getting into yixing, looking for advice on pot shape
HI! long time, no visit. Real life as usual for most of us got in the way, and ive not been able to really afford to buy any tea, let alone teaware. but thats starting to change! i recently found a new website with amazing blacks, and ive decided i want to start venturing into the dark underbelly that is yixing.
First off, i know that im not going to be able to get “genuine, great yixing”, since all i have is the internet, being in the middle of nowhere, USA. I am ok with that, all i want is a decent pot that will alter my teas in a positive way. i have currently placed an order for a pot that i believe will service my reds well, https://www.ebay.com/itm/200ml-pot-handmade-yixing-zisha-tea-pot-kungfu-pot-marked-ball-infuser-188-holes/222274371205?ssPageName, but i thought i would come on here again, and ask all of you what you think?
My main issue is, i only find conflicting information reguarding the SHAPE of the teapot you should really use for blacks. i know, i know, the main factors are the clay quality, and the temp of its firing, and i believe(hope) that this pot meets the requirements, as i can see a good texutre from the clay, which should indicate a low fired, mixed zisha clay. i know i want a dense, low fired yixing so the flavors will not be muted, but will mute the astringency and change the mouthfeel. i just cannot find solid info on whether a tall or flat pot shape is preferred for the leaves to unfurl properly.
for reference i tend to use blacks that are fairly long, with medium to medium large leaves, thus leading me to pick a flatter pot, giving them more room to unfurl.
sorry for the rambling text, and thank you for taking the time and effort to read my post!
Fergy
I would use a taller, high fired red clay Yixing with thin clay for fine black tea, although I think porcelain is better for the delicate stuff. I do gongfu zhengshan souchong in red clay shuipings, however, and with excellent results.
aah, that makes me a little sad then… will the pot that i purchased basicly not really fit at all? i know i can keep it and still make tea with it, but im looking for the best experience i can get for such a low price point. it also makes me sad as i prefer the look of the purple colored pots :/
also, how strong is your suggestion for a red clay pot? all i seem to be able to find in my price range is for purple clay. all of the more rare red clay seem to start at $150, which i really cant to right now
I would’ve advised you not to buy that particular pot as it is of the type that may have been made with chemically dyed clay. The purple pots on the market are a problem today; some are good, but a lot aren’t. I can’t tell for sure from the picture, but there is a smell to the dyed pots that I can detect and really dislike, and they are also too ‘purple’ to be real. This pot looks to be of that type. I don’t know what they’re adding, but I don’t like it. I was just telling AllanK about this; I have three modern zini pots with this issue, so I learned the hard way.
If the purple clay is not the funky kind, however, it might just be high fired enough to work well with black teas. What kind of black tea are you drinking anyway?
I’d really suggest sticking to porcelain for now, but if you really want a red clay pot, you can get a decent modern one for quite a bit less than $150.
yeh, ive read about the manufactured clays that use paints, dyes and chemicals along with addins like sand, glass, ect to achieve the look of yixing. i planned on boiling it for an hour at least, and examining the color and smell of the water to check it for leeching for any chemicals it may have.
the reds i have right now are from the same company.
http://verdanttea.com/teas/yu-lu-yan-cha-black/ is one of them, im not a huge fan of it as it has a heavy sweet potatoe taste if your not extremely careful, and is still present even if you are, and im starting to dislike that in my teas.
http://verdanttea.com/teas/autumn-laoshan-black/ is currently what i am in love with. as you can see, i like heavy blacks with natural honey/clover/hay notes/aftertaste as well as a chocolately body. i also have had some jin jun mei that i absolutely adored, as they are fairly heavy with the honey and hay notes. i drink my blacks unadulterated, so having a pure, strong taste and a nice mouthfeel are important to me.
The boiling approach may reveal if something is added, but I don’t think it will with the new mix; the smell will reveal itself if you rinse the pot with hot water alone (I never ever boil clay pots anymore). Unfortunately you need to know what the clay should smell like to be able to make that judgement.
Sweet potato is something I really like in tea, so that actually sounds pretty good to me! :D
The Laoshan sounds good too. There have been some…issues…with Verdant, but both of those blacks sound pretty good to me!
Brewing in clay will give you more mouthfeel IMO. You could also consider Jianshui or Nixing clay for your blacks. Much less shadiness with those clays than with Yixing.
well, im certainly open to any suggestions you could make concerning a pot. im still quite inexperienced with the entire tea culture, ive pretty much only determined with any certanty that its reds that i love, with the odd exception here and there. im currently brewing in a 200 ml glass pot, which i bought specifically because it can brew pretty much everything somewhat decently, but i am looking now to buy a pot specifically for reds, something that can help produce a better cup (or 20 lol) when i sit down to enjoy some tea.
May I ask why you no longer boil your clay pots Tealife.HK? I don’t have a clay pot yet and would like to learn much about them before I purchase one.
The pot is already fired at very high temperature. What is boiling supposed to achieve on high fired clay? I just scrub em out with my fingers to remove any dust, then make tea in the pot a few times before use. Boiling is a great way to accidentally damage a teapot or teapot lid if they end up banging against each other. I’ve boiled pots in the past and there really is no difference in performance, so why bother?
If you think you will buy a new pot in the future Yunnan Sourcing is a great site. Great service, great tea and they are trustworthy and knowledgeable. They have several pots in $50 price range and even have a yixing “easy” gaiwan for $16.00.
I was looking at them too. And Crimson Lotus also seems to know his stuff (i think?): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPB0D468lWE
But even YS cheap easy clay gaiwan probably isn’t going to be great. If you want good clay and good craftsmanship you’re probably going to be looking at some minimum price.
Maybe something like this: https://yunnansourcing.com/collections/gaiwans/products/jian-shui-clay-duet-gaiwan-by-huang-shou-zhen-135ml
Or this:
https://yunnansourcing.com/collections/gaiwans/products/qin-zhou-clay-lotus-gaiwan-by-qin-zhou-hua-150ml-1
“Great” isn’t always doable on a tight budget. But if your budget is small by buying a gaiwan or pot from a reputable seller you can, at least, get a good product to serve your needs and know your money isn’t wasted.
That’s absolutely true, but sometimes its worth to keep saving for a while and get the real deal. Sometimes it’s a tough call, keep saving or have something now. Btw I’m on a very tight budget myself.
The older I get the less I honor “reputation” as a means of determining “value” of a thing. I love functional art and I love the aesthetics of a well made pot. But I have sweated and fretted over having “the best” only to discover that the thing I wanted was missing. That missing thing is time and use. Whatever you have, time and using the thing will increase its vale and worth much more than a high dollar price tag can do. As you might guess, I am getting old. :)
I understand you but to be clear, I wasn’t talking about something made by a famous maker necessarily, top dollar or with perceived value, but that you probably going to have to spend a minimum to at least get decent clay. But I understand where you’re coming from. Also, I don’t know what that minimum would be, and they’re known to generally sell good stuff. So maybe a $16 clay gaiwan works just fine.
Pot shape depends a bit on what kind of black you are drinking. A flat pot like yours is usually good for open unfurled leaves. Rolled teas like some Taiwanese black teas, might not be able to expand fully, thus compromise the potential of the tea.
As to the clay, as you already bought it, just try and if you have one, compare with porcelain. Porcelain is the most neutral and will give you an idea of the basic taste profile.
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