Green Tea Preparation: Tips & Suggestions?

[Topmounter]

I'm relatively new to loose-leaf tea (months not years) and am drinking mainly Japanese Greens right now (Sencha, Genmaicha and Houjicha). I'm looking for tips on how to improve my green tea preparation process.

I'm using a PUR pitcher and a Zojirushi kettle for my water. I've been using the Den's "special offer" Kyusu tea pot and a ceramic tea cup that the Kyusu fills perfectly. I also have a Curve infuser tea cup. I'm in Colorado and at altitude, so I'm lucky if I can get my water to 180 degrees Fahrenheit out of the Zoji kettle.

I'm considering buying a cast iron Tetsubin for boiling my water. I'm thinking this would allow me to max my water temperature when needed and I've read that this should improve the quality of the water over the Zoji kettle. Also, does anyone here brew in a Tetsubin? I like the idea of making 2 or 3 cups at a time and keeping it warm in the kettle instead of one cup at a time with the Kyusu.

The cast iron Tetsubins aren't cheap and I want to make sure I'm headed in the right direction... any tips or suggestions are greatly appreciated

[chingwa]

I use a tetsubin to heat my water and I have experienced a definite positive change in the taste of my tea (mostly Japanese greens as well).

Tetsubin aren't normally meant to brew tea in. Not that you can't, mind you, but you need to be careful about water sitting in them for any extended period of time. I heat the water in the tetsubin and pour it all out quickly once it's to temperature. The longer the water sits in contact with the iron the quicker the iron will rust and thus ruin your nice expensive tetsubin. the trick is to pour the water out while the kettle is still piping hot, then the remaining heat will naturally evaporate the remaining moisture completely... if you don't do this... rust.

you could get an enameled "tetsubin" to keep the tea warm in... or even brew it in there if you're careful of the temperature...

[Topmounter]

Oh and that was another question...

I haven't seen many Tetsubins that didn't include an infuser and weren't enameled. Will an unlined Tetsubin benefit the water after I've run it through the PUR filter? I think I have pretty good tap water (surface water originating from snow melt), but they do treat it with chlorine and fluoride. So far I have noticed little, if any, discernible difference between my water pre and post filter.

Artistic-Nippon has both enameled and un-enameled. They specifically recommend against boiling water in an enameled Tetsubin (just brewing and low heat to keep it warm). However the cast iron kettles with enameled interiors on Teavana's site have no such warning.

If I'm using an unlined Tetsubin to heat the water, what is ideal then for brewing? Does a Yixing clay teapot benefit Japanese greens? Or am I just as well off with my current Kyusu from Den's?

This was all so much simpler when I was just using tea bags... and a lot less fun and rewarding

[Chip]

Stick with kyusu-s for brewing. Tetsubins are kind of tricky to brew with, pretty hard to regulate the temp, etc. Plus you are using a little backet instead of allowing the leaf to expand in the full pot like a kyusu.

If you do brew in a tetsubin, use and unlined one, and indeed never heat water with an enameled one. (I personally would not even put a lined one on a tealight warmer)

[chingwa]

regardless of whether you're given a warning or not, you should never put an enameled iron teapot over a heat source. the iron will heat up and expand differently than the enamel which will lead to cracking and eventual rusting, and holes forming. and even if you ignored this you wouldn't get any benefit by heating water in these pots anyway, since there is no actual contact between the water and the iron surface. (and really, who's to say what chemicals are released when that enamel heats up...)

In contrast an iron tetsubin kettle (unlined) will still have an effect on the water regardless of the source. Tetsubin ought to have a raw iron interior... actually "activated" or "reduced" iron interior which appears as a powdery grey/blue color. It is this reduced iron that changes the taste of the water in a way more suitable to green teas. Also, at least I've found, the more I use the tetsubin the more it affects the water.

for brewing green tea I would say most people will use a kyusu, as you already have. A yixing pot, or other type of clay pot or clay kyusu could be a good choice too, though you would probably want to keep these in use with only one type of tea as they tend to absorb flavor and essence over time which will affect the true taste of other teas.

In addition depending on the tea you are brewing it may be best to use a different type of pot. gyokuro apparently is best brewed in a wider vessel like a low/wide kyusu or Chinese gaiwan. (though I've brewed plenty of gyokuro in a normal kyusu myself... still tastes great ). In the end it all just comes down to preference really... and as you said, the fun of exploration.

[Topmounter]

Awesome information... exactly what I was looking for... glad I didn't pull the trigger on a lined Tetsubin now. This weekend I stumbled upon a Teavana retail store in Denver and was tempted to buy a lined Tetsubin.

Now I go in search of an un-lined Tetsubin

[bcos]

Teavana is a plague!

[Topmounter]

I ordered an un-lined Tetsubin from Artistic-Nippon and it shipped today. I also couldn't help myself from ordering a ridiculously expensive (in my opinion) tea cup that I absolutely fell in love with the moment I saw it.

Of course as soon as I placed that order, I dropped the lid to my Kyusu and broke it

[spot52]

I had the same pot from Den's. I love the style and size, but after the first use...I dropped it in the sink and broke the handle. I glued it. But when that sucker is wet, it is slippery. I have never dropped a teapot before.