When you see tea tastings by professionals judging many different teas
at a time consistency is the norm for brewing ie all teas are made the
same way. I am so consistent I brew all teas the same way ie a couple
of grams in a cup, add boiling water, and wait an indeterminate about
of time depending on visual and aromatic feedback. You develop a
taste for tea that is independent of the way it is brewed. Every tea
can be said to have a sweet spot. For me it is not worth pursuing
varying this and that. I think it eventually comes out in the wash so
to speak anyway. It takes me about six months of on and off again tea
tasting for it to make an impression one way or the other. I go to
tea tastings at shoppes. All I come away with is being tea drunk with
a headache.

Jim

PS I just came across an interesting Ceylon grade I had stuck away.
It is what I would call needle grade tea which I only find in Chinese
greens. Half of the needle is white and the other black based on the
length not the tip. Very unusual. I was expecting a quick brew but
it took several minutes based on feedback cues. Intimacy is the best
brewing method.


On Dec 6, 11:25 am, Prof Wonmug > wrote:
> I would be interested in any opinions on the most effective ways, or
> at least the tradeoffs of various ways, to test new teas.
>
> I have two main questions:
>
> 1. What's the best way to vary the parameters?
>
> 2. Is it better to test multiple pots of the same tea or intersperse
> the tests with pots of other teas?
>
> Question 1: How to vary the parameters?
>
> Dominic has suggested starting out with about 1 tsp/cup and brewing
> for 15 seconds. Then increase the steep time by 15 second increments
> until the sweet spot is found. I have tested that approach and found
> it useful.
>
> I presume that testing would then continue at a different strength
> depending on the results of the above. If too weak, increase to 1.5
> tsp/cup.
>
> I weigh everything, at least in the beginning, so usually start with
> 1.0 g/cup and go from there.
>
> Does anyone have any comments on this general approach or suggestions
> for another way to test?
>
> Question 2: Multiple tests of one tea or interspersed?
>
> Next question is whether to test several pots of the same tea back to
> back or intersperse them with other teas.
>
> My approach has been to test just one pot of each tea, then go to a
> different tea. My thinking was that this is a fairer test because it
> is more like a randomized experiment.
>
> Testing several pots of the same tea back to back does provide a
> better direct comparison, but I worry that my palate gets affected by
> the previous pots.
>
> Any comments appreciated.