Yixing Prices and Online Places

[needaTEAcher]

Hello! Like many others, I am sorry if I am rehashing something old (I just can't find it).

What are realistic price ranges on the low end for decent, genuine Duanni Luni, Heini, and Zini clay? I just got my first Zini mug/infuser, and I love it, but I want a real teapot.

Everything I read seems to suggest $150 or more, and everything I can find locally (Korea) is $200 or more for nice pots. I have found some great websites, often recommended through this board, for less than $50. I am wary. Should I be wary?

I'm thinking of this little beauty:
http://www.yunnansourcing.com/store/pro ... oduct=1230
or
http://zishayixing.com/products/yixing- ... ay-200ml-2
or one of these (part way down the page) http://www.silkroadtea.com/teapots.htm#yixing

Any help? Thanks so much.

[DarkenedSun]

I can't speak for the other two but, I would recommend against buying from zishayixing. I've not been hearing good things.

[tingjunkie]

The price of Yixing has spiked in the last year or so, and finding decent pots in the sub $80-$100 range is getting tougher. For the clays you listed, you should know real hei ni is very tough to find, and most of it was used up in the 80's or before. The modern stuff today has chemical powder added, or is fired in a vacuum kiln to achieve the color. Real lu ni is even more rare and more expensive, so I wouldn't bother with either of those. Personally, I'd recommend the following...

Anything in Red Blossom's "Apprentice" line.

This particular pot from Imperial Tea Court (the brown (zini) pot, not the red one).

I've had the chance to inspect all of these pots in person, and they are made from decent enough clay with decent enough craftsmanship. I actually bought the one from Imperial Tea Court as a gift for my roommates when they started getting into tea. Oddly, both companies are based in San Fransisco, and these are pots the shop commissioned (probably years ago). I'm guessing this is why the prices are still on the low range- they never bothered to raise them to reflect the upswing in the Yixing market.

Also, our forum member IPT has an online shop too. I haven't had the chance to try any of his pots, but the clay looks good for the price. Definitely superior to the offerings at Yunnan Sourcing.

[needaTEAcher]

Thanks. That is helpful. Please allow me to alter my question a bit then. How about just Zinni and Duanni? Also, I am heading to China in a year, and I will buy a nice pot then. For now, I just want the basic barebones minimum so I can start to see how different clay alters my tea.

By the way, I love Imperial Tea. I lived in the Bay for a few years and got to know them a bit.

Thanks again!

[IPT]

Real Duanni is also getting pretty pricy. There is a lot of fakes on the market. As tingjunkie said, Zisha pieces have really jumped in the last year and a half. It is getting harder to find decent pieces at low prices.

[bagua7]

YS pots are good regardless of what others have to say. I own few pots and they are made using real zisha without added chemicals, cement or any other foreign materials.

Pots made of pure duan ni and hei ni (especially this last one since you would be looking at an pot made with old stored clay because today hei ni clay's effect is adjusted by adding specific oxide material) involve a high price and they are not an easy find either. You can contact Jing Tea Shop, Shouzhen or ChinesePottery (these last two listed in the TeawareArtisans subforum) if you are interested in acquiring pots made of those clays and see what they have to say about it.

There are many vendors that sell real zi ni, this clay is a more common one. Check with the above and also dragon tea house and red lantern tea on eBay.

Stay away from zishayixing, this vendor sold me recently two fake pots (the money was reimbursed but once the damage is done trust is gone for good).

Good luck!

[tingjunkie]

YS pots are good regardless of what others have to say. I own few pots and they are made using real zisha without added chemicals, cement or any other foreign materials.

Whether or not they are good for making tea, most of the claims about the YS pots are flat out bogus. For example... Da Hong Pao clay is extremely rare and simply does not sell for $65-$90 a pot. You'd be lucky to find a real DHP pot for less than $500. The only one I've ever seen offered was sold from Hou De for $1,800. Same goes for the rarity of real Lu Ni from Ben Shan mountain. You won't find it in mass produced pots selling for $42. As for the "golden" or "black" zhuni being sold, if such a thing even existed, and was plentiful enough to make sub $70 pots with, don't you think you'd occasionally see those clays offered at Jing, Hou De, or anywhere else?

I can't with 100% certainty say that YS pots have chemicals or odd stuff added, but with so much BS flying around about their quality and provenance, it's entirely suspect.

[tingjunkie]

For now, I just want the basic barebones minimum so I can start to see how different clay alters my tea.

The links I posted are what I consider the bare bones minimum. I think Zi Ni clay will offer you the best bang for your buck in the sub $50 price category.

[bagua7]

.

[needaTEAcher]

Y'all are great. The TeaChat community is a gold mine.

So as I mentioned, my big goal here is to get more than one type of clay, and ideally with a similar or even the same shape and size, so I can really test the same teas in different materials. This is all so that when I go to China next year, I can know a little something about what I want to spend a big chunk on. Aesthetically, I tend to lean towards smooth, rounded, low-profile pots, but I am open to any suggestions or ideas.

I will definitely buy a Zinni pot. I want one more that is a different type of clay. I think Duanni is what I want to try, but I seem to be hearing that I am less likely to find it in my price range? The YS site has that speckled looking Duanni (Dragon Kiln fired, supposedly by an Associate Master). Is that likely mixed with Zinni or somehow fake? If I should move away from Duanni for now, what is another clay that I am likely to find around $50? I see a lot of Hongni...

Thanks, as always. Keep the passion bubbling along!

[tingjunkie]

Ok bagua7... You're the guy who posted an article about how to tell fake Yixing pots here, then bought the same exact pot shown in that article as an example of what a fake pot looks like. The kicker is the original article came from the website of the very same vendor who sold you the fake! Then, you complained that us other forum members didn't warn you.

If that's what you call "real hands on expertise," then I fully admit my lack there of, and bow to your credentials.

[tingjunkie]

I will definitely buy a Zinni pot. I want one more that is a different type of clay. I think Duanni is what I want to try, but I seem to be hearing that I am less likely to find it in my price range? The YS site has that speckled looking Duanni (Dragon Kiln fired, supposedly by an Associate Master). Is that likely mixed with Zinni or somehow fake? If I should move away from Duanni for now, what is another clay that I am likely to find around $50? I see a lot of Hongni...

Yes, for that price range, I'd recommend Hong Ni as a second pot for comparison. In my experience, hong ni is generally better at preserving the higher flavor notes and aromas, whereas zi ni is generally better at smoothing out the mouthfeel and deepening the base notes. All generalities, of course. Every pot is different. If I were in your shoes, I'd get one each of the pots from Imperial Tea Court. Since they are the same size and shape, it will give you a perfect way to compare the differences in clay alone without the other factors. And, at $39 each, they won't break the bank. For the price, I was quite impressed with the quality of the zi ni pot, which is why I gave one as a gift to my friends.

[needaTEAcher]

Thanks again! That is super helpful. The Imperial Tea website didn't say the clay types where I could see, but I surmised that they are Zinni (darker one) and Hongni (reddish one). Am I on point there?

I am thinking of the two from Imperial, and then the "Duanni" Dragon Kiln from HS, mostly because I think it is freakin' gorgeous. Anymore feedback on that particular piece?

I'm pretty excited to enter into my official "beginner" phase with these pots.

[needaTEAcher]

YS, not HS.

[Ambrose]

tingjunkie, wow man that was an epic burn !

Great thoughts and recommendations!