Backlogging. 3 days ago. Tuesday afternoon.
I haven’t had an oolong in forever and it sounded like a good thing that day. This met my need and it was like I remembered it, yet it wasn’t. The first two steeps were stronger than I would have liked. So maybe decrease the steeping time a bit. And the third and fourth were quite good. Overall, I liked drinking it that day but it didn’t quite live up to my memory of it.
The first two steeps I had right after each other in the afternoon, the third right after dinner, and the fourth right before bed.
2nd steep: 4 mins 15 secs
3rd steep: 4 mins 30 secs
4th steep: 5 mins
It was a stormy afternoon perfect for oolong drinking. I did another smaller 6oz cup series of steeps. And again with this tea, it worked quite well. This time, I increased the steep time by 15 seconds each steep, which also worked well.
1st steep: 4 min. Yummy oolongy goodness but nothing to remark on.
2nd steep: 4 min 15 sec. This one was like drinking an old library in a good way.
3rd steep: 4 min 30 sec. This one reminded me of drinking toffee coffee. Not sure it tasted like that but that’s what I was thinking of when I drank it.
4th steep: 4 min 45 sec. Lighter toffee coffee. Again, the 3rd and 4th steeps were the best ones in my opinion.
5th steep: 6 min 45 sec. Increase steep time by 2 minutes for this steep. Before steeping today, I’d read in my previous tealog for this tea that the 5th steep was where the tea became more watery than tea. Even with the much increased time, this was again the case. This steep is still drinkable though.
Notes: Starting at 4 min and increasing the steep time by 15-30 sec each steep works good. Water temperature is also good. 5th steep is noticeably weak, but drinkable.
I must confess that I’ve been hoarding my Wuyi Oolong. You see, I only have the one and the tin is already half gone. But I’ve been craving oolong for several days. Late yesterday afternoon, I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to drink but knew I wanted more tea. So I fell back to the fact that I’d been wanting oolong recently.
Maybe I should have listen to my instinct at that time and ponder a bit more before I chose what to drink. Because not having run the dishwasher yet, I was down to a few mugs left. None were good choice to steep a single portion of tea and I didn’t want to waste my precious Wuyi Oolong steeping a double portion when I could get multiple steeps from it anyways. I chose an oddly shaped moose mug, which I love, but holds two cups. I thought I could just steep one cup in it. But I went to put the infuser in the mug, after heating it and getting the water to the correct temperature, when the oolong malfunction occurred.
The infuser would not fit deep enough into the mug and only a 1/2 inch of water barely wet the tea leaves! I’d brewed this mug less than full before! Possibly a cup and a half full though. But the infuser had sank deep enough and the leaves were covered with room to spare. PANIC!! My leaves are wet! My water is cooling! I don’t really have enough time to wash a mug. I quickly look in the cupboard for a glass cup that my infuser will fit in. They are all too narrow! I grab my Pyrex liquid measure cup. You know the one. The one with the handle that measures two cups. You most likely have one. I heat the Pyrex with the water from the moose mug then add water from the kettle. Check the temperature, add the infuser. It fits!
Four minutes later, the resulting tea looks rather light. But it’s been awhile since I’ve had oolong so perhaps I just don’t remember. I pour it back into the moose mug for drinking. It’s good but weak. A bit too weak. I drink it anyways, knowing I can make another steep right away. I make the 2nd steep in the Pyrex and pour it into the mug. A bit stronger but more of the same mostly. I am not inspired to try a 3rd steep. I think the oddness of preparation resulted in the less than enjoyable oolong last night rather than a downturn in my liking of oolong. I will try it again with a suitable mug and perhaps slightly hotter water. It might be awhile though.
2nd steep: 5 min, 190° F.
My yummy Wuyi Oolong seemed different this morning. It was not as yummy as I remember it being. It seemed stronger, more bitter, and more dry. I shall have to see how subsequent steeps fair.
Yay for PMs!
Steep #2 went into the bath with me while I read the October Believer. It was drank quickly.
Oolong is SO good. I don’t know why I don’t drink it more often. Two steeps before dinner, two steeps after dinner. Stopped resteeping because it was time for bed and my previous tealogs said that the fifth steep was on the weak side. Again, steeps three and four were the best.
1st steep: 4 min.
2nd steep: 4 min 30 sec.
3rd steep: 5 min.
4th steep: 5 min 30 sec.
These steeping parameters worked well.
In light of the recent pair of user-caused green tea fails and the weak oolong a week or two back, I decided to try something different today. A 6oz cup. I hoped to manage multiple steeps so not to feel bad for “wasting” tea by only doing one steep. I hoped to trick myself into thinking I was drinking less tea and therefore, drink more tea. I hoped the tea would be tasty. Oh wait, I always hope the tea will be tasty. =)
The 1st steep was back to the yummy oolong I remembered. The first few sips I thought I was in for the weak oolong that I got last time I had this. Cooling a bit changed it back to good. Could be a bit stronger though still.
2nd steep: 4 min 20 sec, 200° F.
Darker in color. Stronger in taste. Good.
3rd steep: 5 min, 200° F.
Wow, this one is really good. I noticed the difference in taste immediately. Roasty woodsy drinkability.
4th steep: 5 min 30 sec, 200° F.
Another really good one. Hints of the 3rd steep, reminiscent of a good cigar. I thought this was going to be the weak time-to-stop-steeping steep on the first few sips. But it was not.
5th steep: set timer for 6 min, forgot to start, unknown long time. 200° F.
Water with essences of steep 4. The time-to-stop-steeping steep.
This is one of the most times I’ve steep a tea. And I’m not really sure how much the time should increase between steeps. I picked 30 seconds cause that seemed like a good noticeable increase in time. Maybe I try 15 seconds next time. I know it doesn’t need more than 30.
Well, the 6oz cup worked on all three counts. I look forward to trying a green this way.
Wuyi Oolong, I haven’t had you in awhile and you’ve just been sitting there in your tin on the top shelf of the cupboard, getting bored perhaps. You sounded like you’d go good with a Jonagold apple and natural almond butter for a snack.
When I poured hot water on the leaves, the smell was very strong: roasty, toasty, and grain-like with some dusty and earthy. It reminded me of something but I haven’t been able to place it and I’ve been sniffing at my cup as I drink. The taste is much as I remember and quite nice, although probably not the best paired with this snack.
I had another pot of Rishi Wuyi early this afternoon. Just as delicious as the two pots I had yesterday. I had hoped it would fortify me to make a large Target run. But alas, a poor sleep last night won out over leaving the house. I did triumph over two loads of laundry though and a nice bath.
