Gong Fu Tea|chA - Episode 11 - Green Tea (綠茶 | lǜchá)

[@donotseemecricket]

Green tea (like all tea) can be aged, tho it is very rare to find tea that was done so purposefully. The thing is the water content first has to be fully removed from the tea before it can start to fully oxidise and so it will take much longer to age properly, and there is that period where it tastes stale, but if it is kept from air heat and moisture, over a number of years it will eventually turn into an oxidised green tea that is very unique. Global Tea Hut discussed this in a 60s/70s aged sencha they came across in Taiwan.

[@Chlorophilic]

Thank you so much for making these videos! Know that you are producing something special here. There's a rare blend of knowledge, aesthetichs, character, authenticity, inspiration and immersion. I'm very much looking forward to each new episode. Keep up the good work =)

[@maxm3515]

I fully agree. This channel is amazing! It makes me want to come visit them in Austin :)

[@donnakawana]

I'm new to all this and I am taking everything in an so grateful for the education...your a tea master...to me...

[@argonwheatbelly637]

Thank you for coming back! This is both educational and fun!

[@marryannconcon-nidoy666]

I never liked green tea but after this episode and by following your lead, I've realized what I've been missing all along. Thank you so much! More power to you and this channel.

[@FreezerKing]

I don't mind bitterness in a tea, but it has to be there naturally, not introduced in the brewing, if that makes sense.

[@Viniter]

While I really appreciate this traditional, near artistic approach to gong fu, I think there's a time and place for just using a thermometer and scales and simply making a delicious cup of tea.

[@TeaHouseGhost]

Oh without a doubt! Everyone makes tea in the way that works for them at that time!

[@philippc]

Fully agree. For most work weeks, I wouldn't have time for "a proper session" and simply not drink good tea, or squeezing in brewing sessions in a stressed manner which defeats the purpose, rather than just doing what I do now, scaling down a little and just using a gaiwan or one of those button infusing things and enjoying some tea that way at my desk. Leaves me appreciating nice long sessions with a decorated cha pan in the weekends so much more

[@timpuget]

Hey So Han. Big thanks for this series!!

[@TeaHouseGhost]

Thanks for watching! So Han extends his thanks as well!

[@MasKpt]

First and foremost, thank you for this series. Loving it so far. I've got a question: at the end of the video you mention that the chinese traditional way of drinking it is directly from the gaiwan. Doesn't leaving the leaves to "cook" in the gaiwan for a long period of time make the tea bitter and less pleasant to drink?

[@TeaHouseGhost]

So glad you like the show!! You're correct that leaving the leaves in would make it bitter. It is my understanding that, when the plan is to not separate the water from the leaves, less leaves are used to offset the potential for bitterness. You can also use cooler water.

[@GenevaSorenson]

I just had my first try at green tea this way and it was definitely a learning experience! My second try and gong fu cha ever and green tea is definitely trickier. I'm excited to keep learning and to do better next time.

[@countdudoo]

So happy it's back!

[@TeaHouseGhost]

countdudoo we are too!!

[@MayerTheYouTubeSlayer]

Legitimately laughed at the *bloop* noise - and the genius of the simplicity of reversing the gaiwan. Any reco’s for a 120ml pot with a spout? Thanks for making all this content!

[@RavenclawSeer]

Whoa your hair grew fast! Glad you're back!

[@TeaHouseGhost]

Ravenclaw Seer hahaha we actually recorded this episode last Summer, originally planning on having it as part of season 1, but then changed it up when we settled on season 2 being the types of tea

[@tanghingtung5897]

Learnt so much! Thanks... just wondering do the concepts you introduced apply to Japanese matcha (also a green tea)?

[@TeaHouseGhost]

These same concepts certainly can be applied to matcha (allowing for some augmentation and experimentation), though Japanese tea culture also has its own traditions for getting the most out of that kind of tea (and these traditions are beautiful as well!). I'd encourage you to study both tea practices and then use those to develop your own that works for you!

[@Artzenflowers]

Love this episode !

[@annielee6249]

I love this video program

[@inaddess]

I hope one day I can visit your teahouse! I love the bat motif on the teaware.

[@TeaHouseGhost]

Mrs. Stephanie M. Snider if you ever find yourself in Austin, for sure pay us a visit!

[@20cdesign]

it is magical!!

[@Marina-oq1th]

I'd be really interested in a video on how to drink directly from the gaiwan (might be obvious but I guess there is a certain technique I am not getting). Love your videos!!!! Learning so much, just bought my first tea set aaahhh

[@sunstar2599]

Yes . I also have small tea cups looking like gaiwan. The shop keeper told me its not a modern way of drinking tea. Nobody drinks like this anymore. But i would definitely be excited of there was a vid how to drink directly from a small -gaiwan- looking -tea cup👍

[@MrAqr2598]

Another way to enjoy green tea is to extract it with ice water. (This is a Japanese method mostly enjoyed by tea farmers. I don’t know whether or not Chinese people do this.)

[@TeaHouseGhost]

I'll need to try this!

[@MrAqr2598]

@@TeaHouseGhost If it’s for a couple of servings, 10 grams(1/3 oz.) of tea to 100ml(little less than 1/2 cup) of ice water. It will take several minutes to “steep”, so doing it like gong fu cha will probably make it very faint for the first several extractions.

[@MrAqr2598]

It changes a little in a larger scale. About 10g(1/3 oz) to 1 liter(little over 1 quart) of ice water, but you let it extract for 40~90 minutes in the fridge. It will have a complex flavor profile than the small scale, but will still taste good.

[@adriannealvord9023]

I love this video so much! I love fine green teas! I just signed up for the monthly tea subscription with your West China tea company and cancelled my usual tea subscription. I’m really looking forward to trying teas from west China tea company 🥰🍵🥰🍵🥰🍵🥰Thank you so much 🙏❤️

[@TeaHouseGhost]

So excited for you on your tea journey!!

[@zhubajie6940]

Excellent. Do more! FYI simplified: 蒙顶甘露; traditional: 蒙頂甘露; pinyin: Méngdǐng Gānlù; literally: "Meng Peak Sweet Dew". Tried it in a shop in Dufu Cottage area near the Poet's Museum along with Zhu Ye Qing tea of course. Interesting. Quite a bit different from what I had learned elsewhere for green tea. About a minute in crab eye water (water boiling stopped when crab eye size bubbles are created). Of course, non-Gongfu teas among the “working joes” like boatmen on the West Lake in Hangzhou or the Mahjong players in Wangjianglou Park in Chengdu, a mason jar like glass with a load green tea is continuously replenished with water from the ubiquitous green thermos bottle all day long.

[@TeaHouseGhost]

Zhu Bajie thanks for all this great info! Appreciate you providing the Chinese characters as well!

[@20cdesign]

you are awesome man!!

[@user-cv2pi3yx9s]

I didn't expect to see music by Louie Zong here, cool!

[@TeaHouseGhost]

You're the first to say something! Louie is great!

[@OysterPir8]

I was told, the other day, by a woman who has been working in Chinese tea factories for 30 years, that I shouldn't be making green teas in ceramic or clay gaiwans. She said it is best prepared in glass. Her English is hard for me to understand but I think she was saying it had something to do with the heat. She also said that the gaiwan that I was using (about 140 ml) was for commercial use and too big for gongfu cha. I couldn't really understand her explanation why. Do you know what she was talking about?

[@TeaHouseGhost]

So glass is, in fact, quite good for steeping green teas because they leech heat (they lose heat to the air) and green tea often likes cooler temps. I have also been advised to use glass for green tea by a knowledgeable elderly tea friend in China. That being said, it's not wrong to make green tea in a clay gaiwan or teapot. Aesthetic quality and personal affection for a piece of teaware can be just as important as its physical efficacy when choosing which vessels to use. It always comes down to how you're feeling that session.

[@TeaHouseGhost]

As far as size - again - it's your preference! And about how many people you're serving! When I'm serving 10 people, I need a bigger gaiwan. But I use about a 140ml size gaiwan at home just for myself all the time. It's whatever you like!

[@TheVigilantStewards]

I notice between episode 10 and 11 6-8 months have passed and your pour style changed from "ergonomic tilt" classical as you called it to hamburger. Actually I take that back, in the other video when you used this Gaiwan I think you used hamburger grip so I'm going to assume you just change it up and this is your hamburger grip gaiwan haha. I think these videos and your presentations are of such quality that this is worthy of DVD. Good to know that terroir = di wei

[@TeaHouseGhost]

So Han likes to change it up fairly regularly. And yeah the production of the show can be slow at times as we all have jobs and stuff outside of the show and are making it on our own dimes. Good to get good with multiple grips!

[@chillcooking3119]

So-han looks like a teenage girl when his hair goes that long😂, thank you for the Tea knowledge 👍🏻

[@marcoossidiana5596]

I don't know if I can ask a question, but I'll try. Some people steep japanese green teas for 1-2 minutes in very hot water (90° celsius) in kyusus or gaiwans. Also, they use a very small amount of leaves. I'd like to ask you: is this just a wrong way of steeping or is it a different and equally valid technique?

[@TeaHouseGhost]

In my book, there is no wrong way to steep tea. If it tastes good and makes you feel good, you're doing it right! If it tastes bad, try something different next time!

[@marcoossidiana5596]

Thank you for the answer and also for these videos

[@shadowspectrum]

I realize that this is an old comment, but I thought I'd leave a reply as it's something I know a little about--I've been making sencha a lot longer than I've been into Chinese teas, though I tend to drink more puerh nowadays than anything. Use anywhere from 0.4 to 1 gram of leaf per ounce of water. For higher quality teas, you'd use closer to 1:1, 1 gram per 1 ounce of water, which is about half of what you'd use for gong fu, as I think an ounce is 30 ml off the top of my head. The size of your kyusu is important, as you don't want to fill it to the top, more like half to 2/3rds full tops. You pour sencha slowly, and it's nice when you don't have leaves stick to the lid of your pot. Using either a variable temp kettle (though a lot of Japanese will say to heat the water to boiling first and then cool) or a yuzamashi (a water cooler, pour boiling water into your kyusu to preheat, then from your kyusu pour into your water cooler to further cool ), you want water anywhere from 160-185 F. The higher the quality tea, the lower you usually want to go. 176 F is a good medium I will usually start at. Japanese tea is best with soft water (

[@ullaconrad9]

@@shadowspectrum really appreciated that comment, thanks!

[@Kinochai]

Man, even though im in America, I measure my tea temp in celsius, so hearing reference to Fahrenheit temps really confuses me lol, i feel like i have no basis. I imagine one day I'd like to be able to not weigh my leaves or control my temperature, but at least for now i like my system so i don't see the need lol, but it does seem cool

[@TeaHouseGhost]

@@Kinochai I, Echo, also measure temp in Celsius when I do measure temp

[@chaosung8655]

What size gaiwan are you using here? I am on the lookout for a good size recommendation. A lot of the ones i find are too small.

[@TeaHouseGhost]

This one is prob between 120 and 140 mL

[@chaosung8655]

@@TeaHouseGhost thanks a bunch buddy!

[@wreams2964]

Came here from Modern Rogue!

[@bradleymorgan8223]

I didn't know it was possible to put that many accent mark on a U

[@sunstar2599]

Mister do you have a vid that shows the effect of differentiality of puring technik ,temperature of series of teas on its tast??

[@TeaHouseGhost]

It's kinda different for each tea! Hard to distill into a set of one-size-fit-all guidelines. But perhaps some videos on techniques in the future!

[@sunstar2599]

@@TeaHouseGhost thanks. I am a but autistic so sorry for my question

[@TeaHouseGhost]

@@sunstar2599 oh no need to apologize, my friend! I didn't find anything offensive or annoying about your question at all. Please feel free to hit us up with whatever. ☺️

[@sunstar2599]

@@TeaHouseGhost thanks. Do you have vid that tells the effect of brewing with wood fire heated gaiwan vs. Porceline gaiwan? Thanks

[@TeaHouseGhost]

@@sunstar2599 we don't have a video specifically on this yet 🫤

[@Keyboard12850]

Hey Did you start with boilng water in this vid? I mean the water you poured to the gong bao dei. Btw whad do you think of cooling water by pouring from one gong bao dei to the second one? And next question xD Does your kettle has keep warm option?

[@TeaHouseGhost]

Yes, So Han begins by bringing the water all the way to boiling. The water poured into the gong dao Bei is boiling. Cooling using this double gong dao Bei method is cool and stylish - if you're diggin it, do it! The kettles used in this video do not have a keep warm option - we just press the button again to bring it back up to boiling when it gets too cool.

[@Keyboard12850]

@@TeaHouseGhost Thanks for reply. I always have my water in proper temperature in thermos when I drink tea. I also almost always use stoper because I have some charts etc even for gong fu brewing for different teas. Now when I've watched your videos I'm amazed by brewing this in this way. I need to try to do this some time, everything just by my senses and if something goes wrong then don't worry. Just getting experience and say if it was good just by how it taste for me and eventually adjust for my preference. I do think though I need to do some normal brewings from charts etc before this. To do it like it's shown in video I would need to have more experience with lots of varieties of tea. You need to know basics before this, that's my opinion as for now. (I've been knowing about gong fu and drinking this way just for 1-2~ months) Also I read that from boiling water you need to wait even 10~ minutes for water to cool to proper temp for Japanese green tea (I mean like 75~ celsius deegre/165 F~). If I wanted to do this the way from video I would need to have some time to ''try feel the temperature''. Now I don't even think about this because I have my thermos xD Btw without time how I know if steep is longer than previous for example? By being aware of my breaths or something like this? Because sometimes I see on chart like first infusion 10 seconds and next ones +5 second each. By watchign this video and previous one I could do two infusions the same or for example third infusion shorter than second if I wanted to achieve something. Sorry for my English, btw It's great video series which I enjoy while eating something like dinner. Tomorrow I'm going to hear about black teas :D Can't wait

[@TeaHouseGhost]

​@@Keyboard12850 I would highly encourage you cultivating your sensory perception of the tea brewing process! It's just a great way to feel connected/in conversation with the tea. More adaptable, fluid, etc. Definitely give it some tries! Brewing from charts is totally cool. A great way to learn and grow your knowledge of best practices. For me, though, the cultivation of the senses in brewing tea is something that can only come from doing and doing and doing, over time learning what works and what doesn't, how to manipulate the variables and how to feel confident in your sensory perception...this is all at the heart of Gong Fu. Japanese tea culture is one that is much more heavily rooted in established best practices than Chinese tea culture. I will say, though, that like any tea brewing situation, things like temperature and time exist on a sliding scale with other variables like how much tea you're using and the size of your steeping vessel (how much water you're using). As far as time perception goes, you can use whatever metrics you like to feel it out, but ultimately what we're encouraging is ~feeling it out~ - I would recommend pulling entirely away from time metrics like seconds or minutes or counting in general and think more in a realm of what the greeks called Kairos, which in English is closer to "timing" than "time." As in "this person had perfect timing, showing up when they did." When it is the perfect timing to pour out the tea into the gong dao bei, that is when you do it. Cultivate intuition, which uses perception and senses to measure in a chaotic/shifting/fluid time. Your example is correct - you could do two steepings the same with a shorter third steeping if that feels right to you in order to achieve something. No worries on your English! Despite its imperfections, I feel you communicated very effectively! I understand you. Thanks so much for watching and reaching out with your questions! =)

[@Keyboard12850]

@@TeaHouseGhost You put it in nice words but sometimes I'm afraid to try because I feel comfortable with my guides etc. Last time I tried to experimenting with bai mu dan, I didn't count time of steepings and did much more steepings than it is supposed to. When I did like 10 steepings I tried steep it very long with almost boiling water and there still was some taste. I experimented with time but not measuring this and that was quite exciting. Now I steep my shu puerhs without timer, I just try to feel it. Still I'm accustomed to weigh leaves on my scale before putting them into 100ml gaiwan. I haven't tried yet to put leaves without weighting them. I forgot to ask in my prev message. If you don't have keep warm function in your kettle then isn't reboiling water affect it somehow? I read that water shouldn't be reboiled too much. Anyway I can't have kettle near to me where I'm drinking so as I wrote before I use thermos. Do you think I should use almost boling water in my thermos even If I have tea which requiers less? I mean - for example I need to have water like 80 deegre for my tea but I pour boiling water to my thermos. Then I pour it into my gong dao bei and try to feel by myself when temperature is ok to brew? This way I could train this. I have some other questions, I hope that's not a problem xD I saw in your previous videos or on someone else's video pouring some steepings to one batch. Do you think it's ok? Sometimes when I study I like to drink something but I don't want to steep tea while studying so I do it in breaks from studying. Sometimes I do one steeping and start studying but I drink it fast. Some days ago before my studying session I did 3 steepings and pour them into one mug. Then I was able to drink this while studying and don't break my focus on studying doing steepings and still enjoy tea from gong fu style brewing (I mean that taste from high leaf to water ratio). I thought I can't feel each steeping this way but also when I combine them I can create something new so it's other method of experimentaion. My next question - how you know hot much steepings to do/when to stop? In charts I see like ''good for 7 steepings'' or something like this. You count them while you drink (I do xD) or just assume by taste if it's still good to drink or not? And maybe by colour of tea. I noticed with shu puers I drink that in later infusions they are much sweeter. I don't have water tray and when I drink I can drink whole day, like in the morning do some steepings, go outside home and when I back drink again. My gaiwan was heated up before starting drinking but later when tea is inside it cooled down. Then when I steep I don't warm it again. Do you think it's still good or it's better to warm him by pouring hot water over it? On your videos I noticed your gaiwan and gong bao deis seems to be quite big. What capacity is this? I use gaiwan 100ml because If I had more I would need to use more leaves what isn't so cheap sometimes :D When I use 100ml gaiwain I can use 3,5-5~g of leaves depending on type of tea. Not weighting my tea can be difficult for me at first but maybe I will give it a try and do it just as it feels. I thought you could do videos about tasting tea, how to develop better tasting notes etc. It's often hard for me to describe taste of tea. I've already seen some videos about this but I think it would be interesting to hear it also from you. For example I don't know almost anything about flower scents so I can't feel this in tea xD I though about going to some flower shop and try to smell some varieties of them and then have more references when I drink tea. Now I don't even know how rose smells. I already reached the latest video, I can't wait for new ones, great job

[@TeaHouseGhost]

@@Keyboard12850 Re: re-boiling water - Yeah I try not to do it too many times if possible. It does kind of "exhaust" the water after too many reboils. Re: boiling water in thermos - it seems like you've got some plans down already! Don't let me tell you what to do! If you wanna try practicing with boiling water into the gong dao bei, cool. If you wanna keep the water in your thermos right at the temp needed, cool. It's your tea service! All I will say is that at the beginning, when you are heating up water from cold/room temp, that it's best to bring it all the way to boiling at least once (don't just stop it right at 80C on the way up). Re: Mixing steepings together in one drinking vessel - this is something I do all the time at home. When I'm at home, making tea for just myself or myself and one or two other people, I often won't do the little cups. But when I'm pouring tea for a group or at the tea house or in any context where tasting the tea and really paying attention to it is a priority then I'll use the little cups. So yeah, especially in cases like the one you described - you do you, my friend! It sounds like you're getting some enjoyment out of experimenting! Re: how many steepings before stopping - entirely up to you! Your line of thinking is spot on. Keep going. Re: coming back to some tea that you started earlier in the day - in my own case, I'm usually just gonna drink that first steeping coming back without tossing out a 2nd warm-up steeping. But there's no wrong way to do it! If you like warming back up really quick and tossing that first steeping coming back, then by all means, go for it! Re: gaiwan size - we use a lot of various sized gaiwans and teapots in this show, so cultivating an intuitive grasp of how much tea to use in different sizes of vessel makes it easier to just pick up any old vessel and go with it. Re: Video suggestion (tea tasting video) - we will certainly consider this for later seasons! Season 2 will be continuing with our "Types of Tea" series. But we'll definitely be looking to touch on stuff like this in later seasons!

[@knoxx187]

Do you have a website where we could order from you?

[@TeaHouseGhost]

Kenna Butler currently the best website to go to is westchinateacompany.com but the functionality isn't always great (we're working on a new one) - so in the meantime I'd recommend emailing [e-mail] with orders. You can use the website to see what So Han has available.

[@yaboi-km2qn]

oh! tea/cha, i get it.

[@TeaHouseGhost]

😏

[@snuffman5497]

i got longjing from teavivre yesterday in the mail. the wet leaves have a "greasy fried chicken" smell and savory broth. is this normal for green teas. ive never had an actual atleast somewhat high grade green tea

[@TeaHouseGhost]

Savory broth-y flavors are common in certain high grade green teas for sure! Are you liking the flavors/fragrances you're getting while you drink it?

[@snuffman5497]

@@TeaHouseGhost im not sure. i mean its not bad but the smell makes me a little nauseated if im not feeling good. i can only drink a little bit of it before i get way to foggy headed

[@CNCiscool]

The green tea I steep here in Thailand aren’t even bitter even after a minute of steeping. I wonder why….

[@TeaHouseGhost]

Could be the amount of leaves to water? How are you steeping your green tea? In a gaiwan?

[@CNCiscool]

@@TeaHouseGhost I use one of those glass pots that have a separate steeping cup on top with a hole that you let the tea through when you hold the button. Sorry about the long description, not sure what to call it.

[@TeaHouseGhost]

@@CNCiscool glass will also allow some heat to escape, giving you more room to steep your tea a bit longer without it getting bitter.

[@TeaHouseGhost]

@@CNCiscool those types of pots are cool!