I’ve been reading this crazy serious tea blog, recently, and I noticed that the author doesn’t steep in pots, he steeps in wide, open bowls. Well, I don’t have hand made, local clay, wire fire glazed tea bowls. But I do have huge, wide, Pyrex™ measuring “cups” that are at least very open and heat resistant. So I have been trying to make tea in those and see how that goes. If nothing else, the clean up is much easier than a tea pot ;-) I have, in the past, used my spherical Bodum™, with the plunger arrangement removed, for this purpose, but the glass is so thin I find there’s a lot of heat lost even in just a couple minutes, and if I’m doing a 15 minute pu-erh steeping, the water can be down to drinking temperature by the time the steep is done. The Pyrex™ is much heavier and should hold the heat better.
It could be completely psychosomatic, but this genmaicha seems to have “woken up” substantially from this steeping approach. I can taste a lot more of the deep green of the tea underneath the very strong roast of the rice which I have mentioned in the past that this variety has. Usually the roast completely overpowers the actual tea, but right now I think I can taste both about equally.
I have also done two steepings of the decaf Darjeeling from TG with this method and the results seemed much bolder, as well.
Preparation
People who liked this
Comments
I cannot believe it! Another Pyrex Method tea-ist! Me, too!
Yes, so far I’m really liking this approach. After this tea, I did my TG Formosa Superior Choice this way and really liked the results.
This is definitely a stand-in method for me, though. It just means at some point I’ll be spending too much money on ceramic steeping bowls. ;-)
I’m intrigued – do you cover the “bowl” somehow? I’d be worried about losing heat through the surface of the water/tea
Send me a picture of the bowl and maybe I’ll make you one next time I am at the pottery wheel. :)
@Tea Bird ~ yeah, I put a plate on the top.
@Kristin ~ the ideal would be something like the item in the center foreground here, but larger (and it doesn’t need a saucer, just the bowl, and cap). basically just wide and open, but not a flat bottom, and with flat sides.
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/RjHPbIOPmac/S2vVanNBOlI/AAAAAAAAEzk/aBXMoEZCFXc/s1600-h/DSC0448s2.jpg
Oh, ok. That’s more like a mug without a handle. That part I can do. Not sure about the lid. I’ve tried in the past and not been too successful with lids, but I’m sure it’ll be fun to try.
To my mind, a mug has a flat bottom. Like a cappuccino bowl, I guess, but more like a bowl, bowl.
I mean, the truth is, I haven’t put any effort into finding something, yet.
The reason I defaulted to the Pyrex Method was in trying to cool some boiled water for use with greens! Most of my teaware seemed geared for insulation and I needed something to dissipate the heat (I don’t know why I don’t use the cooling down w/ adding cold water to boiled water method – just didn’t think to do that at the time, I guess). Once steeping begins, I, too, cover with a (stoneware) plate.
We have one of those ice makers in our freezer door, so I use the cubes and a digital thermometer to get water down to steeping temperature quickly for doing delicate whites and greens.
@Kristin ~ I think the real solution is to just find a tea pot with a really, really wide open top that isn’t designed for a steeping basket.
I cannot believe it! Another Pyrex Method tea-ist! Me, too!
Yes, so far I’m really liking this approach. After this tea, I did my TG Formosa Superior Choice this way and really liked the results.
This is definitely a stand-in method for me, though. It just means at some point I’ll be spending too much money on ceramic steeping bowls. ;-)
I’m intrigued – do you cover the “bowl” somehow? I’d be worried about losing heat through the surface of the water/tea
Send me a picture of the bowl and maybe I’ll make you one next time I am at the pottery wheel. :)
@Tea Bird ~ yeah, I put a plate on the top.
@Kristin ~ the ideal would be something like the item in the center foreground here, but larger (and it doesn’t need a saucer, just the bowl, and cap). basically just wide and open, but not a flat bottom, and with flat sides.
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/RjHPbIOPmac/S2vVanNBOlI/AAAAAAAAEzk/aBXMoEZCFXc/s1600-h/DSC0448s2.jpg
Oh, ok. That’s more like a mug without a handle. That part I can do. Not sure about the lid. I’ve tried in the past and not been too successful with lids, but I’m sure it’ll be fun to try.
To my mind, a mug has a flat bottom. Like a cappuccino bowl, I guess, but more like a bowl, bowl.
I mean, the truth is, I haven’t put any effort into finding something, yet.
The reason I defaulted to the Pyrex Method was in trying to cool some boiled water for use with greens! Most of my teaware seemed geared for insulation and I needed something to dissipate the heat (I don’t know why I don’t use the cooling down w/ adding cold water to boiled water method – just didn’t think to do that at the time, I guess). Once steeping begins, I, too, cover with a (stoneware) plate.
We have one of those ice makers in our freezer door, so I use the cubes and a digital thermometer to get water down to steeping temperature quickly for doing delicate whites and greens.
@Kristin ~ I think the real solution is to just find a tea pot with a really, really wide open top that isn’t designed for a steeping basket.