Tea brewed in Japanese castiron teapot turns grey!

[ZeevSchneider]

Hello everyone,
I am happy to have finally found a tea chatroom. Yes, I had a look at other postings about castiron teapots and I understand people have reservations about using them. This aside, I bought a castiron teapot because I was looking for something unbreakable!
But I'm having a worrying issue. The tea, after it is in the pot for a couple of hours, turns a dark grey. It becomes very dark after being left for longer. I am not sure whether the teapot is coated or not (it seems not). Does anyone have any ideas about what might be leeching into the tea? (I suppose the obvious answer is 'iron', but the change in colour seems excessive!
I should add to this that my wife and pregnant and so I'm especially worried!
Many thanks!

[JBaymore]

HI. Welcome to Teachat.

What particulars can you give on the pot? Where did you get it? Do you have images of it? How big is it? And so on. That might help people "diagnose" the possible issues.

Leaving tea in it "for hours" strikes me a bit funny. Can you elaborate?

best,

...........john

[TomVerlain]

leave water in it for the same period of time. It will be easier to see what happens with clear water than it would be to see if it is the tea changing. In any case, you might want to use a porcelain or well documented clay teapot. Iron for brewing tea is not quite like iron for boiling water.

[ZeevSchneider]

Thanks for the replies!
There is no identifying information on the teapot itself. According to the merchants (a store called 'World of Tea' in town, fairly new and seem to specialize in asian teas), and the box, it's a Japanese teapot. The company name on the box may have been Japan Seong Hoo Dang China Limited. Castiron, as I say, but doesn't appear to have the enamel coating. It looks something like this (http://images.marketplaceadvisor.channe ... 96/C43.jpg) but a bit more ornate.
I did try leaving water overnight and the water did not turn black, but it did end up with a yellowish tinge.
Yes, leaving tea for a few hours is strange, I agree! This is something my wife decided to do for some reason. For my part, when I dump out whatever is left at the bottom of the pot and I see that's it practically black, I get a bit alarmed!
I tried to get a hold of the merchant and see what they have to say; couldn't get ahold of them, but will try again.
Meanwhile, if anyone's got any ideas or diagnoses, I'd be grateful to hear them.
Thank you.

[edkrueger]

That is an enameled pot.

[Chip]

Don't drink the kool-aid.

Oh, what tea are you brewing in it? Can you take photos of the inside?

I would bet it is Chinese made, and possibly assembled or some final touch added in Japan ... Seriously, I would not drink liquid from this til you are 100% certain it is not contaminating the tea/water.

EDIT: corrected, missed some key words in a sentence.

[ZeevSchneider]

I've been brewing all sorts of tea in it, both black (mostly earl grey) and all manner of herbal. I'm taking this one back and may advise the health authorities.

[Chip]

Interesting ... perhaps the teas/tisanes are a contributing factor, though if it is enameled it should not.

However if it is not enameled, you should not use it for brewing at all. Enameled will usually look all shiny black on the inside. And no rust forming.

If there is rust, then this is more like a kettle for heating water, unless they just missed the enamelling of this pot which does happen, especially if it was manufactured in China.

[ZeevSchneider]

Just a follow up: I rinsed the teapot and noticed that there is some rust forming on the inside. Also called the merchant who now says that the teapot is made in Korea! I'll try to get the tea tested.

[Chip]

Just a follow up: I rinsed the teapot and noticed that there is some rust forming on the inside. Also called the merchant who now says that the teapot is made in Korea! I'll try to get the tea tested.

Funny, I thought the name looked Korean.

So, it might not be enameled? Any photos coming?