Infusing Procedure of Gongfu Tea

    As early as the Qing dynasty, the "Gongfu tea" brewing method has been considered as stemming from the "Tea Classic" of Lu Yu.
    An extraordinary and quaint tea set, also called "Four Treasures", is required to brew "Gongfu tea". It includes: first, "Yu Shu Wei", a reddish brown oblate sphere pottery kettle, with capacity of 4 Liang water (about 200 ml); second, "a Chaoshan wind stove", a stove for heating water; third, "a Mengchen Guan", an exquisite Yingxing purple sandy clay tea pot with size similar to goose egg and capacity of 1 Liang water (about 50ml), which according to legend was first developed by Hui Mengchen, a craftsman of no equal of his time; fourth, "Ruo Shen Ou", four extraordinary small white porcelain cups placed on an elliptic porcelain tray.

    Generally, Oolong tea is used and sometimes Broken Black Tea is also used during Gongfu tea brewing.
    Before brewing "Gongfu" tea, tea sets are generally cleaned and warmed. Then the water is heated by a charcoal fire. The teapot "Meng Chen Guan" is half filled with tea and then filled to the brim with boiling water by "high pouring" such that the tea leaves inside are heated evenly while diving up and down. Sometimes, boiling water is poured over the pot with lid replaced to keep the hot temperature of water inside, and to extract and volatilize the tea flavor. This process is generally called "You Hu" (traveling pot).
    The four small teacups are arranged in a square array on the tray. When the tea aroma emits from the pot, the tea liquid in the pot is poured into the four cups with the pot moving in circles above the four cups so that concentration of the liquid in each cup is the same. This method is called "Guan Gong patrolling the castle". The last drops of the liquid are also dripped evenly into the four cups, which is called "Han Xin Dian Bing" (Han Xin Counting Soldiers).

    As early as the Qing dynasty, the "Gongfu tea" brewing method has been considered as stemming from the "Tea Classic" of Lu Yu.
    An extraordinary and quaint tea set, also called "Four Treasures", is required to brew "Gongfu tea". It includes: first, "Yu Shu Wei", a reddish brown oblate sphere pottery kettle, with capacity of 4 Liang water (about 200 ml); second, "a Chaoshan wind stove", a stove for heating water; third, "a Mengchen Guan", an exquisite Yingxing purple sandy clay tea pot with size similar to goose egg and capacity of 1 Liang water (about 50ml), which according to legend was first developed by Hui Mengchen, a craftsman of no equal of his time; fourth, "Ruo Shen Ou", four extraordinary small white porcelain cups placed on an elliptic porcelain tray.
    Generally, Oolong tea is used and sometimes Broken Black Tea is also used during Gongfu tea brewing.
    Before brewing "Gongfu" tea, tea sets are generally cleaned and warmed. Then the water is heated by a charcoal fire. The teapot "Meng Chen Guan" is half filled with tea and then filled to the brim with boiling water by "high pouring" such that the tea leaves inside are heated evenly while diving up and down. Sometimes, boiling water is poured over the pot with lid replaced to keep the hot temperature of water inside, and to extract and volatilize the tea flavor. This process is generally called "You Hu" (traveling pot).
    The four small teacups are arranged in a square array on the tray. When the tea aroma emits from the pot, the tea liquid in the pot is poured into the four cups with the pot moving in circles above the four cups so that concentration of the liquid in each cup is the same. This method is called "Guan Gong patrolling the castle". The last drops of the liquid are also dripped evenly into the four cups, which is called "Han Xin Dian Bing" (Han Xin Counting Soldiers).