Pairing yixing pots with teas

[OCTO]

There often seems to be a desire to seek out the best possible pot in terms of clay, pour speed, or some other factor, whereas it seems to me that each pot reveals a different story with any given tea, and all we have to do is do our best to let that pot work well for us. If we focus on trying to find the 'optimal clay' or the 'optimal teapot', then I thing that we get distracted from making our tea.

I can't agree more. When we started learning the about the art of tea, we were taught... if you over steep.... just add some hot water and remember not to repeat the same mistake. The is drunk and enjoyed and moved on to subsequent brews... hahahahah..... Not losing sleep over it... hahahahaha

Cheers!!

[olivierd]

Appreciated.
Brewing habit is the most simple : filling a quarter to a third of the pot depending on compression and leaf size ; one or two rinses depending on compression, age, storage ; steeping about 5s for first brew and pour, repeat ; a minute to cool down the brew ; serve and drink. Repeat with longer steeping. Averaging two consecutive brews is not as per the book if that means anything, but except that...
Pour speed might not be of utter importance, it just happened to be one of the chart variables, hence my comments. Yet I take your point to further reduce leaf ratio. Thanks.

[OCTO]

Reviving an old thread....

Here's a pot which affinity perfectly matches LiuBao! Brews LiuBao like no other pots I have. Nothing fancy. Poor workmanship, below average clay quality, wobbly lid, spout leaks and drips like a leaky pipe.... But friends have borrowed this pot to sell LiuBao.... hahahaha.... very interesting pot. Literally started glowing immediately after I started using it.

Rare and much treasured pot indeed.

Cheers!!

IMG_6039.JPG (162.08 KiB) Viewed 8647 times

[Bok]

@OCTO exactly what Yixing newbies want to hear haha Convention defining teapots.

[filipes]

For those with experience, how would you compare/where would you put Chaozhou red clay on this chart?

[Bok]

first question: which Chaozhou/Shantou clay? More than one kind.

[filipes]

Probably the kind that resembles yixing HongNi/ZhuNi. From what I gather, most Chaozhou red clay is labeled simply as red clay. Or maybe I’m missing something not able to read chinese. But is it safe to asume that a well fired Chaozhou pot is not rounding the tea much?

[pathlesstaken]

Has anyone found any particular luck with finding clay pairings for Hongcha (other than minimally altering clays)? I've seen some people use Nixing, but I didn't find the results of that enjoyable.

I've had luck recently with Staffordshire Redware, but this is quite an unusual clay.

[Bok]

Has anyone found any particular luck with finding clay pairings for Hongcha (other than minimally altering clays)? I've seen some people use Nixing, but I didn't find the results of that enjoyable.

I've had luck recently with Staffordshire Redware, but this is quite an unusual clay.

Depends on the Hongcha. I use high fired Zhuni, or porcelain. For those where it is an option, I have found Tongzhi Qing dynasty period Zhuni especially good with Hongcha. If it is the Assam kind of mid grade, I'd probably go for something a little more forgiving to the hard edges of these teas.

Nixing is in my view not good for anything. Looks shite too.

[pathlesstaken]

Has anyone found any particular luck with finding clay pairings for Hongcha (other than minimally altering clays)? I've seen some people use Nixing, but I didn't find the results of that enjoyable.

I've had luck recently with Staffordshire Redware, but this is quite an unusual clay.

Depends on the Hongcha. I use high fired Zhuni, or porcelain. For those where it is an option, I have found Tongzhi Qing dynasty period Zhuni especially good with Hongcha. If it is the Assam kind of mid grade, I'd probably go for something a little more forgiving to the hard edges of these teas.

Nixing is in my view not good for anything. Looks shite too.

High fired Zhuni and porcelain surely are minimally altering, no?

What aspects do you find the Tongzhi Qing Zhuni to alter in a Hongcha?

[Bok]

High fired Zhuni and porcelain surely are minimally altering, no?

That's a vast topic... too many kinds of Zhuni and Porcelain around for simple answers.

What aspects do you find the Tongzhi Qing Zhuni to alter in a Hongcha?

For the teas I drink, with the pots at my disposal and the technique I use – the teas tend to come out more fragrant and full bodied. So if you want, I'd say they don't change too much in the tea itself, rather they emphasise what is good. A little more sweetness maybe. But this is not really useful for anyone as it all depends on so many things.

[LeoFox]

Has anyone found any particular luck with finding clay pairings for Hongcha (other than minimally altering clays)? I've seen some people use Nixing, but I didn't find the results of that enjoyable.

I've had luck recently with Staffordshire Redware, but this is quite an unusual clay.

I like to use a modern xiao mei yao zhuni with lower mesh size for yunnan red (particularly sun dried and/or or purple leaf). Seems to tame some of the tartness that can come out with that tea and boost perception of richness.

I like f1 hong ni for chinese and taiwanese higher end reds. Mostly neutral - and slightly enriching.


I use a glazed japanese white clay for higher end indian and ceylan blacks. More rounding without sacrificing too much.


For lower end stuff from all around world - i use a thinly glazed japanese kyusu. Very rounding where it is needed.

I use my tongzhi zhuni for good yancha