The Art of Brewing Tea
Gong-Fu Method
While at the HOUSE OF CHa, an Asian style tea room in Lawrence, Kansas, I was given a demonstration of the Gong-Fu technique for brewing tea. This method is primarily used with oolong and black teas. It’s not used for brewing green teas.
This shows the Set Up for Brewing Tea at the HOUSE OF CHa
Here are the steps for brewing a great cup of oolong (Wu Long) tea:
1) Using a tea kettle, bring fresh, cool water to a boil. Set aside on stove top to retain heat.
2) Scoop the dry tea leaves (about 1 rounded teaspoon) into a small clay tea pot. (In the picture, it’s the red one)
3) Add a quick pour (1-2 tablespoons) of hot water from the tea kettle into the small clay teapot.
4) Place lid on the small clay teapot and swirl the leaf-water mixture around for a few seconds.
5) Place a small metal filter cup inside a larger teapot (in the picture, it’s the white one) so that it balances nicely on the lip of the pot.
6) Pour the mixture from the small clay teapot into the larger teapot through the filter.
7) Pour hot water from another teapot into the larger teapot, filling it. Wait 5-10 minutes for a complete brew.
*Once brewed, make sure to remove the lid from the pot and smell the wonderful natural aromas!
Pot of Hot Water Used to Fill the Other Teapots For Brewing at the HOUSE OF CHa
Here is another variation for brewing oolong tea using the Gong-Fu Technique.
Follow steps 1-4 in the procedure listed above.
5) Holding the lid down, pour out the water into another vessel or teapot. The leaves should stay in the small clay pot. This is the first rinse.
6) Begin the second brew by filling the small clay teapot with hot water from the kettle. Place lid on the small clay teapot and wait 30 seconds for tea to brew. This is the 1st infusion.
7) Place the lid on the small clay teapot and pour freshly brewed tea into serving cups. Repeat process for more infusions, waiting 5 additional seconds longer for each brew with subsequent infusions.
- Information adapted from http://www.houseofcha.com/
