but you would have to design it so the leaves are not boiled along with the water or subjected to heat/steam. There are gadgets like the Zarafina and those pod coffee/tea makers, if you want to see what's already out there. Also take a look at Adagio's ingenuitea, it's also an attempt to make tea brewing more efficient, though it isn't actually a kettle.

Also, I am probably not your target audience, as I'm not one for gimmicks and modern equipment. Frankly, neither are most who have a setup similar to the one in the picture you posted. That said, there are plenty of people on this forum who aren't into traditional setups, so don't give up on all of us.

[TIM]

This might be the most steamlined product on the market:

http://www.kagaboucha.co.jp/04shop/no0015.html

But as a designer myself. Researches, understand and being the end user is the first step for a good design. Good Luck. T

[wyardley]

I have a cheapie little set from China that looks like this (something about $2 or $3 there at most, maybe $9 or $10 in the US). The gaiwan fits inside the cha hai for transport, with the gaiwan lid inverted, and then the cups (6 or so of them) fit on the other side. Usually these kits come with metal tweezers to wash the cups, but mine didn't.


The cha hai (pitcher) doesn't pour very gracefully, which is a big pain since I don't usually have a tea tray available, but that's the way it goes. I usually bring a tea towel to brew on top of, and find something to dump my waste-water in.

I've made do with this set without a kettle, using whatever hot water is available, though if I'm travelling locally, I'll usually bring a metal Chinese electric kettle with me.

For your project, I would keep it simple. For my purposes, at least, a very small kettle that heats quickly would be ideal, and the kettle itself should be stainless steel or something (not ideal, but better than plastic!).

[eanglin]

The problem with having a pot and kettle in one is your heating element, I think.
Heating elements continue to radiate heat after the current is removed. This will keep the temperature the same or cause it to raise slightly before dropping.

In traditional tea brewing temperature is critical- too much heat and some teas will 'stew'- become bitter and nasty tasting, just like any overcooked vegetable.

Tea enthusiasts have a variety of ways of assessing when the water temperature is 'just right'. Watching the size of the bubbles forming on the bottom, listening to the sunds their kettle makes and yes, even using a thermometer. There is an appliance that electrically heats water and will hold it at precisely the set temperature. (Google zojirushi for one brand.)

Then the water is introduced to the tea. Here come a million variations, depending on the type of tea, the available equipment and individual preference. Al will, for the gourmet, influence the way the tea turns out.

Nearly everyone preheats their teapoit, cup or gaiwan- this keeps the temperature of the water from dropping too sharply when it hits the porcelain. (Or silver, glass or what have you, but lets keep this simple.) Some times you pour the water directly over the leaves, from a bit of a height, to stir up, moisten and wash the leaves. This rinse water is usually thrown out.

The next pour may be direct, snuck down the side of the vessel, pored onto a lid held at an angle before it hits the leaves or any of a number of methods depending on how much heat and stirring up is desirable for a given tea.

The brewing vessel is then (Usually) closed and you wait for a given time while it steeps. Some people like to pour more hot water over the pot to maintian the temperature, other teas give best flavor if they cool somewhat as they steep- different flavors are released at lower/different temperatures and you get a rounder flavor profile if you treat the tea properly.

Then comes the pour. Ideally it should be fairly fast so that the first bit of tea isn't too different from the last bit out of the pot. (Longer steep time) Also, its nice to have fairly few leaves end up in the cup. Pots that have effective screening mechanisms that don't restrict leaf movement are valued- take a look into the elaborate and delicate ball filters on Japanese teapots designed for green teas that tend to have broken up leaves.

If your assignment is kettles, you are designing the vessel that heats the water.
I have often wished for a kettle with a bult in thermometer that tells me the temperature of the water in the MIDDLE of the tea kettle- not the hotter temperature at the sides of the kettle.

I often burn my fingers holding an instant read thermometer in my tea kettle- steam is pervasive! If there was a thermometer built into the handle with a sensor that extends down into the middle of the teakettle then I would know exactly when the temperature was right for whatever tea I am brewing.
This would make me a happy person.

How about a butane fueled kettle that can be used as you mentioned, on a picnic, with no need for alcohol burners, charcoal or propane grills? I once had a butane fueled curling iron that used little sealed cartridges to provide near instant heat.
I'd love a little kettle that wasn't dependent on having a stove or electricity and didn't use messy or large fuel sources.

Good luck!

[Victoria]

This might be the most steamlined product on the market:

http://www.kagaboucha.co.jp/04shop/no0015.html

But as a designer myself. Researches, understand and being the end user is the first step for a good design. Good Luck. T

Right TIM, I agree. As much maligned as bags are, you can't beat the fillable ones for travel. All you need is hot water. I have a brewing vessel very much like this one but double walled.

Gotta say I love the design and look of the Sorapot.
I see myself owning one eventually for the visual pleasure of it.

[Deleted User #27345]

Also, I am probably not your target audience, as I'm not one for gimmicks and modern equipment. Frankly, neither are most who have a setup similar to the one in the picture you posted.

Scruff, you're advice is invaluable for that reason. If I can deliver a product that is marketable and pleases you, surely that's a success. I want to explore how a modern set-up could appeal to you? Is it simply down to whatever produces the best results? In this case, where can I learn what factors determine a great cup of tea?

Or is it that you just appreciate the traditional, more soulful, character side of it? Like a vinyl record collector?

How can I convert you Scruff?
From your tone i gathered that you're not that big of a fan on the ingenuitea tea pot. To me it looks like a solid solution, I see it more 'practical' than the set-ups discussed before. The reviews seem good enough, so why is it you guys still stick with your traditional setups?
[/img]http://www.amazing-green-tea.com/image- ... ot.jpg[img]

Tim _ I'm going to buy a tea pot and attempt at being the end-user this weekend.

Wyardley_ Thanks for the insight!

I'd love a little kettle that wasn't dependent on having a stove or electricity and didn't use messy or large fuel sources.

Hhhhmmm. Great reply! Very thought provoking. I may be missing something here, but if the kettle was suitable, could you not put your tea leaves inside the kettle once boiled to the right temp. and let it steep in there? Eliminating the need of transferring the water into a tea pot?
Thanks for the reply Eanglin, I imagine i'll be constantly referencing it.

[TIM]

way to go Jase.coop. Thats a great designer spirit! Let us know if you have any question on brewing.... That will be a very interesting journey for you.