Making Multiple Infusions from a Tea Bag

[cazort]

Over the past few years, I've been getting into the more "hardcore" practice of making multiple infusions of tea, much like the Chinese tradition of gong fu cha, brewing a large amount of leaf in a small pot, with repeated, very brief steepings

Comments

[cazort]

Yes...it's so much better when it's loose tea and you have a good brewing vessel! I only ever use tea bags when circumstances force them on me, usually it's when I'm in a shop or restaurant that only sells tea bags, and I want to order / drink tea there.

[mechers]

I've done this with black teas and largely been disappointed. Cutting the first steeping short to achieve multiple infusions just makes all of them weaker than I prefer. With a large bag or a strong tea I can usually get two cups if I try, but apart from that I mostly don't try.

[cazort]

Hmm, yeah...my inclination would be to do it more with green, white, or oolong teas. I also haven't had as good luck with black teas (loose or in tea bags) to steep multiple times. But there are some loose-leaf black teas it has worked with, especially the whole-leaf ones.

[netbug009]

I do it with bagged tea sometimes. It really depends on the individual tea as to whether it comes out good or not.

[fay]

I've done it to demonstrate how gongfu style works (very difficult to fit the bag into my little pot) with some bagged tieguanyin that every HK grocery sells. It didn't improve on the tea, but the tea was terrible to begin with.

[cazort]

Yeah...I think you need a certain base-level of quality for it to work.

[aoiahiru]

true that. I get the best results with cheap-ass pu'er when it comes to multiple infusions with tea bags. That and the greens, provided they're Japanese greens produced in Japan, like Ooicha tea bags or something.

[the_snowgoose]

Yes, but mine has been with herbal tentures. And yes, I have found, espeically with Pepermint, the variations to be astounding.

I have a question for you: Have you found the same degrees of nuaces and subtlety when you gong fu cha Black teas versus Green Teas?