Looking for advice on best way to keep temperature of water when preparing tea.
What I tried so far
Electric kettle without infuser
Issue: Because I want to measure amount of water I go from Kettle to measuring cup which brings down temperature (measured 6 to 12 degrees drop) from just pouring the water in the measuring cup
Microwave
Issue: Have figured out duration + amount of water to get temperatures I want, but temperature drops the second I put the tea bag and can’t use loose leaves with this method
Kettle with tea infuser
Issue was more of a specific kettle than the method. The Kettle I first tried was somewhat wide so would have to put about 4 cups of water (32oz of water) for the water to go high enough on the container to get to the level of tea leaves. I think this will likely be the best method, just have to find a better kettle for smaller amounts since it is the only method that can keep the temperature closer to recommended temperature during the steep time. I figure one could probably also use a pot, but probably would be more of a challenge to keep temperature around a fixed level.
Brewing time question: All the temperature recommendations for different teas is that recommended time at start of steep or recommended temperature for the duration?
Reading a few articles online mostly confirmed that an electric Kettle with infuser is probably the best way to go. Any good articles with practical advice, or books, you would recommend? Lots of the articles online are somewhat generic and pretty much most have similar info.
I have an electric tea kettle that can hold specific temperatures. It is really nice for loose leaf and multiple steeps. Some people can guestimate a temp pretty well, I personally use a thermometer if I’m somewhere without an accurate kettle. Or I just use a black where the exact temp isn’t that important
I don’t recommend the tea kettles with an infuser. The teas are best steeped with the natural decay of temperature. The only teas that benefit from being kept at a temp while steeping are some herbal and chai teas, and those require boiling anyway. Best done on the stove
I’d say the correct temp matters the most for green or white teas. Black and herbal are more forgiving.
Temp drop from the ceramics is pretty insignificant, brew time is far more important
A hot rinse is a common part for Chinese tea ceremony. Makes more sense since the ceramics are small. Tea pots have much more volume to surface area, so only needed for tea pots if the tea leaves themselves require a rinse.
Thanks. Then will just continue to use my existing electric kettle
Let me know if you have any other questions. I’ve played around with Japanese and more recently Chinese teas for a couple years. Also matcha.