Quote:
Originally Posted by Poppaea
How did you brew the whites? Mariage Freres do recommend a steeping time of 7 min for the Pai Mu Tans (Fancy White Peony) and 15 min for Yin Zhens (Silver Needles) using 70°C water and 2 teaspoons per cup!!! It also takes some time to be able to distinguish their subtle flavours. When starting whites it is a good idea to stick exclusivly to white tea for some days so your taste buds are not overwhelmed by stronger flavours.
Here is a link to their steeping chart |
Usually, I follow the instructions. I tried some white teas only from NBTea, so I follow their guides, although I also google a bit and verify other sources of info. I didn't find much of discrepancies in white teas. Usually it is 70C and 2-3-5 minutes brewing.
Interesting chart, though some tips suggest different timing and temperature that I use.
Btw., yesterday I went to another branch of TK MAxx, a bigger one. I got a few more interesting teas. Another Ahmad English Breakfast, although I cannot find a picture of the tin on the Internet. It looks a bit different from another I bought a few weeks ago. Ahmad's Post Code on the tin is the latest though
I found Taylors of Harrogate's green tea with mint loose tea for my wife.
She found for me Twinings White Tea! I didn't know that they do it. I didn't find it on the Internet. It is from
this range and it looks like
that (was priced similarly, £10 for 100gr, before it reached TK Maxx). I finished first cup, liked it and going to make another after I finish this post
Quote:
Originally Posted by GeoffC
You know I drink Green Tea (Japanese Powdered) !?
The Pu'erh was noticed in our herbal shop this week and I gave into temptation . Very pleasantly flavoured... It's In Nature (innteas.com) Organic, 5 years old.
We have no pot, so all I've been doing is placing the tea block in a sieve and pouring water through that into the cup.
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No. I didn't know you were drinking teas at all.
If it looks like tuocha, then ...I cannot advise you. Many different ways to do
Some of what I found out is that it is a good idea to rinse it. Once or twice for 10-20 seconds with boiling water. Let's say one time for 20 seconds.
Then you can brew it...some say 30 seconds is enough, some say 2 minutes...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Poppaea
The steeping for longer than 3 min has the purpose of waiting for the polyphenols to come into play. They change the tannin to be water insoluble and thus to be less agitating. The longer the brewing the less tannin/coffein is your body able to use from your tea.
This is one of the reasons why certain teas are recommended for breakfast and some for evening.
Most breakfast blends are made from broken teas. Steeping times are further depending on what kind of tea you are using. A broken tea will give its contents faster away than a whole leaf tea due to the higher surface rate.
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Thank you so much for the explanation!
I
knew that with black teas, if you want it to wake you up, you should steep it for about 3 minutes, if you steep it longer than 5 minutes it might actually make you more sleepy
I heard it maybe 10 years ago. Now, I see the process behind this theory.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Stitchawl
I find that longer steeping usually results in a more bitter tasting tea, by releasing MORE tannins. At least to my taste buds. I can actually 'see' the results if I don't wash the tea cup between brews. I wonder if insoluble tannins taste more bitter than soluble ones?
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I have noticed the same. I won't use any terms such as tannin etc., because I don't fully understand them but the tea becomes more bitter. The amount of black tea leaves influences the bitterness as well. If you put too much, the bitterness overpower the flavour. It is my recent discovery. I have seen it in brewing tea video and after that tested it myself.
P.s. Almost finished the second cup of white tea. It is nice. Very soft, velvety flavour...I think that's my the problem with whites. I need something with a more distinctive flavour. However, sometimes it is a perfect tea.