tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post2584825544988218806..comments2023-07-05T09:38:23.624+01:00Comments on The Half-Dipper: The Zen of WenxiangbeiHobbeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-87835658772830691582007-08-02T19:17:00.000+01:002007-08-02T19:17:00.000+01:00You're absolutely right that there's no right way....You're absolutely right that there's no right way. In fact, there's no way at all -- you have to find your own.<BR/><BR/>Gongfucha as we practice it today is a fairly recently popularized method of making tea. Three decades ago, very few people, aside from some who resided near Chaozhou area, brew tea the way we do now. They usually do the "cups next to each other and pour straight from pot", MarshalNhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16776398824139018801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-71098832022784339042007-08-02T16:43:00.000+01:002007-08-02T16:43:00.000+01:00"The direct pour from the pot into the tasting cup..."The direct pour from the pot into the tasting cups is quite common."<BR/><BR/>By far as I have observed among tea vendors, friends and others, the pouring from teapot into the chahai is far more common than the performance of qingting dianshui in continuous movement. What I'm saying is my preference is very common, but not as common as using chahai as the fairness tool in my (limited) ~ Phyllhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06089209028096768776noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-66797544319990445932007-08-02T10:30:00.000+01:002007-08-02T10:30:00.000+01:00Dear Vlad, Ah! Not using wenxiangbei with gaosha...Dear Vlad,<BR/><BR/> Ah! Not using wenxiangbei with gaoshan wulong would be difficult for me... there is so much pleasure to be had in that tall little cup.<BR/><BR/> We took tea with an Indian friend, I think it was the Taiwanenese Dayuling gaoshan wulong. He said, "I like the flavour, but I find that I get most of my enjoyment from this aroma vessel"!<BR/><BR/><BR/>Toodlepip,<BR/><BR/>HobbesHobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-13588550771445818612007-08-02T10:27:00.000+01:002007-08-02T10:27:00.000+01:00Dear Phylldrew*Your method of brewing represents o...Dear Phylldrew*<BR/><BR/>Your method of brewing represents one of the other large tendencies in gongfucha, does it not? The direct pour from the pot into the tasting cups is quite common. <BR/><BR/>There really is an infinite continuum of brewing methods, from drinking-out-of-the-gaiwan at the most informal stage, up to the maximally formal stage (which is where I think my tea-table sessions Hobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-44866950036880817192007-08-02T10:24:00.000+01:002007-08-02T10:24:00.000+01:00Perplexd,You touch on a fundamental point, that wh...Perplexd,<BR/><BR/>You touch on a fundamental point, that whether practice is formal or informal in style, one still needs a teacher to guide our paths.<BR/><BR/>In gongfucha, perhaps by dint of China's turbulent history, or perhaps due to the disparate, almost Continental scale over which the country is spread, there is no firm teaching on chadao - it is evolutionary, and uncodified to a large Hobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-3280813891748271972007-08-02T09:59:00.000+01:002007-08-02T09:59:00.000+01:00Thanks all for the comments.MarshalN: I sympathise...Thanks all for the comments.<BR/><BR/>MarshalN: <BR/><BR/>I sympathise with the point-of-view that it seems like a lot of bother, because I have two methods of drinking tea. The first is in my office, using <A HREF="http://half-dipper.blogspot.com/2007/04/cross-posting.html" REL="nofollow">my miniature tray</A>. In this mode of drinking, I simply brew-and-drink, because I'm working (notionally Hobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-25637554917366482782007-08-02T00:13:00.000+01:002007-08-02T00:13:00.000+01:00Though those are often present on my tea table, I ...Though those are often present on my tea table, I rarely use them. Sometimes with oolong, at times with Pu-erh, but not as a matter of habit.<BR/><BR/>speakfreely's explanation seems quite interesting, this might also explain why sometimes this "cold" aroma is best extracted when the cup is slightly cooler.<BR/><BR/>-vl.Vladimir Lukiyanovhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09327122660708261128noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-81824996462227118412007-08-02T00:10:00.000+01:002007-08-02T00:10:00.000+01:00Great entry! However, I'm with John and Marshaln ...Great entry! However, I'm with John and Marshaln on the use (or non-use) of <I>wenxiangbei</I>. In fact, if I can skip using the <I>chahai</I> so much the better, though it is not as easy to avoid it.<BR/><BR/>When with guests, my <I>modus operandi</I> is to suggest to all drinkers present to return their <I>pinmingbei's</I> onto the tea tray, and preferably standing lip-to-lip. Then I do the ~ Phyllhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06089209028096768776noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-36758565456145102892007-08-01T22:57:00.000+01:002007-08-01T22:57:00.000+01:00An extremely beautiful post. I am continually awe...An extremely beautiful post. I am continually awed by your ability to convey complex information so naturally and readably. I learned not only new Chinese words, but also some English. I love the word <I>foist</I>, I had used it before only in sillily pronouncing "first."<BR/><BR/>I agree with your notes on Zen, but I think you are missing half of the issue (there you go half-dipping again), perpleXdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10179404875953017410noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-66690626070077752522007-08-01T19:51:00.000+01:002007-08-01T19:51:00.000+01:00I'm with John on this one -- I find the use of it ...I'm with John on this one -- I find the use of it cumbersome, and the same information can largely be gotten from the fairness cup or the drinking cup, or the lid, as the case may be.<BR/><BR/>I just find the whole pouring, roll it over, drinking thing too much of a bother, especially when I'm drinking by myself, which is most of the time.MarshalNhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16776398824139018801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-80998107188743394712007-08-01T19:06:00.000+01:002007-08-01T19:06:00.000+01:00I bet that'll make you think twice before asking q...I bet that'll make you think twice before asking questions in future. ;)<BR/><BR/>DHobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-31066336074620109912007-08-01T18:14:00.000+01:002007-08-01T18:14:00.000+01:00Thanks for all the info! Connecting the patience ...Thanks for all the info! Connecting the patience of the tea with the lingering smell in the aroma cup, is something I probably would have never noticed.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00726554825365603979noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-17889754855868250572007-08-01T16:30:00.000+01:002007-08-01T16:30:00.000+01:00G'day John, I saw it a fair bit around Sichuan, i...G'day John,<BR/><BR/> I saw it a fair bit around Sichuan, interspersed with the omnipotent big gaiwan, but I've not had the opportunity to peruse Guangdong or Shanghai yet. Less is, without doubt, more!<BR/><BR/><BR/>Toodlepip,<BR/><BR/>HobbesHobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-45710852874338364852007-08-01T16:02:00.000+01:002007-08-01T16:02:00.000+01:00A well prsented offering,and enjoyable read. I fin...A well prsented offering,and enjoyable read. I find myself in the “Less is more” camp. Only in Taiwan or with my Taiwanese friends do I see the use of double cups. I use it only to demonstrate alternate process or give my friends an additional roll to play. In the bazillion tea shops in the mainland, I have only seen it used in one. That shop is in Kunshan, (near Shanghai), owned by a couple from小 約翰https://www.blogger.com/profile/04861553091860759609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-77133231410264445022007-08-01T15:40:00.000+01:002007-08-01T15:40:00.000+01:00An interesting idea! I tend to liken the evolut...An interesting idea!<BR/><BR/> I tend to liken the evolution that takes place in the wenxiangbei to that body of knowledge accumulated by the perfume industry, in terms of relating high-yet-short aroma ("head notes" in perfume parlance) to low-yet-enduring aroma ("body notes"). However, they say little about the physical make-up of the aroma, whether it be oil- or water-based.<BR/><BR/> As Hobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-62217823424228446492007-08-01T15:28:00.000+01:002007-08-01T15:28:00.000+01:00Nice. I've got a theory about about why the beidix...Nice. <BR/><BR/>I've got a theory about about why the beidixiang differes from the lengxiang, but it's just a theory: The beidixiang carries the water-soluble parts of the aroma, and the lengxiang comes from the oil-soluble part which remains coating the cup after the water evaporates...what do you think?speakfreelyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13757071341180546490noreply@blogger.com