Is this Yixing pot okay for green oolong?

[rhondabee]

Here is a link to the pot I purchased this winter. It is a Bao Lan Zhu Ni teapot. To be honest, I bought it because I liked the color & shape. I have been using it, but am wondering if it is the right fit for the Taiwanese high mountain green oolongs I drink. I actually prefer to use a gaiwan, as I really like smelling the scent of the wet leaves and the pot seems to mask the scent, or I just don't like smelling the metallic/clayey scent of the pot. The gaiwan lets me fully smell all the scent of the leaves, so I enjoy it more. However, I've read and been told that using a Yixing pot is the best way to enjoy the tea. If that is so, am I using the wrong type of pot? Maybe my pot is not seasoned enough yet? Does the smell of the pot go away after a lot of use? This is my first Yixing, so I don't know what to expect.

http://www.yunnansourcing.com/store/pro ... roduct=966

Thanks, Rhonda

[Cyphre]

You are probably going to get very opinionated responses from a lot of very knowledgeable people. I am not one of those people. I would say that in the end it is your enjoyment that matters when it comes to your own tea drinking.

So if you are not enjoying the tea inside your pot as much as you do inside a gaiwan, then use the gaiwan. Maybe you can find another tea you enjoy for that pot.

[TokyoB]

rhondabee - in Taiwan I do see gaiwans used for oolongs much more often than yixing pots, for what it is worth. I generally use a pot but you should really do whatever you like. There is certainly nothing wrong with using a gaiwan, although some here like the results much better with a particular pot.

[wyardley]

rhondabee - in Taiwan I do see gaiwans used for oolongs much more often than yixing pots, for what it is worth.

Are you talking about in shops, or in people's homes? It's pretty standard for Chinese tea shops almost anywhere to use porcelain for brewing when people test out teas.

[TokyoB]

wyardley - good point. I almost mentioned that. It is true that in teashops people frequently use gaiwans. At home people tend to use yixing pots. However I think it proves the point - a vendor wouldn't use a gaiwan if it made the tea noticeably worse. I think the gaiwan/pot/clay thing is overdone. Of course that doesn't keep me from buying more pots of different clay.
And I realize others may vehemently disagree....but I don't think anyone would disagree to use whatever makes the tea taste best to onesself.

[debunix]

It's pretty standard for Chinese tea shops almost anywhere to use porcelain for brewing when people test out teas.

I'm always surprised to see the collection of clay pots that gets used for tastings at Wing Hop Fung--all looking very much like the plain cheap ones I've bought from them myself, labeled 'yixing' but probably not very high quality. They're used for greens to puerhs. But they do seem to sniff them before use, probably making sure they don't cross the puerhs with the greens.

[tingjunkie]

rhondabee- I am a tad suspicious of any inexpensive black Yixing pot just because there is a chance of it containing manganese oxide powder to achieve that color. Having said that, I have no idea how these particular pots are made.

What you can do to test the usability of the pot is this: Boil water in your normal way, pour some in the pot without tea, and also pour some into a neutral cup. After waiting a minute or so, pour the water out of the teapot into a second identical cup, drink the two water samples, and compare. If the water from the pot tastes "off" (i.e. metallic, clay, bitter, or otherwise funky) when compared to the regular water, then chalk it up as a learning experience and move on. If the water tastes the same or better, keep using the pot and enjoy.

[britt]

Here is a link to the pot I purchased this winter. It is a Bao Lan Zhu Ni teapot. To be honest, I bought it because I liked the color & shape. I have been using it, but am wondering if it is the right fit for the Taiwanese high mountain green oolongs I drink. I actually prefer to use a gaiwan, as I really like smelling the scent of the wet leaves and the pot seems to mask the scent, or I just don't like smelling the metallic/clayey scent of the pot. The gaiwan lets me fully smell all the scent of the leaves, so I enjoy it more. However, I've read and been told that using a Yixing pot is the best way to enjoy the tea. If that is so, am I using the wrong type of pot? Maybe my pot is not seasoned enough yet? Does the smell of the pot go away after a lot of use? This is my first Yixing, so I don't know what to expect.

http://www.yunnansourcing.com/store/pro ... roduct=966

Thanks, Rhonda

The pot cetainly looks suitable as far as shape, because it is usually recommended to use a round pot with high mountain oolong. This is because of the way it is rolled into balls that need space to open up. A round pot allows this type of leaf to fully open.

Usually red clay is recommended for the greener oolongs. From my experience, I tend to agree. The red clay (zhuni, hong ni, modern zhuni) is usually less pourous so is closer to porcelain. I do not include Qing Shui Ni as suitable for high mountain oolong even though it is often red. I just haven't had good luck with that combination; it removes too much of the teas character.

I would be concerned about any taste that is added by the pot. A clay pot will alter the character of the tea, but it shouldn't add a specific taste to it, especially a clay taste. A specific Yixing may reduce bitterness, make the aroma more noticeable and pleasant, etc. but to add a specific taste that is always noticeable makes the pot suspect. It may have been fired at too low a temperature or there could be some other quality issue. High mountain oolong is lighter than other oolongs, so changes in pots, clay, etc. are readily noticeable.

There's nothing wrong with using a gaiwan for high mountain oolong. I was having trouble matching high mountain to a suitable pot so I tried using a gaiwan for a comparison. This helped me determine when I had found the right Yixing. Either clay or porcelain, or even glass, should work well if properly chosen. I have found matching clay for use with green or lightly oxidized tea to be very difficult. Porcelain and glass can vary, but they take the clay completely out of the equation so these can be good choices.

Although high mountain oolong is closer to a green tea than other oolongs, hotter water may be desireable to brew this type of tea. This was recently recommended to me so I switched from 175 degrees to 195 degrees and the improvement was very noticeable. Some even use temperatures above 200 degrees.

[rhondabee]

Thanks for the responses. I want to clarify that the taste of the tea brewed in the pot is fine. I taste no off or funny tastes when using the pot. I just don't like the scent of the leaves inside the pot, as I smell the clay of the pot. Smelling the lid of the pot is the same, I don't get that wonderful rush of scent as I do with the lid of a gaiwan. Does a lot of the usage of a pot make that clayey/metallic scent go away? I guess for me a large part of my tea enjoyment is smelling the scent of the wet leaves and the gaiwan is a neutral vessel that allows me to smell only the leaves and not the pot itself. So I guess for my needs I stick with a gaiwan, but I'll still try using the pot, to see if it gets better with time. I think its time for me to try a side by side comparison with the pot & gaiwan to see if I can tell any difference in the taste of the tea.

Also with regard to this pot, I think the clay used for this pot is described as a blue colored clay that turns black when fired, and it is supposed to be a zhuni pot.

[rhondabee]

What you can do to test the usability of the pot is this: Boil water in your normal way, pour some in the pot without tea, and also pour some into a neutral cup. After waiting a minute or so, pour the water out of the teapot into a second identical cup, drink the two water samples, and compare. If the water from the pot tastes "off" (i.e. metallic, clay, bitter, or otherwise funky) when compared to the regular water, then chalk it up as a learning experience and move on. If the water tastes the same or better, keep using the pot and enjoy.

I actually just did this experiment. An although the water from the pot did not really have any off taste, it seemed to leave a coating over the roof of my mouth - like a dry, chalky feeling.

[tingjunkie]

I just don't like the scent of the leaves inside the pot, as I smell the clay of the pot...

Also with regard to this pot, I think the clay used for this pot is described as a blue colored clay that turns black when fired, and it is supposed to be a zhuni pot.

Very few Yixing pots will smell as nice as a gaiwan when smelling the lid or the leaves. Porcelain is king for holding on to aromas in my opinion. Now, if you are smelling a raw clay or mud smell, that's a bad thing. If the smell is closer to hot sand or stones, then that's pretty standard for decent Yixing.

I have no beef with Yunnan Sourcing, and I'm not trying to single them out, but the world of Yixing vendors is chock-full of slight truths and flat out erroneous claims. Maybe there is a natural black zhuni clay which is abundant enough so pots can be made for around $40. If there were though, I feel like I would see that clay offered from some of the top tier vendors as well, but I never have.

One of our members chrl42 wrote an excellent primer on Yixing clay here. Worth reading.

[tingjunkie]

I actually just did this experiment. An although the water from the pot did not really have any off taste, it seemed to leave a coating over the roof of my mouth - like a dry, chalky feeling.

That's not such a good thing, and is in line with my experience of testing pots that are under-fired or have bad additives. Does the pot have a high metallic ringing sound when placing the lid on, or is it more of a thud? If it rings (as red zhuni should) then you know the pot is high fired, and it is likely chemicals giving you the dry mouth. If it thuds, then the firing may be the issue, or it may be chemicals, or both at once.

Did you boil the pot in clean water for an hour or so in order to "prime" it before use? If you do that a couple times, the dry chalky thing may go away. If it doesn't, I would be careful with using that pot.

Welcome to buying Yixing online... it's a bumpy road.

[rhondabee]

Does the pot have a high metallic ringing sound when placing the lid on, or is it more of a thud? If it rings (as red zhuni should) then you know the pot is high fired, and it is likely chemicals giving you the dry mouth. If it thuds, then the firing may be the issue, or it may be chemicals, or both at once.

Did you boil the pot in clean water for an hour or so in order to "prime" it before use? If you do that a couple times, the dry chalky thing may go away. If it doesn't, I would be careful with using that pot.(

The pot does have a high metallic ringing sound. I have compared it before to a cheap red clay pot I was given, and there is clear difference. I did not prime the pot, but have used it enough times that I think it should be primed by now.

Thanks Tingjunkie for the info.

[britt]

I forgot to mention in my earlier post that I always boil any Yixing I purchase, along with the lid, for at least half an hour. This applies to seasoned, new, and everything in between. Sometimes a new pot, even when made to high quality standards, can have some clay powder inside clinging to the interior walls. Also, being porous clay, there could be bacteria and other nasties hanging around. I no longer try to season the pot before use, but I still always boil it.

[rhondabee]

Thanks for the info about the need to boil the pot & lid before use. I didn't know to do that - just rinsed it with hot water. I will do that & then see if that makes a difference. If I still get that chalky aftertaste, then the pot will be for decoration only.