How I got started with Dan Cong

Semi-oxidized tea
User avatar
Bok
Vendor
Posts: 5782
Joined: Wed Oct 04, 2017 8:55 am
Location: Taiwan

Sat Feb 11, 2023 9:20 pm

That’s my typical ratio, in a 60ml Shantou teapot.
Attachments
AB526B01-79F0-4BB6-A926-3017892CB9EA.jpeg
AB526B01-79F0-4BB6-A926-3017892CB9EA.jpeg (85.75 KiB) Viewed 1669 times
User avatar
Baisao
Posts: 1397
Joined: Mon Dec 11, 2017 5:17 pm
Location: ATX

Sat Feb 11, 2023 10:07 pm

PamelaOry wrote:
Sat Feb 11, 2023 8:31 pm
Baisao wrote:
Sat Feb 11, 2023 4:26 pm


I’d try shorter infusions. Ditch the timer completely and focus on getting consistent color/flavor with each steep. This becomes intuitive in short order.

You don’t think about how you walk: put left leg out 18 inches and then fall forward and catch self with right leg that has moved out 18 inches. You simply walk. Making tea is the same thing. Your tea will suffer from overthinking it. There *is* a lot going on but simply focus on consistency using your internal feel for these things.

Dancong typically go for a very long time as Bok was saying. And you have a lot of this tea. So you have a large number of steeps to practice this on.

You can always make it stronger by adding more heat and/or more time and/or more leaves.

If you were sitting in front of me I’d advise that you control most variables by starting at 5g/100ml @193° and not time your steeps. Try quick steeps and adjusting them shorter or longer to keep the brews consistent.
Ok! I did as you suggested, brewing in my larger Yixing pot and wow! Not only did I avoid the bitterness, I actually tasted honey once! Most of the infusions were much nuttier though, pleasantly so. Also, I brewed A LOT of tea. The leaves went on forever. I didn’t time my infusions, and also forgot to count them but I’m sure there were 12-15 probably.
The first infusions were very short and my last one almost a songs worth I’d guess. I was grooving to the Eagles, brewing the hell outta that Dancong. Turns out, I actually like this tea.
Thank you!
That’s great news and a fun way to spend the evening!

@Bok’s teapot proportion looks about like mine. I might use a little less. Both of us are using small teapots though.
PamelaOry
Posts: 28
Joined: Fri Feb 10, 2023 10:57 am
Location: Philomath, Oregon

Sat Feb 11, 2023 10:16 pm

Baisao wrote:
Sat Feb 11, 2023 10:07 pm


That’s great news and a fun way to spend the evening!

Bok’s teapot proportion looks about like mine. I might use a little less. Both of us are using small teapots though.
I will try it with my little pot tomorrow.

@Bok, that’s a beautiful picture.
Post Reply