Gunpowder Teas

[docsconz]

My son recently returned from China and brought back some wonderfully scented tea from The Bell Tower Tea House. Unfortunately since the package is in Chinese, I am uncertain of the specific variety. It is, however, of the "gunpowder" style. I have never had this kind of tea before let alone brewed any. How much should one use and what would be the best method for brewing and then storing this tea?

I will add some photos shortly.

[docsconz]

As promised:

[jpr54_]

it looks like pearl jasmine tea-

joanne

[memesuze]

Although it's a "round" tea, it's not a gunpowder, I agree with jpr54_.

But I'd infuse it as any other green - start with water that has dropped down to 150-165 degrees and infuse for no longer than 2 minutes if you're doing a single infusion. If you're going for multiple, start with 15-30 seconds for the first infusion and add 15 seconds for each successive infusion to four or five infusions.

[docsconz]

Thank you for your responses. What is the difference between gunpowder and pearl teas? Are there special charactreistics for "round" teas?

[cdh]

Gunpowder is pieces of leaf rolled into little tiny pellets... pearl teas like yours will unfurl into whole leaves...

Other differences are in the processing... gunpowders are more aggressively fired, giving them a much different flavor.

[jokhm]

As for storing your tea.. the container you have is pretty standard where I am in Beijing. BUT, our weather is incredibly dry and our consumption rate quite rapid, so a loosely sealed tea isn't too much of a concern. If you think your home is relatively dry and expect to go through your tea within a half a year then I would say not to think too much about how to store it. One thing that is easy to check out with jasmine teas is whether the fragrance easily leaks out of the container. If it does quite a bit, change container or drink the tea faster!

Sorry, possibly went into too much detail. Anyhow, enjoy.

Joel