Golden Buddha Hand: Trial in the Tearoom

 

 2010 Fall Harvest vs. 2010 Spring Harvest 

We don't always have the leisure to spend and afternoon with tea in this society. Even working at a tearoom, means a lot of administrative work and taking care of your clients. It's a shame since some teas undergo many changes during multiple infusions and resting periods. At the tearoom, we often refer to the "life" of the tea, the journey it takes from the first delicate infusions to the eventual peak in flavor and body. Then there's the slow, softening of flavors as it completes it's arc and reaches the end.

The past few months, Toki and I have been drinking and evaluating the 2010 Fall harvest of an oolong, called Golden Buddha Hand. Soon to be an exclusive offering from The Mandarin's Tearoom. I also got to compare the tea to it's 2010 Spring harvest version. This was the tea producers initial offering and some changes were made to improve the later batch. As you can see in the picture above, the two harvests are very similar in appearance except the Spring harvest on the right, is slightly darker due to roast.

 Here were the starting parameters:

 

• I measured 7 grams each of the dry leaf and used porcelain gaiwans at 90cc, pre-heated with boiling water. Examined the dry leaf aromas: due to the cool and dry conditions of the tearoom (winter in NYC, ugh), both teas had a subdued fragrance. 2010 Fall was surprisingly more potent than it's darker sibling from Spring. Sweeter with light citrus flowers that seemed less oppressed than the soft, nutty notes of the roasted version.
• I used boiling water for the flash rinse, decanted and enjoyed the awakening fragrance of the wet leaves. Now I get fresh cream and bergamot oil from the greener 2010 Fall. Florals were evident in the roasted 2010 Spring, layered with toasted grain.
• First steep lasted less then 10 seconds. Leaves of both teas were still tightly curled. Differing colors between the two teas really starts to set them apart. 2010 Spring has an orange hue and the stronger flavor. The pale yellow-green of 2010 Fall looks almost neon against the white porcelain with lots of creaminess and flowers. I'm reminded of a creamsicle. Both have strong citrus notes.
• Second steep was only a few seconds longer. Slowly the flavor builds, and the finish begins to develop. More orange flowers. More of the roast in the 2010 Spring.
• Third steep, there's more body and layers to both teas as expected. 
• Bottom of the cup fragrance: After I emptied my cup, both teas left a persistent, sweet scent clinging to the porcelain. 
• Fourth steep has the 2010 Fall leaves opening up and filling up it's gaiwan. 2010 Spring maintains it's shape. Both teas continue to develop more layers but I find myself drawn to the greener oolong. It's flowers and cream are so easy to enjoy, there's little effort for so much pleasure.  

• Far from finished, I do the Stress Test: or "pushing" the tea. Skilled brewing and appropriate water temperature can bring out the best in most good quality teas. One can also learn things about their tea when brewing under hostile parameters with longer heat and infusing times. Usually this is reserved for oolongs and puers; the better quality ones can handle it quite well without developing astringent notes. (Phoenix oolongs don't seem to handle this test very well, regardless of grade.) Some high quality, aged teas "can't be pushed" meaning they give up their flavor and fragrance on their own time and no amount of coaxing or brewing skill will deliver those notes prematurely. For the fifth steep, I left the tea in for about a minute longer than necessary. The 2010 Spring roast yielded some tannins and tipped the balance of the flavor profile. 2010 Fall performed more admirably, unleashing more piquant citrus and buttery texture. 
• I approached the sixth steep with less aggression. Another think to look at was if the tea would bounce back when reverting to normal brewing standards. Now that the tannins were revealed in the 2010 Spring, they were staying put. The 2010 Fall was more accommodating, maintaining consistent flavor throughout it's ordeal.

• Resting period: This is something Tim does to see what changes will occur to the flavors when you walk away from your tea in the middle and let it cool a bit before resuming the tasting session. After a few steeps, leave the tea alone in the brewing vessel, without water but covered by the lid. 
• I returned to brew the seventh steep after a hour long rest for the tea. I used boiling water again and steeped for 30 seconds. The biggest change was in the 2010 Fall version. It shifted the balance towards a sweet but grassier taste. Not bad at all, just different with more herbaceous notes. Depending on my mood, I could see myself craving both flavors. The 2010 Spring held on to it's roasted notes with a sweeter touch.
  

• Golden Buddha Hand has some of the largest leaves of the Tikwanyin family. 2010 Spring leaves never fully unfurled due to it's roast, the leaves remained a little kinked. 2010 Fall's leaves opened up completely, flat and full with a soft, resilient texture.

Both versions Golden Buddha Hand were surprising in their brewing stamina. I've never been really interested in Buddha Hand before this. Many of the one's I'd tasted before were decent but far from inspiring. The Mandarin's find is special one; easy to like and capable of holdingmy interest. I got to examine two different harvests and processing styles. It showed me some of the flavor range the leaves are capable of. With a relaxing chaqi, I spent the rest of the day pleasantly warm and happy.

Brooklyn Royalty

 Last Sunday, Brandon from Wrongfu Cha was in town and the two of us paid a long overdue visit to our friend Kingston. For the past couple years he's been energetically building his teapot museum and tearoom in the wilds of Brooklyn. Since my last visit, he's been tirelessly growing his collection of yixing antiquities and remodeling his space. There's even an official name and banner that greets you at the front entrance: Orchid Tea House.  While his tearoom is still a work in progress, close friends and fellow antique collectors drop in to have tea and admire his latest acquisitions. 

We spent the entire day with Kingston, enjoying his hospitality and expressing unabashed envy at many of his pieces. The one that really took my breath away deserves a post all it's own:

Two Ching Dynasty teapots made with duan-ni (yellow) clay. These elegant shuiping were export Yixing pots for the royal Siam collection during the reign of King Rama V (his full name:Phra Bat Somdet Phra Poramintharamaha Chulalongkorn Phra Chunla Chom Klao Chao Yu Hua).

Whats even more astonishing is that the pair was acquired separately by Kingston. Thanks to a combination of savvy, luck and friendly tea connections. While they look nearly identical, there are small differences due to the handmade quality. There is also a difference in hue. One has been used to make tea for some time and the other was left pristine. The tea stained pot had a deeper glow and the edges stood out where the tea collected and darkened. It also felt smoother than the untouched pot. The sandy texture of the duan-ni clay was softened by the tea oils and there was a comparable difference between the two.

The tall flange was eggshell thin and that both lids escaped chipping was a miracle.Both pots were lightweight and fit snugly in my hand.

The royal Thai stamp was on both teapots but most visible on the tea stained bottom. There was also a smaller stamp on the inside of the lid.

The craftmanship is exquisite, the sharply defined spout is balanced by a slender ear. There was barely any space between the rim and the teapot's opening. To own even one of these spare and sophisticated teapots is impressive but two is incredible.

Happy Thanksgiving

I have a lot to be thankful for this year. I love working with The Tea Gallery and now that we've joined with The Mandarin's Tearoom, I get to learn from Toki whose been generous with both his time and tea. It's been a busy month for us but one that's been filled with so much support and enthusiasm from our friends and patrons, there's no room for complaint. Though Thanksgiving is a holiday unique to the U.S., I'm also grateful for the positive welcome we've received from the international tea community now that we can ship to the rest of the world. More countries are being added every day thanks to your requests. We're moving forward with more events and workshops this winter and we hope to see you all soon at the tearoom.

This season, get 10% off any order worth $50.00 or more with our holiday coupon code when you shop online: TTGW1NTR

Just type in the code on the checkout page of our website. This is a multi-use coupon that is good till the 31st of December.

 Wishing you a wonderful holiday!

Our New Tearoom

 

Our tearoom is finally open and the first two days have been super hectic but so much fun! We've hosted our first couple tea events and were so pleased with the turnout and enthusiasm. Thanks to everyone for you support. I'm so sorry to those we had to turn away for some of the events which filled up quickly, especially tonight's oolong tasting. Your requests have been heard and next week's tea tastings will focus just on oolongs. Details can be found on our Events Page. To those who signed up too late for this week's event, I hope you can make it to next week's tea socials.

We've already had a couple of private tea tastings and it's given Michael a chance to break in his tea table. When available, Tim likes sit in and share his own insight of the teas that Michael brews. His presence has added a new dimension to our usual tea session. Of course, all the members of the tearoom is expected to brew for clients; you just never know who's going to stop by and share a cup.

Our tearoom is ready to receive patrons but I have a feeling it will always be a work in progress. Between Tim and Michael, there will always be changes depending on mood and season. We hope you'll visit to us and see for yourself.

And to the many tea drinkers who keep asking what we look like.... 

 

We're just regular people who love tea. 

Not pictured is the camera shy Winnie who happens to be the best looking one out this bunch.

See you soon.

Coming soon..

We're almost ready.

Things are starting to come together in our new space but there's still more work to be done in the eyes of Michael and Tim. I gave Brandon at WrongFu Cha the chance to post some exclusive pics of our space when he was in town over the weekend. We've made some more changes since then! I'll post some pics once everything is settled or you can drop in during our evening tea events starting next week and see for yourself.

Though we are still a work in progress, we are on schedule and will be officially open November 1st. Here's what else you can look forward to at our new tearoom:

While we're operating by appointment only, we're developing more weekday events that will be open to the public. We'll be developing open tea events every month that will give tea lovers opportunities to enjoy tea in our tearoom. Thanks to all the inquiries about tea workshops and classes, we're working on those as well.

We're also designing a set of Tea Tasting Menus for our new tearoom. Each menu will incorporate teas from both The Tea Gallery and The Mandarin's Tearoom so guests will have a chance to experience a variety of teas in one sitting. Details and the different session levels will be available on our website in a couple days.

 There will be some more developments in the coming weeks so please check back to learn about new events. To those of you already signed up for our first week's events: I'll see you next week!

It's back to work for me.

A follow up...

 

 It seems my previous post may have churned up more questions than it answered. Here are the ones I can answer at this time:

Q. Is your new space open for business?

A. Almost. We're still in midst of moving some furniture around and getting the details just right. Our official opening date will be November 1st. Please check our events page to see more details.

Q. I can't find your storefront, where are you?

A. That's because we don't have a storefront. We are actually on the 2nd floor of our building and accessible by a flight of stairs. Our address is 21 Howard Street, Suite 201 in downtown Manhattan. Please note: we are only open by appointment. Consider us an exclusive club for all you tea lovers out there. Please keep reading to learn more: 

Q. Will you be selling drinks to go?

A. No, we are not your typical tearoom and we are not a cafe. We don't even have a storefront and are not remotely interested in selling ready-made drinks or iced teas. We will be hosting private tea tastings and we are currently working on a menu that will allow visitors to try tea from both companies in one session.

Q. I'm not interested in a tea tasting. Can I just come to the new space to browse teas and shop?

A. Sorry, but we are operating only by appointment for the time being. We're still a small group and we really want to focus on a certain level of tea. This means we don't have time to properly host unexpected walk-ins. A scheduled tea session allows us to give the attention that each of our patrons deserve. If you don't have an appointment or haven't called ahead, you will not be admitted into the tearoom. There will be events open to the public and this is you chance to drop by and taste some teas for less than the cost of a basic tasting.

    

Q. What can I expect at November's Tea Events ?

A. Taste teas from both The Tea Gallery and The Mandarin's Tea and meet the members of The Tea Gallery and The Mandarin's Tearoom. We're all very busy and not always in the tearoom at the same time; these scheduled events give us an opportunity to be together and share our love of tea with others. Mingle with other tea people and make some new friends over a common interest. Each day is devoted to a different tea category; visitors to every event will get a chance to try all 6 styles.

If you're still not ready to take the plunge and sign up for a personal tea tasting, this is your chance to check out our space and try our teas for half the price of a tasting. We're also sweetening the pot by offering a special 10% discount off any teas or teawares purchased during the event. If you show up for all five events, you can attend the last one for free. See more details on our Events Page.

Q. Can I still buy online and pick up my purchase in person?

A. Yes. New York City dwellers can still choose the "in-store pick-up" option on our website whenever they shop online and can come pick up their purchase at the tearoom.

Q. How do I make an appointment and what are the rates?

A. You can call us at 212-777-6148 or send an email to info@theteagallery.com. We are currently working on a series of tasting menus that will vary in price depending on the value of the teas that are served. There will also be an option to customize your personal session and the pricing will depend on the chosen menu. We want your experience to be fun and memorable and will happily work with you to make that happen. More details will be available online in a couple weeks.

Q. Will you be offering classes?

A. Yes! We love to teach and we are working closely with the Mandarin's Tearoom to develop workshops open to the public and private tea classes. More information will be made available on our website in the coming weeks.

Q. Are you going to ship internationally?

A. Thanks to all the requests we've gotten from all over the world for our teas, we are definitely paying attention. We would very much like to make our tea available outside the US and are working on the logistics at this moment. We're asking for just a little bit of patience as our focus has been in getting our tearoom ready.

I hope this was helpful. Please send any more questions you may have to dae@theteagallery.com.

Fall Happening

1996 loose leaf puer with mystery origins.

Hello Tea Friends!

Sorry I haven't posted in so long. We're in the middle of some big changes and our little blog has been neglected in the process. I was asked to keep quiet about what's in the works but it's become known as the worst kept secret in "teadom". There have been leaks here and there (looking at you, Brandon of WrongFuCha..) and while I still can't talk about it, most people have figured it out. If you're the few still in left in the dark... here's what I can say:
 The Tea Gallery is planning a change of scenery with an old friend.

If you need a couple more hints, just hunt down Brandon (the blabbermouth) on teachat.com.

Nanou Green

Labor Day Weekend: Tea with Friends

This Labor Day weekend, Brandon AKA WrongFuCha was kind enough to host Yumcha and family (including Nana the pup) at his home in Delaware. If you're ever lucky enough to get an invite to his corner of the state; expect thoughtful hospitality, a sophisticated tea selection and lots of satisfying eats.

On Saturday, a couple members of his Philadelphia tea club came by to share tea and treats with us. The session started with a lovely Phoenix DanCong; a gift from Toki of The Mandarin's TeaRoom. He couldn't make it to Delaware but his gift of tea was appreciated by all. It was soft and full with hints of fresh almonds. We didn't have much info on the tea itself. The enigmatic Mandarin promised only to reveal his tea's pedigree after we drank it. "Taste first, ask questions later" seems to be an inscrutable, Hong Kong tea master thing because Michael also does this all the time.The intent is to provoke an honest evaluation of the tea unclouded by prior assumptions based on age, harvest details and mountain elevation.

When visiting a fellow tea junkie, it's always a good idea to bring your own teas to share. Keeping in mind my host's taste, I brought a selection that he would enjoy. Members of his tea group were still unfamiliar with certain tea styles and so Brandon requested some teas that would broaden their experience. I brought along one of my Taiwanese teapots for those who were curious about the style. I already knew that Brandon was a fan of Master Lin's teas, so I had a 6 Year Aged, Tung Ting from Master Lin to showcase with the teapot.

We moved on the 2004 Tea Gallery, white puer cake. The afternoon sun lit up the silver hairs of the cake and it was admired by the other guests. As a host, Brandon made sure that there would be a thoughtful selection of the new and familiar for everyone. As a guest and a friend, I was happy to provide a few teas and let someone else brew them for a relaxing change.

It was a pleasure watching Brandon carefully choose different brewing vessels for the most harmonious pairings. Not everyone thinks about the visual harmony of the tea table but it can be jarring when incongruous pieces share the same space. Sometimes, those with the most diverse collections make the mistake of having every accessory on view when some editing would create a more sophisticated setting.

Our tea host, Brandon, looking relaxed and ruddy cheeked from the chaqi of the puer. At this point, I was also feeling extremely warm in spite of the cool wind drifting through the open windows of the tea room. The chaqi left my hands damp with sweat.

Once you start down the road of aged puer, subsequent teas can be tried in order of greater years. The next tea was a sneak preview of a Hong Kong storage, 1996 loose leaf puer from The Tea Gallery. Not yet available through our site, it was nice to surprise our host with a new tea from the Gallery (he's practically memorized our selection).

After just 4 steeps, the build up of chaqi had me in a drunken, blissed out stupor and I felt too full too manage another sip of tea. The rest of the party was in a similar mood. Conversation trailed off and it seemed like a good place to end the session and say good-bye to the Philly members. Once the feeling of fullness wore off, it was replaced by an eager appetite sharpened from all the tea we had drunk. The rest of the evening was devoted to old fashioned milkshakes and greasy cheeseburgers. Later, I fell asleep to the soothing sound of crickets.

On Sunday, we rolled up our sleeves and set to work documenting ways to evaluate Yixing teapots with water and tea for Brandon's blog. Our host directed, I took photos and David posed for the camera. Inspiration for the post goes to Michael of The Tea Gallery and Bill from China Flair. Read about our efforts at WrongFuCha's blog.

Happy Labor Day!

Lion's Peak Preview

Finally, our Lion's Peak Dragonwell (longjin) has arrived and we wanted to share a few basic tips for brewing such a delicate green tea:
We like to use gaiwans with thin porcelain walls to brew our Dragonwell. The thinness of the walls is important because it's the first step in ensuring that heat won't linger and over brew the leaves. Some people really like to use a glass gaiwan and seeing the leaves suspended in the water is very pretty but I've yet to find one that wasn't too clunky for my tastes. I like using a small glass teapot instead because there are better quality ones out there with nice delicate details and thin walls.

Always preheat your brewing vessel with near boiling water. While this is a common practice for brewing all types of teas it's especially crucial for green teas. Longjin requires low temperature brewing but if the temperature gets too cool, then you run the risk of losing out on some wonderful flavor notes. One of the ways to ensure the tea doesn't cool too quickly is to maintain the indirect heat. Also, heat up your serving pitcher and cups.

Winnie used our medium sized gaiwan (90cc) and 5 grams of tea or a heaping tablespoon full.
We like to prep the young buds by gradually building up heat levels. Once the dry tea buds are put into our prepared gaiwan, the heat will gently warm the buds and the aroma will come to life. This is a great time to appreciate Dragonwell's sweet and savory fragrance.

Now it's time to add the water.
Winnie likes to give the buds an initial shock with the rinse. She'll bring the water temperature up to 180F and give the leaves whats known as a "flash rinse" for the first. The hot water is poured in quickly, using the rushing stream technique. Once the leaves are covered, the water is just as quickly poured out into another vessel.
Save the rinse and drink it last. The aroma of the tea will have taken on even more depth and some beautiful notes of sweet rice and toasted nuts. My mouth is usually watering at this point.

With all the talk about low temperature brewing, why use scalding water at all? This is done to "wake up" the buds and prepare them for brewing. I also mentioned that heat is necessary to taste certain components. While we wouldn't brew at 180F for a longer amount of time. The quick dowsing at a higher temp. opens up the outer edges of the buds without unleashing any inner bitterness. I've experimented on friends and tried to omit this step and just brew at low temperatures but we found a dimension of the tea's flavor was missing.
Now that the tea is ready, Winnie brings the water temperature down to about 155F. She doesn't use a thermometer to gauge heat levels, but you can use one until you get a feel for it the Winnie does. The first steep can last as long as 20 seconds. Since we're using cooler water we don't have to worry about "cooking" the tender buds. If the water were even cooler, you can add another 10 seconds to the steep time. Once you decant the first steep and serve it, your assessment of the taste will inform the amount of time you need for the next steep. If the tea tasted too light for you, you will want to brew the next steep longer. However, once you've introduced bitterness from over steeping, there's little you can do to save it.

Beautiful Dragonwell buds are covered in downy hairs that's almost too difficult to see on the buds themselves. But they're easier to notice when you stare at the surface of the infusion. While the body of the tea should have a crystal clarity, the surface will be pocked with the little hairs, It's easiest to notice when light reflects off the surface and you can see the minute interruptions on the top of the brew. Some people use the "flash rinse" to scald off these tiny hairs to make the infusion even clearer. Sometimes the hairs can irritate sensitive throats and while there's no way to avoid them completely, you can avoid drinking the rinse which will have the most concentration. We're not bothered by the hairs and the rinse tastes too sweet and velvety for us to pass up.

When it comes to tea, especially green teas, temperature and timing are your tools to use in a number of ways. Use very low temperature and you can steep the leaves for longer. Sometimes, I like to cold brew green tea so I can take a bottle of it on the road with me. I simply add a tablespoon of Dragonwell to a 24oz water bottle with room temperature water and leave in the fridge overnight. In the morning, I have a sweet, delicious tea without a trace of bitterness that I can take to the gym or office. I love the convenience of it but I would never do this to a premium grade LongJin because heat is necessary for developing certain flavors and textures and experiencing a well rounded cup.
The combination of a high temperature rinse followed by longer low temperature brewing really gives us the best of both worlds. There are number of fun ways to prepare green tea and I'll be sharing more of them in the days to come.

From TungTing Mountain

We spent our morning on Tung Ting Mountain visiting the tea gardens. The sun finally broke through the early morning mist and the cool air was just starting to warm up. It was a peaceful walk through an emerald landscape dotted with palm trees. The air tasted sweet and crisp.

Winnie standing beside the stone walls that separate the tiers of tea bushes in a traditional Tung Ting tea garden. While we walked through the garden, the constant hum of bees drowned out most other noises as they flew from flower to pollen-stuffed flower.

We had a chance to examine the aftermath of the Winter Harvest. The tender, top leaves of the branches are clipped very cleanly by hand and the rest of the plant is left in pristine condition. They are left alone to grow alongside the various other flora of the mountain and tended by the diligent bees until next harvest. We were reluctant to leave the serenity of the tea gardens but it was finally time to taste some tea.

We were fortunate enough to have an audience with the famed Master Lin, whose tearoom has hosted the leaders of Taiwan for generations. We were greeted warmly by his family. Both Master Lin's son and grandson joined us for tea at the table.

Master Lin started with his recently roasted Winter Harvest Tung Ting.

Light, sweet and full of delicate orchid notes. The roast gave an appealing nuttiness and depth to the body of the tea. It was the perfect refreshment after our morning walk.

Master Lin spoke lovingly about his gardens. He cultivates both tea and bamboo.

He also spoke about his dedication to traditional roasting styles but was careful not to divulge the secrets of his family's techniques. He would only say that he used the wood of a particular fruit tree and Michael knew it was unwise to press for more information.
Even his grandson, who was asked to brew the next tea has been kept in the dark regarding the roasting process. He's still in college studying forestry and hasn't been allowed into the roasting room yet. Once he's graduated, he'll start training in this crucial part of his family's tea traditions.

We moved on to Master Lin's selection of aged oolongs. The teas he sets aside for aging get re-roasted once a year. He had his grandson prepare the 6 year aged Tung Ting. We had come across some aged oolongs during our trip but Master Lin's was the most captivating. Our biggest compliment to him was that the tea tasted older than was stated. It was a comment he was very familiar with. More layers of sweet flowers, roasted nuts, wood and bamboo kept revealing themselves. the chaqi was relaxing and I started to feel very warm despite the coolness of the room.

Master Lin took over the tea table again to brew his 20 year aged tea.
The color of the liquor was dark like a decades old puer. The quality of the leaf and his technique was apparent in the taste. Rich, deep, fruity with a hint of malted sweetness. Michael was intrigued by the results of Master Lin's roast, so different from the Hong Kong style he's most familiar with. The chaqi had me blissed out and suddenly craving the sweet pineapple shortcakes we had left in the car. Our tasting was almost at an end, and we had experienced stellar examples of high elevation, hand picked teas produced by a master and brewed by the same. Now it was just a question of how much could we take back with us?

With his tea in such great demand, it wasn't even our place to ask to purchase some.
We waited, hoping we had made a good enough impression (or at least not a terrible one) for him to offer us tea for purchase. Most of you know we are able to sell his Winter Harvest Tung Ting on our website but he also allowed us to take home some of his 6 year and 20 year aged oolong. Sadly, we could only take enough for ourselves and had to promise not to sell any of it. It would be for our own personal enjoyment.
I still have some and very soon I hope to share it with you.