Conversation

Notices

1. Embed this notice
   Christopher Trottier (atomicpoet@firefish.city)'s status on Saturday, 03-Feb-2024 15:56:38 JST Christopher Trottier

   Someone asked me how it’s possible for me to put my tea blends in a teabag. The short answer: I don’t.
   
   The only circumstance I use teabags is when I’m specifically brewing “cut, tear, curl” (CTC) tea. Which is very rare, by the way.
   
   When I’m making tea, tisanes, or blends, here’s what I do instead:
   
   1. Put loose leaves or fruit into the teapot
   2. Heat the water to my specific temperature requirements
   3. Time the steeping
   4. Put a metal filter over a glass pitcher (a.k.a., “equalizer”)
   5. Pour the tea (or tisane or blend) into the equalizer
   6. Pour the drink into a cup or mug
   7. Enjoy
   
   Now why do this? Because in order to extract maximum flavour, you need to let the leaves expand as much as possible. For this reason, it’s generally not a good idea for the leaves to be constricted by a teabag.
   
   Where did I learn this skill? From a Chinese tea master. He taught me what is known as the “gong fu” (a.k.a., kung fu) method of making tea. It works very well, and I now swear by it.
   
   RE: https://firefish.city/notes/9p90i43dwzjwps6e

   • HistoPol (#HP) 🏴 🇺🇸 🏴 repeated this.
   • Embed this notice
     Christopher Trottier (atomicpoet@firefish.city)'s status on Saturday, 03-Feb-2024 15:56:38 JST Christopher Trottier

     in reply to

     If you’re interested in the gong fu method of tea preparation, this Wikipedia article is a good introduction.
     
     Also, if you want to make friends with Chinese people, gongfu tea is a good way to do it because it’s a communal thing. Everyone gathers around, shares their tea, enjoys the ceremony.
     
     There’s been a few circumstances where I’m in a park, enjoying tea with a friend, and strangers show up to try out our tea.
     
     https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gongfu_tea