Chinese Tea Brewing Methods
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With the number of different types of chinese teas, there are many methods of brewing tea.
Gaiwan Brewing
The gaiwan brewing method is popular because of the ease of brewing tea leaves. The gaiwan tea set consists of a lid, bowl, saucer, and cups. The bowl is first rinsed with hot water. The tea leaves are then placed into the bowl. Enough should be added to cover the bottom of the bowl and more can be added later to adjust the flavor. Next the hot water should be added to the bowl to rinse the leaves and then poured out. The final step is to add hot water and serve after the tea has been infused with the water. When serving, the lid should be kept on the bowl to keep the leaves in the bowl as the tea pours out. then add more water for infusion to serve another cup of tea.
GongFu (Kungfu) Brewing
The gongfu method of brewing chinese tea uses a teapot called the Yixing teapot. This is a small tea pot that holds 4 to 5 ounces. First, boiling hot water is made in a kettle. The teapot is rinsed with the hot water and the tea leaves are added to the teapot until the pot is 1/3 full. Hot water is then poured into the teapot to about half full and then poured out to rinse the tea leaves. Then more hot water is added and brewed for 30 seconds. After the water has been infused with the tea, it should be poured into the teacups for drinking. With further infusions, the brewing time should be extended 5 to 10 seconds. This method is mainly used for Oolong teas.
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