Got points to spend...Yixing set?

Definitely a less technical response, so maybe not what you’re looking for but:

I’ve been looking at getting my first Yixing for a while now too; and I’ve found before even looking at pots the most important thing is to figure out what you’re going to season your yixing with. Since it’s pretty much one type of tea to a pot (ex. Assams), once you’re 100% on what you’re gonna choose I’d match the personality of the pot to the personality of the tea.

I’d recommend either choosing Sheng or Shou Pu’erh – not both.

I’m thinking in a more artistic/poetic way than a technical one: drinking tea is an experience, right? And every kind of tea has flavours characteristic of the terroir of their growing region that gives them a unique/distinct flavour and personality. So to me choosing a brewing vessel that matches the feel of the tea aesthetically is as important as finding a pot that’s technically/structurally well made.

So, like, I’m looking for a yixing to dedicate to Lapsang Souchong currently. I view LS as a very bold, in your face tea with a full bodied flavour so I want to find a pot that matches that: sharp, geometric sides as opposed to soft, with rounded features.

What I think I was trying to get at was don’t just settle on a pot because it’s affordable and well made – since this is a pot that’s going to be specifically dedicated to one thing make sure it compliments that tea too.

The two most important traits in a cheaper pot versus a more expensive pot: one, the fired clay which, if cheaper, will smell like mud inside the pot when wet and the tea will be affected accordingly; two, the construction, a cheaper pot is molded, the lid won’t be tight and the tea will dribble. These things are the most annoying about a cheaper pot. Others are purely aesthetic, such as the shape of the knob matching the shape of the body.

All of the Amazon pots are too big and likely to have poor clay or construction. Still it is your first pot and you have points to spend. If you really want to do this, my choice would be
http://www.amazon.com/Adagio-Teas-Dalian-Yixing-Teapot/dp/B004XYONMK/ref=sr_1_13?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1442042354&sr=1-13&keywords=yixing+tea+pot

But I’d rather buy something else on Amazon.

There are a couple of good sellers of Yixing pots on Amazon. Can’t look them up now because I have to go to work but will get you a link later for the seller I have bought from.

This is probably not helpful but… I had been obsessing about buying a teapot for awhile. I’ve had a yixing pot for years that I use only for oolong (it’s a bit on the larger side). After I realized that I shouldn’t use the same pot for sheng and shu, I then realized I needed two pots because I couldn’t just get one. So I thought I’d get a jian shui pot for shu and a yixing for sheng. And when I finally found pots that seemed to fit the bill size-wise, I realized that I was going to spend around $300 on pots, and even that is on the cheap side. When I thought more about that, I also realized that I’d much rather spend $300 on tea. So that’s how I ended up with a $4.80 porcelain gaiwan that I use for pretty much everything. I’ll get the pots someday I suppose.

That said, I have Amazon points too, and I save them for just about everything and most of it is not tea related. They are handy to have come Christmas!

i bought my first yixing pot at the chinese tea shop (local), i’m dedicating it to sheng pu. it is pear shaped and has a darker tone of red clay, and has some calligraphy on one side.. which for some reason i feel is appropriate for sheng, is that crazy? you can get one of these for $65.. which is cheap in the world of yixing but i love it. you may or may not know already but you will also have to season your pot before use.

Another good place to buy Yixing teapots is Chawangshop. I recently bought two small Shui Ping pots, a 65ml and an 85ml. I am expecting them in the mail next week and will comment on the quality after I have received them. The price was reasonable, both were in the $75 to $80 range. Expensive enough so that you don’t expect a piece of crap in the mail but quite reasonably priced.