Red & Purple

[Bakkoi]

Just bought my first Yixing pots, a brown (purple?) pot and an orange (red?) pot.

Two questions.

I'm planning to drink red tea (Guang Dong) and oolong (Dong Ding), and I'm wondering which pot would be better suited to which type of tea?

I was also wondering about seasoning. Should I really boil the whole pot for an hour and throw in some of the leaves from the particular tea I want to drink in it? That is what the lady at the tea shop I was at today suggested. Was she pulling my leg, or do people really do this?

[Chasm]

I've always thought that seemed excessive. The main thing I do with a new pot is I want to make sure it's really clean, so I give it a thorough scrubbing, using my finger tips to feel for any spots that need more attention. Then a number of hot water rinses and I consider it good to go.

[Drax]

I can't make good recommendations on tea-types, but I can say that what I've usually seen recommended (and usually done myself) to prepare a pot for use is to brew the tea in the pot that you want to use it for and let it cool to room temperature. You can add more leaf than normal if you like, or you can do it multiple times, but that's the general gist.

I haven't heard about boiling the pot for an hour before...

[debunix]

Just bought my first Yixing pots....Should I really boil the whole pot for an hour and throw in some of the leaves from the particular tea I want to drink in it? That is what the lady at the tea shop I was at today suggested. Was she pulling my leg, or do people really do this?

Yes, people really do this, and several variations on this. There are many related threads here, and pointers to blogs describing the process in detail. I tried to find the link to what I used when I last attempted it, and can't find it right now--brain must be working a little slow today. The search feature for both this forum and google is not allowing me to search by a limited time frame to find it.

It's not absolutely necessary, but a good soak and perhaps boil is not a bad idea to clean out anything that may have settled on/been applied to the pot since firing, and that you might not want in your tea.

[finddream2020]

The left pot is made in zi ni(purple clay), and the right one in red color I guess is in zhu ni, since it looks very smooth, but I'm not so sure about that because I cannot tell exactly only via the picture.

If the pot is zhu ni shui ping, it is very good for oolong tea.

As for seasoning, I also agree that you just need to clean the pot, and then pour some boiling water before putting the tea in it.

Hope that will be helpful.

[Bakkoi]

Thanks for the replies guys. I will probably boil each Yixing for a few minutes and then season through use.

How's purple clay (zu ni?) for black tea?

[oak]

... I can say that what I've usually seen recommended (and usually done myself) to prepare a pot for use is to brew the tea in the pot that you want to use it for and let it cool to room temperature... .

Here in Spain it's customery that when you first use a clay pot, boil enough time the water and then allowed it to cool within. They say that it's necesary to be better hardening clay and no break.

[finddream2020]

Thanks for the replies guys. I will probably boil each Yixing for a few minutes and then season through use.

How's purple clay (zu ni?) for black tea?

Yes, it is ok to use zi ni pot for black tea. Zi ni is suitable for many teas. : )

[IPT]

I would HIGHLY recommend boiling the pot for at least half an hour!

You would be amazed what can come out of it. Teapots are not generally stored, or even made in particularly clean areas and the dust, dirt, dried sweat, and who knows what else, get on it. I have boiled teapots, after washing well and had thick films of icky stuff floating on the water, some worse than others. You never know how it was stored before you got it, so I would highly suggest you boil it first.

[Bakkoi]

I would HIGHLY recommend boiling the pot for at least half an hour!

You would be amazed what can come out of it. Teapots are not generally stored, or even made in particularly clean areas and the dust, dirt, dried sweat, and who knows what else, get on it. I have boiled teapots, after washing well and had thick films of icky stuff floating on the water, some worse than others. You never know how it was stored before you got it, so I would highly suggest you boil it first.

Okay, will do!

[Bakkoi]

Wow, just wanted to give an update...

I am so glad I took the advice to season the pot. I boiled each of the pots for half an hour, and I was amazed by how cloudy and filthy the water was afterward.

Word of warning though. If you live in a place with hard water, try to use soft water for seasoning your Yixing, or maybe even distilled water. After taking my pots out of the boiling water, they were covered with what looked like dust... the minerals from the water. I had to scrub them with a toothbrush to get the minerals off.

I was also fascinated that the pots... now have a strong earthy smell to them that they did not have before. I am guessing this is from the minerals, and this is what enhances the flavour of the teas.