Don Mei : Hey teaheads! This is Don from Mei
Leaf. In this video : Chao Zhou Style Brewing
: Crushing The Leaves. In this video we're
going to get down into the details of Chao
Zhou Gong Fu style brewing, and we're going
to be seeing if crushing leaves actually makes
a difference to the final brew. This video
is going to go under the "Tea Brewing" and
the "Teamaster Classes" playlists. If at any
point in time you enjoy this video then make
sure you hit it with the thumbs-up. The more
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going to come your way, and if you haven't
subscribed to our YouTube channel yet [then]
go click that button. I am here with Tracie.
You may remember Tracie. When was it? A long
time ago.
Tracie : It was over about a year-and-a-half
ago. [laughter]
Don : Yeah, we did [it] - on a sunnier day
than today...
Tracie : Yes.
Don : ... we did a video about iced teas...?
Tracie : Iced tea. That's it. Very nice.
Don : Iced teas. I'll put a link in the description
below, [so] you can check it out. She has
returned for another video.
Tracie : I'm back!
Don : Yes!
Tracie : I've been waiting me turn. You're
so busy, you know? No, I'm very excited to
be back. [laughter]
Don : [That's] so not true. Yeah. The moment
she texted me, "Do you want to do another
video?" I was like, "Yes! Yes! Yes! Come over!"
Tracie : [laughter]
Don : So today, what we're going to do is
we're going to get quite geeky on this one
today.
Tracie : Great! [It's] my favorite topic.
Don : Yeah. So this is proper "geek zone",
guys. We're going to dive into Chao Zhou style
brewing, and specifically, crushing the leaves,
because I know a lot of you people have asked
about it, and it is a technique which is used
in the south of China. So we want to try and
understand the logic behind it. A lot of what
I am going to say today comes from understanding
- through talking to people in China [and]
from reading bits - but some of it is my own
theory. [It] may not be true. but that is
all part of the process. You know? Learning
[and] spreading.
Tracie : Absolutely, trial and error.
Don : Exactly. If you have any other comments
or thoughts about what we're talking about
then stick them in the comments section below.
So let's begin at the beginning. We released
a "flight box" of Mi Lan Xiang Dan Cong, which
is this tea here; so "Royal Peach Orchid".
We released a flight box where we did a sampling
of three different grades of Mi Lan Xiang
Dan Cong. I'm not going to [give too many]
spoilers out there, in case you want to purchase
one of those flight boxes. It's a really interesting
experience, because you get three teas, and
you can taste them...
Tracie : MmmHmm.
Don : ... and there's like a whole direction
so you can kind of learn how I grade this
particular type of tea. But the end result
is that one of the teas in there [had] amazing
aroma and amazing fragrance...
Tracie : Mmm.
Don : ... but it was lacking body, [and] it
was lacking texture. It was a bit too soft.
Tracie : Right.
Don : But [it had] very, very like wonderful,
wonderful aromatics. It was one of those teas
where I wanted to buy it, but at the same
time there was something missing. Now for
me, and for a lot of people in China - and
this is something that [is less] considered
in the West...
Tracie : MmmHmm.
Don : ... is that the taste and aroma of a
tea is almost considered secondary to the
body, texture, and kind of "feel" of the tea.
You know?
Tracie : MmmHmm.
Don : So it's kind of like you want a perfect
marriage of all of them together, but the
body is considered one of the most fundamental
characteristics of high-quality tea. Right.
So with this Mi Lan Xiang [Dan Cong] I didn't
buy, but instead we put it in a flight box,
and I mixed it with a tea which had more body
and slightly less fragrance - [but] still
a really high quality Wu Dong Mi Lan Xiang
Dan Cong - but had a little bit more texture
and body. The end result is that we have created
this blend here. This is a blend of teas to
- in my opinion - get the perfect balance
of body and aromatics. So we're going to taste
that one later, but what I have here [is]
- these are the same teas; so two scoops of
the same tea - [where] this is the very highly
aromatic Mi Lan Xiang Dan Cong that was lacking
body and texture.
Tracie : Okay.
Don : Right. [It] was a bit soft. We're going
to be using this to demonstrate a point regarding
Chao Zhou brewing, and that is the crushing
of the leaf. So let's go back in time [to
the] Qing Dynasty - [the] early Qing dynasty...
You're from Malaysia?
Tracie : Malaysia, yes.
Don : But your parents?
Tracie : Yeah, my mom [is] Chinese-Malaysia.
She's from Kuching...
Don : Okay.
Tracie : ... so on the east peninsula of Malaysia.
Don : But probably, your ancestors come from
South China, I would imagine - or Straits
Chinese.
Tracie : Yeah.
Don : Anyway, so this [part of] South China
- [the] Chao Zhou area; Guang Dong province
[and] moving up to Fu Jian province - they
basically invented Gong Fu brewing.
Tracie : Okay.
Don : They're the people, in early Qing dynasty,
that really created the template for Gong
Fu brewing that then spread out, you know,
across China, and has been adapted, and continues
to be adapted. Gong Fu brewing [people talk
about as] a ceremony, but it's not really
about the ceremony. It's more of a discipline.
It's more about trying to maximize - you know,
you're had lots of Gong Fu brews, right?
Tracie : Absolutely. All of them.
Don : So trying to maximize the flavor.
Tracie : Yes. Yes.
Don : Yeah. So there are a few reasons [which]
prompted the development of Gong Fu brewing.
One of them was simply its relationship to
[the arts], and martial arts, and discipline,
and we can talk about that later. I've got
videos planned across a lot of this in-depth
diving into Chao Zhou, and Gong Fu, brewing.
This is the first one.
Tracie : MmmHmm.
Don : Another reason - and one of the main
reasons - is that in South China the people
weren't that rich, and so there was [an] element
of making sure that you got the most out of
the leaves.
Tracie : Ah!
Don : Right. So in order to do that they shrunk
down the teaware, shrunk down the teapots,
shrunk down the teacups, and it wasn't about
taking a beverage. It was much more about
really appreciating the taste in small sips,
right? And brewing a smaller amount of leaf
- or the same amount of leaf, but brewing
it in a small container - so you can maximize
the flavor, fragrance, and effect, versus
brewing what is now considered "Western Style",
but was being brewed before the Qing dynasty,
which was [a] larger amount of water-to-leaf...
Tracie : Oh!
Don : ... and brewing it for a longer period
of time. So [in] Gong Fu style brewing - for
those of you who don't know - really [one
of] the key fundamental tenets of it is [that]
you shrink the teaware down, and you have
a large amount of leaf-to-water ratio - in
other words, a lot of leaf compared to the
amount of water. Before that - and in "western
style" brewing - it was much more about lots
of water with a less amount of leaf, [and]
for longer brewing times. Okay?
Tracie : MmmHmm.
Don : So you could, therefore, really kind
of eek out, and maximize,the amount that you
could get out of a small amount of leaves
if you shrunk the teaware down, and you really
appreciated each and every infusion, and you
could then really just maximize your efficiency.
Okay?
Tracie : Okay.
Don : We can talk more about that on future
videos. One of the other reasons why Gong
Fu brewing was created is [that] it was created
around the same time as Oolong tea.
Tracie : Oh!
Don : Right? [With] Oolong tea, [one] of the
fundamental aspects of Oolong tea is that
after the withering and heating phase they
roll the tea. Right?
Tracie : Right.
Don : So you've seen ball-rolled Oolong before,
right?
Tracie : Yes.
Don : Yeah? Where they really, really roll
it.
Tracie : Yes. [Those] super-tight little balls.
Don : Exactly. Then you've got this style
Oolong, which is "strip Oolong", but you can
see [that] it's pretty rolled up, right? Now,
they do roll other tea types. For example,
you get green teas that are rolled, etcetera,
etcetera. But with Oolong it's fundamentally
part of the process. They have to do that.
The reason why they do that is because they
want to take all the juices and they want
to bring [them] to the surface.
Tracie : Ah!
Don : Right? So they're kind of bringing out
all of the juices, because the leaf - actually,
by itself - is quite waterproof. You know?
Tracie : Okay.
Don : It has to be, right? In order for it
to survive it needs to be pretty much water
proof - [with] there being some ability for
water to transfer - but essentially, it's
waterproof. So when you roll the leaf, and
you crush the leaf slightly, you're bring
all of the juices up to the surface, and those
juices dry up on the leaf. Okay?
Tracie : Right.
Don : Those juices tend to have a very aromatic
[complex of] aromas - [like] fruits, flowers,
creams, [and] all those things. That's why
Oolong tea is known - [you're] an Oolong lover,
right?
Tracie : I'm a huge [fan]. Oolong is my favorite,
yes.
Don : So why is Oolong one of your favorites?
Tracie : Just because it's so aromatic...
Don : Yeah.
Tracie : ... and [for me] me it's very expansive
- the taste of the Oolong tea. I really like
the high mountain Oolongs. I feel like I very
much connect with that energy of the mountain,
with the Oolong tea.
Don : Yeah.
Tracie : So [it's a] big favorite.
Don : So you have this very bright, high aroma...
Tracie : MmmHmm.
Don : ... and, as you say, complexity in that
aroma. So all of the work that they've been
doing - [because] Oolong is a very labour-intensive
tea to make - all of that work is about developing
flavor and then bringing it to the surface
so that you've got all of these dried leaf
juices on the surface that give you this beautiful
aroma as soon as water hits it, right?
Tracie : MmmHmm.
Don : So what you suddenly have is a tea which
is very suited to short infusions, right?
Because all of [the flavor] and the aromatics
- or a lot of those bright notes - are brought
to the surface of the leaf. Okay?
Tracie : Right.
Don : So then when you hit it with water you're
going to extract that more quickly than allowing
the water to enter the leaf and dissolve the
solids in the leaf. Right?
Tracie : Right.
Don : So if you imagine the anatomy of the
tea leaf, you've got the dry leaf juices sitting
on top of the leaf, and then you've got kind
of a membrane...
Tracie : MmmHmm.
Don : ... and then you've got like the leaf
solids. Okay?
Tracie : Okay.
Don : So the water is going to start to dissolve
all of those bright aromatics first, and then
slowly enter the leaf and dissolve up those
leaf solids. That will start to extract into
the tea.
Tracie : Mmm.
Don : With Oolong tea, because you've got
all of that dry leaf juice, it suits short
steepings, because you can get those aromas
very quickly. But also, if you brew too long
- in other words, if you take a smaller amount
of leaf and you brew it for a longer amount
of time in a larger amount of water - then
those aromatics [are] very fleeting, you know?
You've got to protect those aromatics.
Tracie : Right.
Don : Yeah?
Tracie : Okay.
Don : They will dissipate. So if you leave
a tea, for four [or] five minutes, to brew,
those aromatics are going to start to lose
their brightness. They're going to lose their
kind of technicolor approach, [and] it's going
to be a little bit more muddy.
Tracie : Okay.
Don : Yeah? So you have, suddenly, a style
of tea that's being made that suits fast infusions.
Yeah?
Tracie : Okay.
Don : [With] very quick infusions, and really
kind of bringing out all those aromatics very
quickly. Yeah?
Tracie : MmmHmm.
Don : That's why Chao Zhou, and Gong Fu style
brewing, is so intrinsically linked with Oolong
teas. But the problem with this, okay, is
that you have all of these aromatics, but
sometimes you want some dissolved solids from
the leaf, because those dissolved solids in
the leaf [bring] body and texture.
Tracie : Mmm!
Don : Right? So when we were talking before
about the flight box, and having some Oolong
teas - and you may have experienced this yourself
- and you yourself too - that when you brew
Oolong teas you get all this aroma, and it's
amazing - but in the mouth it's just lacking
this kind of dryness, or body, or texture,
and some taste as well. Some of the [leafy]
taste - that kind of vegetal taste...
Tracie : Ah.
Don : .. or some sourness, or some minerality,
that comes more from the leaf material being
dissolved, rather than the dry leaf juice.
Tracie : Okay.
Don : Okay? So sometimes you have teas which
are too soft, but have bright aroma, right?
This is where the breaking of the leaf comes
in. Because if you break the leaf up - if
you crush the leaf up - then, of course, what
you're doing is essentially allowing water
to enter the leaf material very quickly, [and]
that way it's extracting the solid leaf material,
it's dissolving that, [and] extracting it
into the tea, and so you're getting a slightly
more richer body...
Tracie : Okay.
Don : ... and a more rounded taste.
Tracie : Ah!
Don : So this is why this style of brewing
works super well with Oolong tea. So let's
begin with brewing.
Tracie : Amazing.
Don : We're going to do a little test here.
I've got hot water here. I'm going to now
quickly just heat up the teaware. We're not
going to do a full brewing here, because that
would take too long, but we're going to do
a couple of infusions, and you can judge the
quality of this tea. So I'm going to put [4.5
grams] in here, of tea.
Tracie : These are the same teas?
Don : [They're] exactly the same tea, but
we're going to treat one of them slightly
differently. Have a sniff of that. This is
Mi Lan Xiang Dan Cong, [or] "Royal Peach Orchid",
and as I said, we've got our blended "Royal
Peach" - our Mei Leaf blend has just hit the
web site, so you can check that out. So I've
got the same amount of tea here, but what
I'm going to do is I'm going to take a small
amount, okay? Now this is, again, to personal
taste, and you can adapt as you want. What
I'm going to do with this is literally - I'm
going to do it close to [the] camera so you
can see - is literally crush this, which I
know sounds very strange to people out there,
because we're always [talking] about how you
should have whole leaf. But one of the reasons
why whole leaf is so good is because you can
control the brewing. So you can decide how
much you want - in terms of body and dryness
- in your tea. Okay, so I'm going to...
Tracie : So just a little crush.
Don : Yeah. You can see, [if] you compare
that to that.
Tracie : Yup.
Don : We're still doing 80 percent [to] 90
percent whole leaf, but we're doing this crushed
leaf here.
Tracie : Okay.
Don : We're going to drop in to the teapot,
and we're just going to shake iit so it hits
the back. Right? That does two things. If
you put it at the back it means that, first
of all, you're going to get less of it coming
out of the spout, right?
Tracie : Ah!
Don : Because now I'm covering [it] here with
the full leaf. So that acts kind of like a
filter, right?
Tracie : Okay.
Don : The full leaf stops too much of the
tea dust from leaving, because we want it
there. That's part of the whole process of
this Chao Zhou style brewing. The second thing
is [that] it allows you to control the pour.
So you can also - if you brewed this - [the]
first pours are going to have a little bit
more of the full leaf...
Tracie : Ah!
Don : ... and the end pour is going to be
that dry astringency that comes from the broken
leaf. So you can then even adapt - according
to your pouring ... and a lot of teamasters,
what they'll do is they'll pour away the first
part, and then they'll pour into the Gong
Dao Bei. Then just when they think, 'Yeah.
That's enough of the body.'...
Tracie : Ah!
Don : ... they'll take it away. So they get
to know the tea.
Tracie : Fascinating.
Don : So it becomes, yeah, very, very important.
It's also important that when you pour [the
water] ... I am not going to rinse this for
this one - but when you pour the water don't
pour it directly over the broken leaf.
Tracie : Okay.
Don : Right? Because then it's going to really
extract very quickly. So you want to hit the
whole leaf, and then let that water reach
the broken leaf.
Tracie : So it's a real art - a real art from
start to finish.
Don : You didn't think anything else, did
you Tracie?
Tracie : No, and here [there's] a new blend
going on. You've done your own, fresh blend.
Don : So this is what anybody can do, right?
Tracie : Yeah.
Don : If you feel that the tea is too soft,
yeah?
Tracie : Yeah.
Don : ... [and] lacks body, but you like the
high aromatics, then what you can do is rather
than steeping it for longer - which is going
to, as I said, mean that you're going to be
less economic with your leaf, right?
Tracie : Okay.
Don : Also, it means that you're going to
lose the aromatics, because you're brewing
it for too long, right?
Tracie : MmmHmm.
Don : Because it's going to start to muddy
in there. You can preserve the aromatics whilst
getting the body and the texture by doing
this method.
Tracie : Okay.
Don : That's the theory of it. Now there are
other theories. Like so, for example, in Chao
Zhou brewing a lot of the time what they did
[was they'd use a different] tea for the broken.
They would just use cheaper [tea].
Tracie : Oh!
Don : So again, that expands this economics
idea.
Tracie : Okay.
Don : So they'd get some cheap tea to just
add that body.
Tracie : Ah!
Don : But I think that you can do it with
the highest, highest quality stuff. Obviously,
if you can afford to do so it's a much better
finish.
Tracie : Yeah. [That] makes sense.
Don : Right. So, as I said, we're not going
to rinse. We're going to hit it with 95 degree
[Celsius] water. Now you can do this [method]
with all sorts of tea. I would recommend you
try it with Oolongs. It's often used for ball-rolled
Oolongs. Dan Congs already have quite a lot
of dryness, okay? So you don't need to do
it so much with Dan Cong teas. I'm showing
you this as an example because [we were] talking
about the flight box. But you could mostly
do this with ball-rolled Oolongs, or with
Yan Chas, like "rock Oolongs" - like Da Hong
Paos and things like that; or Shui Xians.
Tracie : Ah!
Don : Just add a little bit to it.
Tracie : Okay.
Don : Okay. So what we're going to do is we're
going to try and brew for the same amount
of time here. We're not going to rinse. We're
going to go straight in. So, pretty much,
immediately. Immediately, we're going in [for]
a few seconds. So that will be something like
a 10-second infusion once the pour is over,
yeah? Already, look at the color of that.
[It's] stunning.
Tracie : Yeah! Amazing!
Don : Same thing here. So we have to be careful.
We're going to pour at the front. I don't
want to hit [that] back, dusty part, right?
Again, [it's] pretty much instant. It's a
different pour. You can see [a] more arch-like
pour, this one.
Tracie : Yes.
Don : There you go. So [these are] two teas
brewed. They're exactly the same tea leaves,
but one brewed with crushed leaves in there.
Let's just take a look at the color. Can you
see any difference in color? Not really, right?
Anything?
Tracie : No.
Don : Right. So [it's] pretty much the same.
So, here we go. Let's taste this.
Tracie : Exciting.
Don : Here you go. Let's try it with uncrushed
- so fully whole leaves first. Cheers, everybody!
[SIPS TEA]
Tracie : Cheers! [SIPS TEA]
Don : So focus on how much aromatics you're
getting at the beginning. Then after you've
swallowed, is there structure and finish and
body to the tea?
Tracie : [SIPS TEA] Mmm.
Don : What do you think?
Tracie : It's super flowery. It's very aromatic.
[It's not] too strong. It's just [a very nice]
flowery finish, I think. It [tastes] delicious
though. I love it. [SIPS TEA]
Don : Yeah. So [there are] really nice aromas.
You're getting some honey. You're getting
some orchid. You're getting, obviously, some
peachy kind of stone fruit notes in there
as well. [SIPS TEA] There is some woodiness,
but it's [a little bit understated]. It's
gentle, right?
Tracie : Yeah.
Don : It's there. It adds a little bit of
that backbone.
Tracie : Exactly. There's some depth there.
There is some depth, but it's kind of like
a rockery, where you have like flowers coming
out of the rock. [It] tastes kind of like
that - like the flowers coming from the rock.
Don : Right. So you're getting more of the
flowery notes.
Tracie : Yes.
Don : All right. Let's try this one here.
So this is the same tea brewed with just maybe
10 percent crushed leaf.
Tracie : [SIPS TEA] Mmm! [It's] different.
[SIPS TEA]
Don : [It's] different - very different. [It's]
amazing. I mean, it's surprising, right?
Tracie : Yeah!
Don : How different it is. [SIPS TEA]
Tracie : What I'm feeling with this one is
when I drink it I just feel like it's much
more like earthy. It's like we've gone into
the rock.
Don : Mmm.
Tracie : It's more earthy [and] it's more
grounded. There's still those floral top notes,
[and] I can still taste everything that we
had in this one, but this one just feels more
grounded.
Don : Right. So yeah, to my taste you're still
- as you say - [getting] the top notes...
Tracie : Yeah.
Don : But then you're getting a little bit
more balance, because you've got a little
bit more mineral rocks - like your rockery.
Tracie : Yeah.
Don : You're getting a little bit more wood,
[and] you're getting a little bit more earth,
and the finish is more quenching.
Tracie : Yes.
Don : The finish is drier.
Tracie : Yes. It is drier, yeah.
Don : Now, it's not about which is better.
It's more about preference. Sometimes you
might prefer soft, light, more about the top
notes aromatics.
Tracie : Yes.
Don : Sometimes you might prefer this one.
Tracie : Exactly. This one is like more full-bodied.
Don : Mmm.
Tracie : It's got more...This one is just
[like] yeah. When I think of like a tree,
for example, it feels like this one is incorporating
the roots of the tree...
Don : Yeah.
Tracie : ... as well as the branches with
the fruit on [it].
Don : Yeah.
Tracie : That's what it feels like.
Don : Yeah. That's a really good analogy.
I always talk about the "EQ-ing of tea", right?
Tracie : MmmHmm.
Don : How top note, mid-range [and] base notes...
As a DJ she knows everything about that.
Tracie : I know about music.
Don : So yeah, but all like that. The tops
of the trees, the flowers, [and] all of that.
But the structure...
Tracie : Yes.
Don : The body...
Tracie : Yes.
Don : The roots of it.
Tracie : The roots. Like this one would be
the branches and the blossoms of the tree
- the fruit of the tree.
Don : Yeah.
Tracie : But this one is the branch within
the blossoms, but the trunk of the tree.
Don : Yeah.
Tracie : So taking us down much more into
the earth element. So, yeah, they [both have]
a part to play. One is just more kind of like...
Don : So when would you drink that one versus
that one, for example?
Tracie : This one would be more like [in a
more] meditative space. You know, more relaxation.
You know, more relaxation. If I was wanting
to relax and just be in a quiet space I would
take the aromatic one. But if I'm doing something
more serious, [like] if I have to do some
work [and] I need to focus, I would go for
[this one] because it's more [full-bodied].
Don : Well, it's interesting that you say
that, because when you have a [more full-bodied]
tea, and you have that more leaf... So what's
happened here - just to recap - is that this
style of brewing has [extracted] some of the
dry leaf juice, but it's also - because of
the broken leaf - it's been able to extract
some actual leaf material, right?
Tracie : Ah.
Don : So what you're getting, therefore, is
you're going to have more of a potent effect.
Tracie : Right.
Don : So when you tend to get that more dry
sensation [with] astringency [and] slight
bitterness, then it's more likely that you're
going to have a more stimulating effect, or
it's going to have a more kind of energetic
effect, or it's just going to be stronger.
So yeah, you're right. [The softer one] is
much more about maybe that kind of meditative
[effect]. You don't want the tea to have too
much of an effect, but you want, instead,
for it to have those aromatics, those bright
notes, [and] those kind of "lift you up",
ethereal notes.
Tracie : Yes!
Don : You know?
Tracie : I mean, the other differentiation
is maybe that this one is more "feminine",
and this one is more "masculine". I mean,
if we were trying to find words to describe
it.
Don : Yeah. No, I understand the logic of
that.
Tracie : Yeah. The one with the trunk of the
tree, and the more earth notes, is more masculine.
Don : Oop! This lid is... Oh! I got the wrong
lid, didn't I?
Tracie : Okay.
Don : [laughter] That shows you it's handmade.
Tracie : [laughter]
Don : You know, the lid doesn't fit. But then
they are different styles as well. Okay. So
[there's] clearly a difference, right? We
can brew this again, and again, and again,
and I've done it, and you can taste the difference.
One of the other advantages of this style
of brewing - where you take some crushed leaf
- is that it basically [evens out] the whole
experience. Because your first [few] infusions
of this one here - the uncrushed leaf...
Tracie : MmmHmm.
Don : ... will give you much more of those
aromatics - those high notes that we were
talking about - and as the leaf starts to
unfurl and extract, and the water penetrates
deeper and deeper into the leaf, it's going
to be less of [those] bright aromatics, and
you're going to get more of those minerals
[and] dries. Right?
Tracie : Ah! Okay.
Don : So you're going find this sweet spot
- probably around infusion two, three, [or]
four...
Tracie : Okay.
Don : ... where you go, "Ah! That's a nice
balance."
Tracie : Okay. Yeah.
Don : Where it's not just aromatics, but it's
not just kind of dryness. Yeah?
Tracie : Okay. Okay.
Don : When you have the crushed leaf what
you're doing is essentially evening that out,
because from the first brew you're getting
the mix of aromatics with the leaf material.
Tracie : Right.
Don : ... but then, by the time the water
has started to extract the leaf material of
the whole leaf, the crushed leaf has kind
of done all of its work. It's extracted already.
So it's not really playing much of a part
- as much of a part - in the flavor.
Tracie : MmmHmm. Okay.
Don : Right? So [in] that way you get a much
more even, [and] longer-lasting sweet spot.
Do you understand what I mean?
Tracie : Very nice. Yeah.
Don : So you get that. Now, let's try this
one. This is the Mei Leaf blend that we've
just released. This is whole leaf. I didn't
crush any of it, but I've intentionally blended
two leaves. One is this one - the aromatic
one, [which is] very aromatic. [Then I blended
it] with one that I felt has more body. Let's
give this a taste. [SIPS TEA]
Tracie : [SIPS TEA]
Don : If you compare them - you're welcome
to help yourself to the others - you can see
what we've done in making this blend.
Tracie : Okay. So now, this is the whole tree.
We've got the roots and we've got the branches,
and the fruits on the tree. The aromatics...
Don : So you would say it was closer to this
one than this one?
Tracie : I would say [this is the] balance
of those two. It's a combination of the structure
and the rootedness, and the astringency, with
the aromatics on the top.
Don : Right.
Tracie : So it's a mix. [SIPS TEA]
Don : It is a mix, and so this is an example
of blending...
Tracie : Mmm!
Don : ... and it's an example of what we can
do if you find that you want to keep it whole
leaf, but you want that perfect sweet spot.
Tracie : Yeah.
Don : [It's] giving you the body from one
tea, and the aroma from another.
Tracie : The aromas that are coming from these
teas is just...
Don : I know.
Tracie : ... I wish we could transfer the
smell through the video, because it just smells
amazing right here.
Don : Yeah. There's a lot of good smells here,
[like] flowers [and] honey.
Tracie : Honey, yup. Like you say, the orchids
- and the rock. I can smell the earthiness
as well.
Don : Yeah. Yeah. [It's] definitely all there.
There is a really highly aromatic tea. That's
why, with Oolong teas - especially these kinds
of teas - it really suits this style of brewing;
this Chao Zhou style, or Gong Fu style, brewing.
As I said, Gong Fu style brewing has its roots
in Chao Zhou. This is the beginnings of Gong
Fu style brewing, and then it spread everywhere,
and you know, it's become more and more popular.
But it was all about the fact that you suddenly
have this type of tea that's being produced
that have all of these aromatics. You can
then start to really play around with short
infusions. But really, it's a really interesting
method - this [crushing] method. I've seen
it being done, and I [was always] wondering
why they were doing it, and the more I think
about it - as always, [with] the ancients
- there was a logic. There is a logic to it.
It may not have been totally clear to them
when they were doing it, but there's a logic
when you think of the science of the dry leaf
juice and the dissolved solids in the leaf.
How would you sum [it] up? Which is your favorite
tea? How would you sum [it] up?
Tracie : Well, I love the way that we've done
this. I love the way that we started with
this more aromatic one, that's much more - like
I mentioned before - like the tops of the
tree, the branches and the fruit of the tree...
Don : [SIPS TEA] Yeah.
Tracie : ... and the aromatics. I love that.
It makes me feel as if my lungs are expanding.
There's a lot of space there. But this one,
which is more astringent, really feels like
I'm going down into my roots.
Don : It's more grounding.
Tracie : [It's] more grounding, [and] more
earthy. It's got that earth element to it.
I work with the elements, so for me it's really
interesting to look at teas in this way. But
I have to say that my favorite is the blend,
because that is the one that brings the tea
together. So I'm feeling the roots, and the
groundedness of the tree and the earth, but
also enjoying the flavors and the aromatics
of the flowers as well.
Don : Mmm.
Tracie : So yeah, the last one.
Don : Yeah, so [laughter] well done.
Tracie : Thank you. [laughter]
Don : So I think the differences between these
two [is that] they're very similar in terms
of the flavor. This still has the aromatics,
but there's a certain kind of slightly overly
astringent note there. I think you can control
it by making sure you grind the right amount
of leaf, and that's going to depend upon the
tea, and your own personal choice. The great
thing about this one is that, for me, that's
the perfect balance, in terms of body, texture,
dryness, and the aromatics.
Tracie : Yes.
Don : I forgot to say [that] Tracie works
with elements. She has her own company...?
Tracie : Company, yes.
Don : ... and whole business around elemental
resonance?
Tracie : Elemental resonance.
Don : Go check her out on YouTube. I'll put
a link in the description below. She's just
started her YouTube channel.
Tracie : I have [some videos up there].
Don : She needs support [out there]. So yeah,
go and check her out. But yeah, it's a fascinating
thing. I love looking at these kind of in-depth
things that were done from [the] 1600s...
Tracie : Absolutely.
Don : ... that actually makes sense when you
try them out. So check it out, and again,
the beautiful thing about whole leaf is [that]
it gives you this control. If you find a leaf
which is too soft - in terms of texture - you
can break it to extend the kind of texture
and body by dissolving those leaf solids in
the actual tea itself. That's why you should
always stay away from tea bags, because all
you get is the dust, and you have no control
at all. This gives you all the control. Some
people might like a really, really dry tea.
[If so], then grind up 20 percent. I know
[that] in ChaoZhou they like it really, really
hard.
Tracie : Do they?
Don : They like it very, very, really, really
strong, [and] very kind of puckering.
Tracie : [laughter]
Don : You know, you feel it in your throat
for like [hours] afterwards. It's like constantly
gripping, but that's the way they like it.
So it's all about personal taste. There's
no right or wrong, but use this technique,
[and] don't be afraid to crush up those leaves.
That's it teaheads. Thank you very much, Tracie.
Tracie : You're welcome. It's an honor to
be here, as usual.
Don : As always, you're welcome back for any
other videos that you want to do. [It] saves
me being all alone here drinking tea.
Tracie : [laughter]
Don : If you guys made it to the end of this
video then make sure you hit it with a thumbs-up.
Check out our YouTube playlists and let us
know if there are any videos that you would
like us to make. If you're ever in London
then come visit us in Camden to say "Hi!"
and taste our wares. If you have any questions
or comments then please fire them over. Other
than that, this is Tracie, [and] I'm Don from
Mei Leaf. Thank you for being a part of the
revelation of true tea. Stay away from those
tea bags, keep drinking the good stuff, and
spread the word, because nobody deserves bad
tea. Bye [WAVING]
Tracie : Bye [WAVING]
