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.

  • Veraxis@lemmy.worldEnglish
    6·
    2 days ago

    Is there some reason why you want to hold an exact temperature for the entire steep? You are always going to get some temperature drop pouring from the kettle into your cup/teapot/etc.

    I know in the gongfu method, it is standard practice to do a hot water rinse of the cups, which should warm them and reduce the temperature drop somewhat. You could do something similar by filling your brewing vessel with hot water, draining, and then filling it with the tea and new hot water, but you will not eliminate the temperature drop entirely.

    I would assume most recommended times/temps from tea vendors are designed with some temperature drop in mind. I think they are more like recommendations than hard, scientific values.

    • francisco_1844@discuss.onlineOPEnglish
      4·
      2 days ago

      Is there some reason why you want to hold an exact temperature for the entire steep?

      That was one of my question. Is that required, or recommended?

      I would assume most recommended times/temps from tea vendors are designed with some temperature drop in mind

      So take those more as starting points?

      a hot water rinse of the cups

      Will try that. Thanks.

      Not trying to “be exact” on anything… just trying to figure out the best compromise between what is easy to do and what produces the best results. I keep track of my brews (water amount, milk amount when used, etc…) and make notes of how I liked it (bad / medium / good / execellent) and experiment to try and find most enjoyment on my cups.

      • Hamartiogonic@sopuli.xyzEnglish
        4·
        2 days ago

        Most instructions you find online are built on a very specific style where you use a fixed mass of leaves and water and infuse for a specific amount of time. Turns out, it doesn’t have to be that way, and the Chinese style is radically different. I’m using an adapted version of the Chinese style, and here’s how that works.

        1. Weigh 4 grams of tea leaves. You can use more or less. It’s a matter of preference.
        2. Put the leaves into a tiny tea pot. Mine holds about 150 ml. You can also use a mug and a metal basket.
        3. Fill the teapot with hot water. The temperature and steep time depend on a bunch of variables. More on those later.
        4. Let it steep.
        5. Pour the tea into a mug. If you have tiny Chinese tea cups, you can use those as well.
        6. Enjoy

        Wait, but that’s just one mug of tea? What if you want more? Turns out, the same tea leaves can give you so much more. Fill the tea pot with more water, and you’ll have more tea.

        During the first cup, the steeping time is a bit longer. Maybe something like 30 s or so. It takes a while for the dry leaves to get wet and start extracting.

        The second cup extracts super quickly. Just pour in water and pour out tea. No need to wait a single second. If the tea comes out too strong, you should probably use slightly cooler water. Knowing this takes a bit of experimenting. Some teas, such as puerh, extract very quickly. If you use more than 5 g of tea leaves, it’s going to be even faster.

        Third cup should be about the same. It really depends on the type of tea you have. Experiment and find out.

        At some point, you’ll begin to notice that the next cup of tea isn’t quite as strong as the previous one. That’s when you can crank up the heat. Use boiling water if you want. You may also need to increase the extraction time. Once again, it takes some experimenting. Once you know your tea well enough, you can just wing it.

      • Keeponstalin@lemmy.worldEnglish
        3·
        2 days ago

        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.

        • francisco_1844@discuss.onlineOPEnglish
          3·
          2 days ago

          I don’t recommend the tea kettles with an infuser. The teas are best steeped with the natural decay of temperature.

          Thanks. Then will just continue to use my existing electric kettle

          • Keeponstalin@lemmy.worldEnglish
            2·
            2 days ago

            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.

  • actionjbone@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
    3·
    2 days ago

    Have you tried pre-warming your measuring cup? Pour in hot water, let it sit for 30 seconds to a minute, pour it out, then add the actual water you want to measure.

    That should help reduce the heat loss. Though I don’t know if it will fully eliminate it.

  • Herbal Gamer@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
    2·
    2 days ago

    Although I personally think you’re way overthinking this, the pre-heating of your cup will help keep it warm longer. Otherwise it sounds like you’re looking for a teacosy/teapot warmer (little stand you put the pot on with a tealight underneath) or some sort of sous-vide contraption.