After an hour’s work, or so, this morning, I was beginning to flag… And my gaiwan, still holding the leaves from yesterday’s infusion, was just sitting so close to me… It seemed like fate :P
Either way (and pithy back-story aside), I quite fancied trying these leaves again. I was particularly curious to see if a 24 hour gap would leave them affected in any way.
I did four steeps in total (25", 45", 60" and 90") in my Gaiwan (which, I measured, does only hold 100ml liquid, if filled to around where the lid sits in the rim).
Pleasingly, all four steeps were delicious – no issues at at all! The tea still retained a lovely golden-brown-cum-mahogany colour and its delicious treacle fragrance (and, I realised on this second session, a lovely, mild leather-smell). On the palette it was still very sweet and smooth, with figgy/vanilla notes. It also left a clean, refreshing after-taste.
I also gave them another quick rinse before the steeps – I dunno if that’s a regular thing, but I worried that after 24 hours just sat out, damp, they may accumulate a few nasties/stale flavours. It didn’t seem to do any harm, anyway!
So, after 7 infusions, these lovely leaves were still going strong. Not wanting to waste them, but certainly having drunk enough for one session, I thought I may as well try a cold-brew – I’ve left it in the fridge, under ~500 ml water, and will check on it after ~4 hours. Maybe I’ll have a delicious afternoon drink from it. Or maybe I’ll chuck it because my first cold-brew was a disaster. Who knows :P
