Okay, so I’ve been getting into oolong tea lately. It’s, like, somewhere between green and black tea, and there’s so much variety! I wanted to figure out the best way to brew it, so I did some experimenting. Here’s how it went:

Getting Started

First, I grabbed my gaiwan. It’s this little Chinese brewing cup with a lid and saucer. You can use a regular teapot, but I like the gaiwan because it’s good for multiple infusions, like I do with oolong.

Then I picked my oolong. I went with a lightly oxidized one, kinda greenish, because I was in the mood for something fresh.

The Brewing Process

• I boiled some water. You don’t want it too hot for oolong, especially the greener ones. Something like 195°F (90°C) is good. I just let the kettle sit for a bit after it boiled.
• I warmed up the gaiwan by pouring some hot water in and then dumping it out. This makes sure the tea doesn’t cool down too fast.
• I put in the tea leaves. I usually eyeball it, filling the gaiwan up to about the size that fits my needs.
• Then, I did a quick rinse. I poured hot water over the leaves and immediately poured it out. This helps “wake up” the tea and get rid of any dust.
• Now for the actual brewing! I poured hot water over the leaves again, put the lid on, and waited. For the first infusion, I only waited like 15-20 seconds. It’s pretty quick!
• I poured the tea into my little teacup. Gotta make sure to pour out all the water, so the leaves don’t keep steeping.

Multiple Infusions

The cool thing about oolong is you can steep the same leaves multiple times. Each time, the flavor changes a little.

For the next infusion, I make it very short, like 10 seconds. By infusion 3 it takes about 25 seconds. Then, I start adding more time with each brew, like 30 seconds, then 45, then a minute, and so on. I usually get at least 5 good infusions, sometimes more!

Tasting Notes

The first brew was light and floral, really fresh-tasting. The later infusions got a little more mellow and toasty, but still had that nice floral aroma. It’s so interesting how the flavor develops!

So, that’s my oolong brewing routine! It’s pretty simple, really, but it’s fun to experiment with different teas and brewing times to see what you like best.