Boiling Water

By
Philfyern
on September 19, 2010

If you are a philistine coffee drinker, then just laugh at this presumedly satirical recipe

If you wish to make the most of your fine tea, read on...

Method

This is a traditional Chinese method for working out how hot your water is. I am assuming its at sea-level. If you're significantly above this presume you should adjust accordingly.

The Chinese distinguish five stages of tea water as the boiling point is approached: “shrimp eyes,” the first tiny bubbles that start to appear on the surface of the kettle water, “crab eyes,” the secondary, larger bubbles, then “fish eyes,” followed by “rope of pearls,” and finally “raging torrent.”

If you have a glass tea kettle you can watch the bubbles through the glass and if a standard kettle, take a peek by opening the lid. The kind of bubbles correspond with the following types of teas and their appropriate brewing temperature:

Shrimp Eyes: Tiny bubbles the size of a pin head that resemble shrimp eyes begin to rise to the surface and pop. A slow and gentle vapor of steam will show. At 155°-174°F (68-79°C) this temperature is ideal for delicate green teas.

Crab Eyes: Water that gets hotter will then produce larger growing bubbles about the size of crab eyes. Vertical streams of steam rise up during this stage. At around 175°F (80°C) this temperature is perfect for brewing white, delicate green and greener oolong teas.

Fish Eyes: Bubbles resembling fish eyes (about the size of an average pearl) rise to the top of the kettle as the water heats up. More steam is present moving in thick columns than in the Crab Eyes stage and the kettle will make louder noises. At 175°-180°F (80-82°C) this temperature is ideal for green tea or white teas. However, remember that if your green tea tastes bitter, the water is too hot.

Rope of Pearls: At 195°-205°F (91-96°C), a steady stream of large pearl size bubbles stream to the water’s surface. This temperature is ideal for black, some oolong and pu-erh teas.

Raging Torrent: Water that sounds like a raging torrent with swirling and rolling bubbles is called ‘ruined water’. At 212°F (100°C) this is considered to be de-oxgyenated and flat or what is traditionally called ‘old man water’.

The temperature of boiling water drops by about 1 °F for each 500foot of height above sea-level