A Tea Addict's Journal

Thursday June 15, 2006

June 15, 2006 · 1 Comment

I did something very unorthodox today… and deserve to go to tea hell for it…

I brewed Chaozhou Gongfu tea in a gaiwan.

I suppose it’s not that bad a deal, although I think any Chaozhou native will give me the finger. Since it is basically a very high fire oolong, it is properly made in a fairly small Chaozhou pot, with lots of leaves (1/2 full, or more) and all. More importantly, you crush some leaves first and put it in the bottom of the pot, and then put whole leaves on top. This makes the flavours come out more.

I did that, but it’s not the same. With a pot the leaves don’t really move at all, but the way a gaiwan is shaped some of the crushed leaves moved a bit after my rinse. Maybe my gongfu isn’t good enough.

Anyway, the tea itself tasted great. It’s always a caffeine buzz, and today I found some really nice, subtle aromas in the tea. I can only describe it as 幽香. A slightly melancholic, reserved aroma that has strong character but not overpoweringly so.

Which is sort of the wrong flavour to get from this tea.

But whatever, I’m not a Chaozhou native.

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