Hi,

I know that black tea can't be, generally, steeped for more than one
time, since it releases most of its precious substances during the first
steeping. Green tea, though, can be steeped two or three times.

Since green tea is not oxidized at all and red (puerh) is, as far as I
know, oxidized twice (comparing to black tea), does it make sense at all
to steep the same red tea for the second time?

--
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jgs // \\ // \\ // \\ // \\ // \\ // \\ // \\
Who's the black sheep in the family?

Jarek Hirny > writes:

> Hi,
>
> I know that black tea can't be, generally, steeped for more than one
> time, since it releases most of its precious substances during the
> first steeping. Green tea, though, can be steeped two or three times.
>
> Since green tea is not oxidized at all and red (puerh)

The word in Chinese (hei) for the class of teas that includes Puerh
translates as "black" or "dark". The Chinese word for what westerners
call "black" (teas like Keemun, most Assams and Ceylons, etc.) is
"hong", which translates literally as "red".

> is, as far as I know, oxidized twice (comparing to black tea),

I think you're referring to so-called cooked Puerhs, not the "raw"
ones that are hardly oxidized at all before they start aging.

> does it make sense at all to steep the same red tea for the second
> time?

It makes complete sense to steep Puerhs multiple times. Just try it!

/Lew
---
Lew Perin /
http://www.panix.com/~perin/babelcarp.html

Jarek Hirny > writes:

> Hi,
>
> I know that black tea can't be, generally, steeped for more than one
> time, since it releases most of its precious substances during the
> first steeping. Green tea, though, can be steeped two or three times.
>
> Since green tea is not oxidized at all and red (puerh)

The word in Chinese (hei) for the class of teas that includes Puerh
translates as "black" or "dark". The Chinese word for what westerners
call "black" (teas like Keemun, most Assams and Ceylons, etc.) is
"hong", which translates literally as "red".

> is, as far as I know, oxidized twice (comparing to black tea),

I think you're referring to so-called cooked Puerhs, not the "raw"
ones that are hardly oxidized at all before they start aging.

> does it make sense at all to steep the same red tea for the second
> time?

It makes complete sense to steep Puerhs multiple times. Just try it!

/Lew
---
Lew Perin /
http://www.panix.com/~perin/babelcarp.html

"Jarek Hirny" > wrote in message
...
> Hi,
>
> I know that black tea can't be, generally, steeped for more than one
> time, since it releases most of its precious substances during the first
> steeping. Green tea, though, can be steeped two or three times.
>
> Since green tea is not oxidized at all and red (puerh) is, as far as I
> know, oxidized twice (comparing to black tea), does it make sense at all
> to steep the same red tea for the second time?
>
Jarek,

My experience is that the larger the leaf, the better the subsequent steeps,
regardless of the oxidation level, and this applies to all teas, not just
puerh. The only real caveat with black teas is that the first steep must be
fairly short (2-3 minutes), otherwise the second steep will look nice but
have little aroma or flavor. I think this has something to do with the fact
that many black teas undergo mechanical stress (rolling and/or crushing) to
make the oxidation more uniform, and this speeds the rate of infusion. But
I have gotten two very good infusions from some whole-leaf Darjeelings. I
also tend to increase the second steep time by about a minute and decrease
the amount of water by about a third.

Regards,
Dean

"Jarek Hirny" > wrote in message
...
> Hi,
>
> I know that black tea can't be, generally, steeped for more than one
> time, since it releases most of its precious substances during the first
> steeping. Green tea, though, can be steeped two or three times.
>
> Since green tea is not oxidized at all and red (puerh) is, as far as I
> know, oxidized twice (comparing to black tea), does it make sense at all
> to steep the same red tea for the second time?
>
Jarek,

My experience is that the larger the leaf, the better the subsequent steeps,
regardless of the oxidation level, and this applies to all teas, not just
puerh. The only real caveat with black teas is that the first steep must be
fairly short (2-3 minutes), otherwise the second steep will look nice but
have little aroma or flavor. I think this has something to do with the fact
that many black teas undergo mechanical stress (rolling and/or crushing) to
make the oxidation more uniform, and this speeds the rate of infusion. But
I have gotten two very good infusions from some whole-leaf Darjeelings. I
also tend to increase the second steep time by about a minute and decrease
the amount of water by about a third.

Regards,
Dean