工夫茶 Gōngfū Chá Practice - Brewing Aged Phoenix Oolong

Brewing a 12 year aged 老欉蜜蘭香鳳凰單欉烏龍茶 Lǎo cóng mì lánxiāng fènghuáng dān cóng wūlóngchá - Old Grove Honey Orchid Fragrance Phoenix Dān Cóng “Single Bush/Grove” Oolong tea from 烏岽山 Wūdōngshān in 潮州 Cháozhōu.

The tea is brewed in a small 仿古 fǎnggǔ shape 宜興 Yíxìng teapot made of 朱泥 zhūní clay with and image of a bat and reeds. The bamboo tea scoop is an early 20th century antique Japanese 茶合 sagō with a poem inscribed upon it. The tea viewing vessel is made of 白銅 báitóng (lit. “white copper”, cupronickel) with inlay of jade and brass in the shape of banana leaf. The 茶船 cháchuán (lit. “tea boat”) is a vintage Japanese 伊賀焼 Iga-yaki 片口 katakuchi bowl, paired with a small plate of the same style set below the three cups. The three 品茗杯 pǐn míng bēi (lit. “tea tasting cups”) are vintage enameled Yíxìng ware. The cloth is a small Japanese 風呂敷 furoshiki with waves and blossoms motif in blue and white, contrasted with white pine needles on an orange field on the opposite side. The tea pick is from a local fruit tree picked in Upstate New York. The water has been heated in a vintage Japanese 鉄瓶 tetsubin iron kettle.

The video shows the warming of the teapot and tea cups followed by the first steeping of the tea. In total, the tea produced over twenty steepings, lasting over several hours. The approach of this manner of brewing tea is called 潮州工夫茶 Cháozhōu gōngfū chá, a practice of making tea that is native to the area where the tea was produced.

Regardless of what wares you have at your disposal, so long as you make the time to focus and practice, you can bring out the best flavors in any well-crafted tea. I hope this short video provides you a moment to pause, if not some insight into how an aged Phoenix oolong can be brewed. In the meantime, share with me any thoughts, feedback or questions you might have.

Pause. Breathe. Savor.

Thank you.

🍃 🍵 ♥️

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