betta wrote:t4texas wrote:
Most people have little or no opportunity to see Yixing pots in person. While I have been fortunate enough to select most of my pots in person, I would not hesitate to buy a new pot from at least a couple of web vendors. Not perfect, just part of one's Yixing education.
Relax. Get an inexpensive half hand made pot or a gaiwan. Drink tea. Enjoy.
I like these words very much. It reminds me of the original purpose of teaware. I find I can enjoy tea much better when I care less about the pot issue. Somehow the pot collecting addiction devours the original purpose of the tea wares: to make a good cup of tea.
After my initial purchase of well over a dozen Yixings that didn't work out very well, I thought about the situation before continuing to throw more money away. I don't dedicate one pot to each individual tea, but one or two pots to each type. When dedicating more than one pot to a type of tea, it's because I want two different sizes for that tea type.
I needed 5 Yixings, one each for greens and whites, high mountain, wuyi, dan cong, and Taiwanese TGY. I also decided it was time to try another vendor and decided I would pay whatever was necessary for each Yixing because it would be cheaper than what I was doing, accumulating multiple pots that don't work well with any type of tea.
Once I aquired appropriate pots for each tea type, as well as a larger additional pot for both wuyi and dan cong, I stopped buying Yixings and started enjoying the tea more than I ever had before. There does seem to be much truth in this thought.
Unfortunately, although I have had no issues with matching Japanese tea and teaware, I haven't yet tamed the kyusu/yunomi/chawan buying binge. I drink so much sencha and matcha, and Japanese teaware is so diverse, that I do enjoy the Japanese tea experience more when I rotate through the various styles of teaware.
