Keep the first cup simple
For your first loose-leaf tea, choose a familiar mug and an infuser that lets you lift the leaves out. You can explore a gaiwan later. A beautiful tea table can be inviting, but you do not need to recreate one before you begin.
Read the instructions that came with your tea. Leaf quantity, water temperature, and steeping time work together. A recipe for a small gaiwan does not transfer directly to a large mug.
Make a cup you can repeat
For a whole-leaf Yunnan black tea with no instructions, one gentle experiment is 3 g of leaves in 250 ml of water at about 90°C, steeped for 2 minutes. This is an experimental starting point for that style, not a universal recipe. Follow the producer’s guidance when it is available.
Remove the infuser, or pour all the tea away from the leaves. Let the drink cool to a comfortable temperature, then take a small sip. Write down the amount, temperature, and time. A note can be as simple as “pleasant, but a little strong”.
Change one thing next time
If the cup feels too intense, try a shorter steep while keeping the other details the same. If it feels weak, try a little longer. Keeping most things steady makes your own preferences easier to understand.
Try another infusion if you are curious, adjusting its time by taste. It need not taste identical to the first. Learning begins when you notice a difference and connect it to something you did.