NoviCha said

Tea brewed over the fire?

I am not sure if this deserves it’s own discussion, I will delete it if neccessary.
I always brew gong fu, 99% of the time, I brew gong fu. Because that way, I feel like I get the most out of my tea, but sometimes I get lost in all the parameters and science, and forget to experience the tea(by no means am I saying that I don’t enjoy gong fu, I really love it and it’s a wonderful experience, but occasionally I “Forget” to enjoy.) So I decided to do something different. I went in my backyard, made a fire, put a pot on the fire, warmed the water up, threw some 2012 lincang ripe puer in the water, and made it as hot as I Could(It was dark, so my fire went out and all and couldn’t boil it totally) took it of the fire, and drank some tea, as plain as possible. It was a truly beautiful experience, next time I hope to implement gong fu, and fire brewing like this.

Have any of you tried something like this, and what are your opinions? If you have any questions, ask!

9 Replies

What kind of pot did you use? I have a fire pit and a grate over it, I’m just trying to think of what I would use to brew tea over the fire. I’m guessing a cast iron teapot and lid would work best.

NoviCha said

It was a small like metal pot. I don’t know how I would call it in english, but its essentislly a small metal pot with a handle, looks like a cup.

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Avery F. said

Yes – it’s definitely a different experience, but a nice one. I go camping frequently, and in the mornings I’ll often have oatmeal, cooked in a pot over a fire or a camping stove. After I’ve finished the oatmeal, I’ll fill the pot with water and boil some hei cha in there. The remaining oatmeal and seasonings adds to the flavour of the tea, making it a bit reminiscent of the hardy tea drunk in Mongolia and the Himalayas, and it helps make the pot easier to clean as well.

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J-P said

Ah boiled tea. People don’t do it enough. It can be a pleasant change from the precision of the gaiwan or gong-fu session.

I also like just throwing a few leaves into a bowl of hot water.

But, tea being boiled over a fire has been done for over a thousand years.

In villages across India it is common to come across women tossing and sifting rocks out of rice. They frequently have a fire burning and a kettle filled with bubbling boiled tea which they drink all day. It was often pretty strong, but it was good. Memories I have are from childhood, so sometimes they would add condensed milk and give me a bowl.

In Nepal and Tibet, they will boil tea (usually raw puer) for hours and make it into salted yak butter tea, which is also delicious.

If you enjoy it, boiling tea can also be used to squeeze that extra bit of life out of tea that you’ve used for a gong-fu session.

I came across a store in Shanghai selling very fancy aged white tea cakes. They would then boil the ‘used’ leaf and it would result in a delicious bright orange brew.

NoviCha said

Wow that all sounds wonderful, although boiling raw puer sounds like it would be veryy strong haha. I wish I could just leave the computer and everything behind, and go to china and india, and learn about tea and culture.

J-P said

@NoviCha – it’s surprisingly smooth. I think it’s more to do with the quantity used in the brew. Probably need to do some experimenting myself ;-). The tea they use in Tibet/Nepal is usually Nanjian or Xiaguan bricks (Holy Flame, sheng).

Travelling and sampling tea is a definite must. I feel so trapped in this year.

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Random said

A real masala chai is boiled for a decent amount of time with spices before it gets consumed. Gong fu is far from the only way to make tea and enjoy it.

The ceremony is nice, but, as you said, sometimes it can be easy to forget why you are doing it (the tea!).

I’ve never had tea made over an open fire, though I have coffee. My grandfather always made his coffee by throwing a bunch of grounds into a plain old regular pot and boiling it. Then it went from the pot to the cup, including some of the grounds.

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Haven’t tried it, but it seems like a good idea :) I wonder which tea would be best for such a preparation method.

NoviCha said

I would say ripe puer, because it can take a lot, it’s quite adjustable.

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