by Cassandra Vincent

As this is a section of tea with deep history, specific materials and methods the choosing of a teapot can feel overwhelming.  I felt that just deciding to start was better than getting lost in the details completely. So I am learning as I go and sharing that experience with you. Join me down the rabbit hole, luvvies!
 
I ordered my first Yixing teapot from a Chinese vendor online, but I admit that I am not familiar with the artist’s stamp (which appears on the bottom of the teapot) nor have I been able to verify its authenticity.  As I understand it clays in modern Yixing teapots are often mixed, called Pingni, blending natural clays (Yixing earth clay and zisha clay) and even artificial colors. I understand that some pots touted as Yixing have very little Yixing clay in the mix and may even include lead. I suggest that you do your research if that concerns you and be as informed a consumer as you can be if you decide to engage in this aspect of tea culture. Some say price is an indicating factor and the range is wide. I’ve seen these teapots everywhere from $10 to thousands for vintage ones or those from famous artists. I even saw some being sold online that were from a discovered shipwreck dating back to the 1800s. It is up to you how much you wish to spend of course and where you wish to purchase. If you have a local tea shop that sells Yixing teapots you may be able to access more information on the pots they sell prior to purchase. I stopped by Wing Hop Fung recently. They have displays of Yixing teapots with placards including details on some of the artists. The placards were entirely in Chinese though so you may need to bring a Mandarin-reading friend with you on your Yixing teapot shopping trip if you, like me, cannot read Chinese.

 The teapot I ordered online was a fanciful dragon teapot with a dark purplish-brown colour. I noticed this tone was referred to as ‘black’ in other places.  There are many variations in color of Yixing teapots. Apparently plain Yixing earth-clay is white while zisha comes in a variety of colors, though artificial colorants are also used.  Even the temperature of firing will affect the color. The high-temp fired ones I have seen look brighter.  Low fired, rougher textured, darker pots often using inferior clay are said to be better for the dark teas like black and puerh.  Higher temperature firing of finer clay is touted as best for the less processed tea categories like oolong, green and white.

These teapots tend to be smaller and designed for gongfu style tea steeping where more leaves are used in a smaller amount of water than in Western style steeping. In this style steeps tend to be short, like a 10 second initial steep for example.  With gongfu in a Yixing teapot you can enjoy multiple steepings of good quality tea where the flavor evolves pot after pot as the leaves release their character gradually and as the pot absorbs more and more of the tea’s essence.
 
I encourage you to check your local tea shops, trusted online vendors or even just find a teapot that makes you smile when you look upon it and begin this satisfying journey.  I look forward to sharing more posts on Yixing as my experience unfolds. Check out my first post on Yixing for curing and basic info and feel free to share it and share your Yixing experience with us on Facebook and Twitter.

Note: The non-Tea Deviant links in this post are not affiliate links and this is not a sponsored post. These links are included because I feel they support the further understanding and exploration of the subject in this case.

by Cassandra Vincent 

I have my first of what I hope to be many yixing teapots and I am eager to share what I am learning. The experience and detail of what it is to have tea in a yixing teapot is complex and ever-evolving for many reasons. Let’s start with a base: Yixing is an area in eastern China and the clay for yixing teapots, if they are authentic, is mined there. Zisha is the purple clay used for yixing teapots, though in the end they can appear anywhere from yellow to green to terra cotta to brown to deep purple (what?! ). This zisha clay is special in that it is porous and holds heat well. Therefore the oils of the tea brewed in a yixing teapot leave behind some of their essence and, over time, the pot becomes infused with more and more tea flavor such that it is an ever changing experience to drink from it. Very unique. Very cool. This is one of the reasons it is common to dedicate a particular yixing teapot to a particular tea or at least a particular category of tea i.e. “I will only drink oolongs from this teapot”(I don’t think you need to make a solemn vow as such. Just whatever pact between you and your pot that works for you).

The teapot is to be cured before use, kind of like a cast iron skillet, but the teapot is cured with water and tea not oil. It is a bit of a process dipping into boiling water first then steeping in tea, but as a yixing teapot is something to be enjoyed for years to come, for the tea drinker this ‘ceremony’ can be a fun one. I found multiple resources on curing yixing teapots, with minor variations to each so I did a blend of what felt best:

1. Boiling filtered water in a large enough pot to fit the teapot (note: make sure there is no oil residue or soap residue in the pot – who wants soapy tea? Ick.)
2. Lowering the teapot and lid (I did them separately) into the slow boiling water (you don’t want the teapot to be knocked around and cracked) You can use tongs or a large slotted spoon to safely lower the teapot into the boiling water making sure to get the water inside so it doesn’t float.
3. After about 5 min slowly lift the teapot and its lid out of the pot, tip the water out of it and rest it on a clean, preferably lint-free towel. I just let mine air dry there.
4. The first steeped pot of tea is for the pot as it will absorb a ton of it. So get a bowl (or use the same pot) that the teapot can fit in and still be submerged in tea. Steep a strong brew (I used more tea not more time) of the tea of your choice that you will be dedicating the pot to in sufficient amount to cover the teapot. You can either steep in another teapot or do multiple steepings in your yixing pouring them into the bowl/pot basin until you have enough to cover the teapot. If you do use the yixing to steep remove the leaves before soaking the pot in the tea. I brewed my oolong for the amount of time I would if I was going to drink it because I wanted to infuse the pot with flavor not bitterness. Put the yixing teapot into the freshly steeped tea and leave it there  until the tea cools to room temp.
5. Gently remove the teapot and lid from the tea and allow to air dry again and you should be ready for your first drinkable pot. I am sure there are those who do more than one steeping to cure so do what feels best for your palate.

Some important points:

• If your area has chalky water, use filtered to cure
• Don’t use any detergents or chemicals to clean the teapot or you’ll likely taste them in your tea due to the porous nature of the clay
• The higher the pitch when the pot is struck with the lid the higher the quality of the pot apparently
• There are a variety of ‘tests’ you can apply to ascertain how well designed and balanced a pot is – like how well the lid fits (not too tight, not too loose) - when covering the steam hole on the lid while doing a pouring action no tea should come out. Looking from the top of the pot if the handle and the spout are in line that is preferable unless it is a side handle pot.
• How does the pot feel in your hand? There are many ways of holding and pouring from a traditional yixing teapot including one and two-handed methods. You may need to experiment to decide which is best for you. The shape and smoothness of the lid and the shape of the handle will influence comfort and how you hold the pot.

Another conclusion I came to was not to use any flavoured teas – there is such a range of quality with these and not all use natural flavourings that I am inclined to just plain leave them out. I am dedicating my first pot to the oolong category (no flavoured ones) but not one particular oolong tea. Perhaps I will save that for later in my tea journey when I discover one I feel so passionate about.
 
This is just the beginning of what is a deep aspect of tea with a long history. I’ll be doing a series of posts on my exploration of the yixing tea experience because it is so deliciously detailed. Grab a pot of your favourite tea and join me. If you have a yixing pot you love, share a picture of it with us on Twitter, Facebook or Pinterest. Cheers!

by Cassandra Vincent

I found a lovely silver teapot in a unique second hand shop for $10! I was ridiculously excited. [Hey, we all have those things that connect us with the awe and joy of discovery - keeping our child-selves alive, well and creating. I encourage it!] I kept myself in check though  & didn’t freak out the purveyor.   She had 3 teapots, but 2 had damaged ornaments on the lid. The one I bought was in great condition though in need of a clean of course. This find led me to look into silver teapots more deeply. I have always thought them beautiful but not as practical as other forms. The heat conduction (ouch!) and the tarnishing/polishing cycle. I was curious about when they came about, what they looked like, who used them etc.
 
The engraving on the base indicates F B Rogers as the make and what I understand to be the pattern number of 1960 (not the year of make). It’s not an antique nor is it pure silver, but interesting enough to feel like I have a cool piece. F B Rogers est. 1883 was a silver smithing company apparently known for their quadruple plate silver plating, which gives me an idea of what I’ve got.

Did you know that the first silver teapot was shaped like an early coffee pot? Wider at the bottom, tapering to the top – this was found to be poor for brewing tea  as the water in the wider bottom couldn't mix evenly with the water near the top =  inconsistent cup. Thus the move to the ‘ball’ shape most often seen today. But there are pear shapes (like the one I found) and urn shapes, apple shapes...all such interesting incarnations (more on images in the 'Go Deeper Details' below).
 
Silver ware was originally only in the houses of the very wealthy of course, both in Britain and the States. But as demand grew electroplating was created and silver was discovered in the western part of America. There arose a silver making boom in the mid-1800s with Boston being one of the main locations of silver craft in the US. The plating process made silver items cheaper and easier to create and therefore more accessible to those outside them realm of the rich.
 
As to cleaning here are a couple of tips I learned – some by making mistakes!:

• Don’t use rubber gloves – apparently they react with silver
• Don’t use newspaper underneath when cleaning – also bad for silver
• The general metal cleaners that are harsh actually take a layer of plate off . You are better off using a gentler silver-specific cleaner  (now I know <sigh>)
• When silver is used and cleaned regularly, as with dish soap (and dried thoroughly) it doesn’t need frequent polishing. With regular use and cleaning that cool looking patina is created, which is different than tarnish
• Stored away from air in a cupboard reducing air flow (no plastic touching it though) helps slow tarnish
  
  

I have not yet had tea from my silver teapot. If I do I think I will decant into it after the tea is brewed so as to not get leaves stuck in the spout or holes which could lead to holding moisture and damage. Plus it would just be easier to clean. Also, as silver holds heat well over-brewing could be an issue.  Apparently, pure sterling silver is best (no surprise there) and tea tastes better brewed in it than in plated. But for serving decanted tea I think it is worth giving a try, as long as the pot is heated first.

On my silver wish list is a tipping teapot with stand and warmer, and a creamer.  Beautiful tea deserves beautiful vessels!

Go Deeper Details
 
For more on this subject here are a few fun links. Enjoy!:
 
Great BBC audio on tea in Britain from “ A History of the World in 100 objects” series:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/player/b00v71qr
More: http://www.bbc.co.uk/ahistoryoftheworld/objects/FWYgWOCSSpKKuF3pctC6tA

Silver teapots from the Met Museum collections:
Main -
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/coff/hd_coff.htm
 
Martha Stewart did a great video on various silver teapot forms through the ages. With guest, Ed Munves of James Robinson, NYC with tea services dating from the 17th century both UK and US
http://www.marthastewart.com/914609/history-english-silver-tea-sets#914609