I brewed 8 oz. of Bailin Gongfu Black Tea western style with 2 tsp. exactly as recommended: 3 steeps: rise, 1m, 2m, 3m at 185*F. While I enjoyed the rich light chocolate / cocoa flavor, this tea was light-bodied. All three infusions were enjoyable and very consistent in body. I also tried a 2m first-infusion and it too was light-bodied. There was no hint of bitterness or astringency.
The following day, I received our new digital scale. I then brewed some Bailin Gongfu Black Tea using a full 8 grams of tea. Out of curiosity, I then measured the 8 grams with a teaspoon and found that it equaled 3 teaspoons. Even with this much tea leaf, I still found this black tea to be light-bodied.
Impression: A high-quality rich silky smooth black tea with a light chocolaty flavor and a caramel-like sweetness for those who enjoy lighter-bodied black teas.
Thank you to Angel Chen and TeaVivre for their gracious free sample of this high-quality tea.
Correction due to new scale: What I thought was 8.0 grams was actually 80 grains. I was in the incorrect weight mode due to the very small font used for the grain abbreviation (gn). Using a Grains-to-Grams conversion, the actual weight was 5.2 grams.
