Gong Fu Cha Workshop for all levels

This is originally a virtual workshop video for the International Virtual Tea Festival in 2020, hence the quite long length. In this video, you can learn about the cultural and historical aspects of Chinese Gong Fu Cha, the teaware you need to prepare for practicing Gong Fu Cha, or you can skip ahead to 15'37'' for the four golden rules/methods of how to use Gaiwan to brew different types of teas. Whether you are already a Gong Fu Cha tea drinker, or just recently been introduced to it, I hope you will benefit from this video! Let me know if you have a question by commenting below :) Happy Steeping!
Check our our online boutique if you are interested in our teas or teaware: www.serenetea-cha.com
We go to visit tea farms and tea farmers every year (except for 2020) to document production process. Knowing where our teas come from, share the knowledge of how they are produced and show full transparency for tea drinkers are our most important principles. We also source our teawares directly from local ceramic artists in Jing De Zhen, China, which is the birthplace of Chinese ceramics.
You can also follow us on Instagram @serene_tea_cha, where we post about our tea trips and live streaming about our tea tasting

Пікірлер: 65

  • @archibald6360
    @archibald63604 ай бұрын

    The most comprehensive guide to Gong Fu Cha. Much appreciated. Beautiful masterclass.

  • @kevinmonceaux2101
    @kevinmonceaux21012 жыл бұрын

    Thank you for all this information. I think I'm ready to explore this tea preparation method. I've been a black tea drinker for years, and have always brewed Western style. I was not aware that that method could burn the tea leaves. I have always had to add sweetener to make the tea palatable. I also enjoyed Pu Erh tea in the past, but stopped drinking it about a decade or so ago. I did most of my tea drinking at work back then, and brewing it Western style with the initial rinses proved to be too much of a hassle in that setting. I now work from home and want to get back into Pu Erh. Trying to refresh my memory on how to brew it lead me to exploring this method. I was never able to find any green or oolong teas that I liked brewed Western style. I might need to take another look at some of those styles of teas with this method as well.

  • @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thank you for sharing your tea experience! I am glad you are going to restart Pu Erh tea and explore green & oolong from a different perspective. I don’t know what green & oolong you were buying in the past, but if the quality is good, oolong teas and black teas tend to produce a better result even if it’s brewed western style compared to other teas, but green teas can definitely be burned. If you need some advice for what kind of oolong teas to get started for gong fu cha practice and tend to produce a good result, feel free to let me know!

  • @AW-uv3cb
    @AW-uv3cb2 жыл бұрын

    Tea funnel could be a good translation for 茶漏 and seems like it's used sometimes in English :-) I really like this video!

  • @richerdson3652

    @richerdson3652

    2 жыл бұрын

    That's what I was thinking

  • @lynnerholmes
    @lynnerholmes3 жыл бұрын

    Thank you so much for one of the most comprehensive videos about gongfu brewing that I've ever watched. I appreciate how encouraging you are that with practice, we can improve our skills with a gaiwan. Thank you also so much for providing closed captioning considerations for the deaf and hearing impaired! 💕

  • @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    3 жыл бұрын

    Thank you for your kind words and I am so glad you find this video helpful ❤️ I hope we can improve our Gong Fu Cha skills together and brew better teas 😊

  • @ryanmeadows3545
    @ryanmeadows354511 ай бұрын

    Thank you for sharing. Recently was introduced to gongfu tea ceremony. Your video is very informative. Love it!

  • @milkteaalliance1748
    @milkteaalliance1748 Жыл бұрын

    Oh wow very detailed very a m great full that you showed something very special well done! 🤗

  • @ivonne_ybn
    @ivonne_ybn3 ай бұрын

    Best video I have seen, thank you 🌷

  • @IbrahimAhmed-ju8ou
    @IbrahimAhmed-ju8ou2 жыл бұрын

    Amazing!!

  • @azul_rosales
    @azul_rosales2 жыл бұрын

    Amazing video! 💕

  • @WurzelWasserPower
    @WurzelWasserPower3 ай бұрын

    The Gaiwan is so beautiful 😻

  • @jasonbiernat2944
    @jasonbiernat294411 ай бұрын

    Great information! Thank You!

  • @ashleyevans3143
    @ashleyevans31433 жыл бұрын

    This was a helpful video! Thank you!

  • @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    3 жыл бұрын

    Thank you! I am glad you find it helpful 😊

  • @shreerajshrestha8621
    @shreerajshrestha86213 жыл бұрын

    Welcome back!

  • @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    3 жыл бұрын

    Thank you!! 😉

  • @abignothing
    @abignothing2 жыл бұрын

    45 minutes well spent!

  • @eshratmehmood5587
    @eshratmehmood55878 ай бұрын

    Tea class ❤

  • @feliciaharris7372
    @feliciaharris73722 жыл бұрын

    Hello. Thank you for such an excellent tutorial. I've been to your website in hopes of purchasing the adorable cat tray. I saw the others, but am wondering when you will get this specific tea tray back in stock. I very much want to purchase. Thank you.

  • @christianhosking7134
    @christianhosking71349 ай бұрын

    This video was incredibly insightful and helpful! I was wondering if you had any tips to storing loose leaf tea that is more traditional?

  • @mao-kn5jx
    @mao-kn5jx2 жыл бұрын

    thank you for the lesson! it helped a lot. do you have a video on the ceremony itself. would like to learn more like serving and the etiquette THANK you! very good content!

  • @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thank you and I am glad you find it helpful 😊 That’s a very good suggestion for the next video! I will make one that talks about ceremony itself soon!

  • @zhubajie6940
    @zhubajie69402 жыл бұрын

    9:40 Perhaps chá lòu is short for 茶漏斗 chá lòudǒu, a tea funnel. Hard to tell without the hanzi.

  • @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    2 жыл бұрын

    Usually we call it 茶漏 in Chinese, which could be the shorter version of 茶漏斗, the 斗 part might be a bit redundant so there’s no need for it

  • @l3n693
    @l3n693 Жыл бұрын

    Great video! Also noted some really useful tips :) BTW, which one would be more appropriate to baimudan? the 2nd?

  • @JayJayFig54
    @JayJayFig542 жыл бұрын

    Thank you so much for this video. I especially enjoyed the “pouring” section and learned so much. I haven’t found that much information on pouring. I have a question about the 6/7 o’clock pour. You mentioned that the pour is intended to bring out the aroma of the tea. Do you mean the aroma of the wet leaves, or the aroma from the liquor? Or maybe both?

  • @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thank you and I am glad you find the video useful 🙏 I would say it helps to release the aroma from the leaves as you brew, and thus render your tea’s fragrance stronger both in the body and in the scent

  • @livinginthetruthministries7094
    @livinginthetruthministries7094 Жыл бұрын

    I believe that the cha lou in english is called a funnel. thank you for this video

  • @djoodaduda7345
    @djoodaduda7345 Жыл бұрын

    Hi! Thank you for your work, can i ask whats different Gon Fu Cha and Pin Cha?

  • @Johnthecheesemonger
    @Johnthecheesemonger6 ай бұрын

    Hi! What an amazing and insightful video and introduction! For I would like to learn about tea brewing and how to brew Gong Fu method more. I’m curious, could I buy a full tea set for the experience and method? I’m from England and I’m interested in learning the full tea brewing experience from China, the experience and how it works. Would buying a Gaiwan tea set be alright? :)

  • @Sesquipedalian3
    @Sesquipedalian322 күн бұрын

    21:23 isn't spinning it counter clockwise a way to ask your guests to leave?

  • @genlala
    @genlala3 жыл бұрын

    Awesome video, thank you for sharing your experience! What school in China have you attended? 🙏

  • @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    3 жыл бұрын

    I am glad you found the video helpful! I attended a tea tasting and Chinese Gong Fu Cha ceremony school in Guang Zhou. There are many schools like that in China nowadays since a lot of people could use their certificate and work in the tea industry in China. However there’s no worldwide standardized tea sommelier training program like wine does, since tea and tea culture varies from country to country

  • @yogirise2669
    @yogirise2669 Жыл бұрын

    ♥ TEA GONG FU STYLE ♥

  • @raymondwhatley9954
    @raymondwhatley9954 Жыл бұрын

    I'm curious. Why did you only do that water seal method for the last two brewing methods and not the first two? Also I've seen other guides recommending longer steeping times like 15-30 seconds for each infusion. Is that just a preference thing? Like some people like 8 stronger infusions instead of 15 lighter ones? Or is it based on the tea itself, like was I looking at something for tightly curled oolongs that isn't applicable to like a Long jing?

  • @lencenseur8201
    @lencenseur8201 Жыл бұрын

    Hi. I have never heard the word "gong fu cha" in China, except several times for a designated traditionnal ChaoZhou 泡茶 method, which doesn't use a GongDaoBei. Or For the GongFu HongCha red tea style. Is there a reason why we heard this word "gongfucha" so much in Western countries and not in China?

  • @seamusoseaghdha6175
    @seamusoseaghdha61752 жыл бұрын

    I have a couple of more questions. 1) When are the sniffing cups (tall skinny ones) used? 2) I was reading that modern day folks in most parts of China are drinking tea in more casual ways, not so much Gongfu style (e.g. without fairness pitcher for example, without even gaiwan in some cases, just leaves in a glass jar. Is that really the case?

  • @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thank you for your questions! 1) The sniffing cups come from the Gong Fu Cha culture in Fu Jian and Taiwan, so it's less used in Chao Zhou. You can add them as you pleased. You can pour the liquor into the sniffing cup, then set your regular drinking cup on top of the sniffing cup, then hold the sniffing cup and the drinking cup that covers it together and flip them around, remove your sniffing cup so the liquor is now in your drinking cup. Then you can sense the aroma in the sniffing cup while drinking liquor from your drinking cup. 2) Yes/no! A lot of young folks in China these days, especially the working class, don't really have the luxury of time to set up a Gong Fu table or brew Gong Fu style. So they either do a minimalistic Gong Fu style, for example, brew tea with a travel Gong Fu set or do the grandpa style. However, it is still the dominant culture of tea in China, and those who claim themselves as tea drinkers would have at least one Gong Fu set at home. It is also crucial for management level or executive level people to have a set in their office considering it's still the primary hospitable tool for formal business occasions or important guests at home/office. Another thing to consider is Gong Fu Cha historically comes from southern China, it has never been as popular or well practiced in northern China. Hope I have answered your questions :)

  • @SmithTrek
    @SmithTrek8 ай бұрын

    Isn't the tea needle a needed part of the 6 gentlemen, as some people are drinking Gongfu Cha style using Tea cakes ?

  • @TeaSmithWay

    @TeaSmithWay

    Ай бұрын

    Tea needle is always useful, especially some antique pots do not have filter on the inner side of the spout, so the spout can become clogged during a pour. You can solve this by using a needle after the spout has clogged, but that’s not so great as your pour is spoiled. Another way is to make a “tea nest” - which is something few people seem to know about.

  • @tealover4664
    @tealover4664 Жыл бұрын

    I think you forgot a very important strep which is right after you heat up( or rinse ) the tea ware. You should always rinse the the leaves and throw that liquid away, then drink the next one. For shou puerh, a lot of time you should rinse twice then drink the next one. 😊

  • @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    Жыл бұрын

    Yes I agree :) I have included that in the written instruction but didn’t show it. However, I also believe it’s a personal preference as I have come across many people who also drink the ‘rinse’ infusion since they want to be involved in every step. You should never rinse green tea though if you do practice rinsing 😊

  • @l3n693

    @l3n693

    Жыл бұрын

    As far as I know, that's only for highly oxidized teas like Oolong and some black teas

  • @georgebowman1060
    @georgebowman1060 Жыл бұрын

    lol... You're probably wondering if you should get everything here and the answer is yes... For The full experience yes of course 😆

  • @seamusoseaghdha6175
    @seamusoseaghdha61752 жыл бұрын

    I have two questions: 1) I thought that the first brew is supposed to be discarded? Is that not the case? 2) You mentioned that there aren't any rules about putting water into the teapot. If that's the case, how can I avoid burning the leaves when using a teapot instead of a gaiwan?

  • @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    2 жыл бұрын

    Hi! Sorry I responded to your ‘two more’ questions but somehow missed these two. 1). The first brew is supposed to be discarded, but some people like to taste every single brew (including me) and will keep just a cup of the first one. So it’s up to you. 2). I often use teapots for teas that aren’t as delicate. For example, I would never use teapot for green teas unless your purpose is brew the tea with the grandpa style. I usually use teapot for teas that can handle a higher water temp, such as Shu Pu Erh, medium to heavy roasted oolongs, or aged white teas. I hope this helps :)

  • @dolphinpmo
    @dolphinpmo3 жыл бұрын

    Excellent, clear intro to gongfu brewing! May we know more about the gaiwans you used here - what material, capacity and where to buy? They are so pretty!

  • @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    2 жыл бұрын

    Thank you very much and I am glad you find it helpful and like our teawares 🙏 I also own a tea business called Serene Tea, and we source all of our teaware from the birthplace of Chinese ceramics called Jing De Zhen. We change our collection every year and have a mid annual teaware presale event that you can get incredible deals for the newest collection. This year’s event is coming up next week if you want to go to our site and check it out: www.serenetea-cha.com

  • @user-eh5xr1mh6w
    @user-eh5xr1mh6w3 жыл бұрын

    Thank you

  • @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    3 жыл бұрын

    You are very welcome! ❤️

  • @lesscott4301
    @lesscott43014 ай бұрын

    I often wonder if the first teas to come west were so bad that people felt that adding milk and sugar improved the taste. Otherwise, why would you! As an Englishman, I wonder how many of my countrymen have ever tasted good tea.

  • @calvinspiff4348
    @calvinspiff4348 Жыл бұрын

    It's called a funnel

  • @eshratmehmood5587
    @eshratmehmood55878 ай бұрын

    میڈم چائینز سچ پوچھیں تو چاہے پینے کو اب دل کر رہا ہے لیکن کہاں سے پیوں اس وقت اس لیے سوری مزید نہیں دیکھا جا رہا چاہے کو خوش رہیں

  • @macmcmillen190
    @macmcmillen1903 жыл бұрын

    Xue xie

  • @macmcmillen190

    @macmcmillen190

    3 жыл бұрын

    Xie xie

  • @macmcmillen190

    @macmcmillen190

    3 жыл бұрын

    I hit the wrong button

  • @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    @sereneteachateaeducationgo502

    3 жыл бұрын

    You are very welcome! ❤️

  • @TheHeraldOfChange
    @TheHeraldOfChange11 ай бұрын

    If Gongfu style brewing requires, "skill" to brew tea, and Western style is the opposite? It follows then that one can conclude that, Western style brewing doesn't take any, "skill." 🤪🤣😂😅

  • @somekid7

    @somekid7

    2 ай бұрын

    skill issue tbh

  • @deltapi6880

    @deltapi6880

    Ай бұрын

    Gongfu means to do something skilfully or mindfully. Western style is a blanket term for doing a small amount of leaves in a large pot, but this too can be a “gongfu”. The style of tea referred to as gongfu is simply the most common method for those doing mindful/skillful tea making.

  • @TheHeraldOfChange

    @TheHeraldOfChange

    Ай бұрын

    @@deltapi6880 I get your point, and understand it. Really, I do. Clearly you don't get mine.

  • @tomaszhowaniec5409
    @tomaszhowaniec54099 ай бұрын

    You shouldn't serve Tea for kids.