Water Boiling Systems

TacoBell · Oct 31, 2008

I have a DeLonghi plug in water kettle. Works great. Fast and efficient. But it has one setting....boiling. For many of our teas a lower temperature is preferable and I am afraid that I am limiting the number of steepings that I am getting out of each brew by leaching my leaves of flavor with overheated water.

How do you guys regulate water temperature? Any of you invested in one of those fancy Japanese machines that delivers water at the desired temperature?

kongjie · Oct 31, 2008

I simply let it go to boil and then let it cool a bit. If you wanted to be more accurate you could check with an instant-read thermometer. There is a kettle out there that can heat to tea temperature that's a little bit more expensive but I gave up on trying to find one in stock. Plus I read reviews that said it wasn't very accurate anyway.

edit: I think the one I was thinking of is the Utilitea.

OmegaEdge · Oct 31, 2008

I own a Utlitea, its a great water kettle. The variable temature settings are great for different types of tea.

Confuzius · Oct 31, 2008

I was under the impression that it's better to catch it before it boils than to let it boil and have it cool.

I generally just flip the lid of my electric kettle and watch the size of the bubbles.

http://jingtea.com/tea-knowledge/infusion-guide/essential-tips/water-temperature

The Traditional Way

Have you noticed that as your kettle boils the sound changes and the way the steam rises becomes faster an more intense?

1. As the water gets hotter tiny bubbles the size of a pin head start to rise to the surface and pop – these are called 'shrimp eyes' in Chinese. Lazy, slow moving wisps of steam arise and the kettle makes its first low humming sounds. This temperature (60-70 degrees) is perfect for the finest green teas.

2. As the water gets hotter, the bubbles grow to ‘crab eyes,’ which are half the size of marbles. Wisps of steam begin to rise vertically in a steady stream and the kettle starts to make popping sounds. This temperature is perfect for white, jasmine and green oolong teas as it is around 80 degrees.

3. When the bubbles become the size of marbles (fish eyes), the kettle makes stronger sounds and the steam rises in thick fast-moving columns the water has reached a temperature of 90-95°C and is perfect for oolong, puerh and black teas.
4. The final stage, which is not considered to be suitable for tea making, the kettle makes the sound of a raging torrent and the bubbles roll and swirl. This is traditionally called 'old man water' and is stale and de-oxygenated.

kongjie · Oct 31, 2008

Confuzius said:
I was under the impression that it's better to catch it before it boils than to let it boil and have it cool.

Yes but that would require my attention and a properly working brain.

jtoddaz · Oct 31, 2008

Bed, Bath and Beyond has Bodum kettles for 9.99. If you have one of those 20% off coupons, its a steal. I have never used it for shaving, but I would just turn it off as I saw steam rising, and before it boils. Not completely foolproof, but an inexpensive option.

_JP_ · Oct 31, 2008

I just wait for it to come down from the boil. Some recommend bringing the water to a boil first no matter what the steeping temperature should be. With a thermometer and practice you can quickly learn how long it takes to cool to the temps that you want.

prometheus · Oct 31, 2008

I remember when I was in Japan, all the hotels provided these kettles, which probably only took the water to 90C or thereabouts. Initially i found myself waiting for what seemed an eternity for the water to "boil" until I clued in that they were kettles meant for making the perfect sencha.

The thing was that they didn't have any setting to boil the water, analogous to our kettles not having any setting but to boil water. In hindsight, I should have picked up one.

kongjie · Oct 31, 2008

OmegaEdge said:
I own a Utlitea, its a great water kettle. The variable temature settings are great for different types of tea.

OK, since I'm in the market for a new kettle--my last one is losing metal plating on the coils--I'm actually considering this now.

I can't tell from the photos online--is this a cordless unit that lifts off the corded base, or is the whole unit corded?

Looks like Amazon has it for $57.98 and it is $49 at Adagio, but you need more than $50 at Adagio for free shipping...

jtoddaz · Nov 2, 2008

So buy 2 oz of black tea for $5-6, and call it a day.

Jeremy

Scotto · Nov 3, 2008

I used to get all anal-retentive about temperatures, but now I take a more intuitive approach. I just guess based on experience and go with the flow. If you aren't comfortable with that, some practice with a thermometer helps.

Bringing the water to a boil and then cooling it is fine as long as you don't let it boil too long, driving off oxygen. I have a kettle which sings loudly when boiling; after that I just remove it from the stove and let it sit while I do other things to get the tea ready.

Proinsias · Nov 3, 2008

I'm with Scotto on the intuition thingy.

The other thing worth mentioning is the accepted temperatures for certain teas are not always the ones that deliver the best cup. I've had some top notch long jing and green oolongs that can take boiling water if applied carefully and some blacks and pu-erh's that can benefit from slightly cooler temps.

You can find out alot about a tea by carefully pushing it to its limits.

Personally I use a standard stainless steel kettle and vary between cutting it off when I think is necessary and letting it cool to where I think is necessary.

One day I'll get my hands on an unlined iron tetsubin and then, on that glorious day, I'll start pining for a silver tetsubin.

joel · Nov 3, 2008

I just picked up a sweet personal water boiler that keeps the water at a set temp or at a few degrees under boil in a highly insulated canister so boiling water is availble in just 1-2 seconds.

TacoBell · Nov 7, 2008

joel said:
I just picked up a sweet personal water boiler that keeps the water at a set temp or at a few degrees under boil in a highly insulated canister so boiling water is availble in just 1-2 seconds.

Can you provide a link?

joel · Nov 7, 2008

TacoBell said:
Can you provide a link?

Link.

ouch · Nov 7, 2008

joel said:
Link.

That's a lot cheaper than the Zojirushi.

expatCanuck · Nov 7, 2008

I'm rather fond of this nifty metal kettle we got for our wedding some 18+ years ago. I pour some water in it & then put it on the stove. Burn some gas underneath it. I then forget about it 'til it whistles for me once the water's boiled. And talk about cost-effective.

If I need cooler water, I let it cool. Izzat high-tech or what?

TacoBell · Nov 8, 2008

ouch said:
That's a lot cheaper than the Zojirushi.

That is very nice Joel. I almost picked up a Zojirushi today for $150. So you like it? Perhaps we need a review section for the Cafe forum?

Hobbesoxon · Nov 9, 2008

Weeeellll, after getting "all Zen" over shaving, it does of course extend nicely into producing a fine cup of tea. It's one of my pet subjects that I won't bore you with - for now. :chinese:

To answer the original question, I brew in two ways:

i. In the office: kettle clicks, I brew. Too busy for The Good Stuff.

ii. At home: sitting at the tea-table, the kettle is on a hot-plate next to me. When the steam reaches a good density and the bubbling becomes audible, I take it off the heat and pour promptly. (For pu'er - for most green teas and wulong, be more conservative.)

Toodlepip,

Hobbes

joel · Nov 9, 2008

ouch said:
That's a lot cheaper than the Zojirushi.

Not only that - but it's a much better size. I got it for the office, as i'll be bringing in my whole gong fu set next week :biggrin:

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Water Boiling Systems

TacoBell

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OmegaEdge

Confuzius

kongjie

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_JP_

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