Battle of the clays question

[kongle]

Hi, I would like to find the opinions of the experts here please. In terms of brewing pu erh tea, is there a type of clay that is technically superior to others?
I am mainly interested in yixing zi sha 宜兴 紫砂 vs Zhuni 朱泥
I know the orginal mountain for 宜兴 紫砂, 朱泥 was pretty much extinct in the 80s or so ... the next question

The cheap "new clay" the new 紫砂, 朱泥 made today do they contain chemicals that harm the drinker in long term? .. ie cancer causing chemicals? and anyone can describe how they compare to the extinct zi sha and zhuni? Can they technically compare in brewing superiority or are they pure knockoffs?

[TIM]

If you are really going gaga on the clay with puerh, why not research what kind of earthen vessels the minorities use to brew their puerh for 100s if not 1000s of years?

[bagua7]

I would certainly feel like in the "War of the Roses" movie if tingjunkie jumps in and starts arguing with me,

So to answer your question, why don't you play with this page?

http://www.jingteashop.com/cat-jing-tea ... ry_all.cfm

It might be helpful. Many clays, many shapes, many capacities, many ages, some wiser than others, this is a neverending game. Anyway the pot picks the tea, so the game it's can be quite expensive depending on budget and cost of the pot.

Good luck.

[Tead Off]

If you are really going gaga on the clay with puerh, why not research what kind of earthen vessels the minorities use to brew their puerh for 100s if not 1000s of years?

I remember reading about teaware using indigenous clay from Yunnan but I can't remember the name of it. IIRC, it was a red clay. But, will this prove to be the best clay to brew Puerh? Some drinkers say porcelain is the best for dancong teas, (not always IMO) but, porcelain is not exactly native to this region. Not sure if being native to a region is a guarantee of this.

Does the pot pick the tea or the tea pick the pot? Or, does our mind do the picking?

[gingkoseto]

If you are really going gaga on the clay with puerh, why not research what kind of earthen vessels the minorities use to brew their puerh for 100s if not 1000s of years?

I remember reading about teaware using indigenous clay from Yunnan but I can't remember the name of it. IIRC, it was a red clay. But, will this prove to be the best clay to brew Puerh? Some drinkers say porcelain is the best for dancong teas, (not always IMO) but, porcelain is not exactly native to this region. Not sure if being native to a region is a guarantee of this.

Does the pot pick the tea or the tea pick the pot? Or, does our mind do the picking?

Actually Chaozhou is a porcelain industry center in China. Most of the inexpensive but nice little porcelain gaiwans are from Chaozhou region. It may partially due to the fact that Chaozhou is close to the historical export region. But it's also very likely because Chaozhou people love white porcelain gaiwan for their tea.
But overall I agree that there isn't always a correlation between local clay and the most optimal vessel for tea from the region. My current favorite puerh teapot is from Czech

[bagua7]

My current favorite puerh teapot is from Czech

Cool, care to share a pic?

[chrl42]

Puerh Sheng best goes with Qing Shui ni branches

Oolong is for Zhuni

Puerh Shu however, I found the odor left on the clay of Qing Shui ni, I like porous Pin Zini types

Choice is larger in Hongcha,

[TIM]

If you are really going gaga on the clay with puerh, why not research what kind of earthen vessels the minorities use to brew their puerh for 100s if not 1000s of years?

I remember reading about teaware using indigenous clay from Yunnan but I can't remember the name of it. IIRC, it was a red clay. But, will this prove to be the best clay to brew Puerh? Some drinkers say porcelain is the best for dancong teas, (not always IMO) but, porcelain is not exactly native to this region. Not sure if being native to a region is a guarantee of this.

Does the pot pick the tea or the tea pick the pot? Or, does our mind do the picking?

Century old Indigenous Bai's Clay Teapot from banna.



http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1001 ... G_3063.jpg

[kongle]

is it true that zhuni won't hold the taste as good as zisha as its not as porous?

[tingjunkie]

Not sure what you mean by "hold the taste," but in my experience, zhuni is closer to using a gaiwan than any other clay because it is not very porous. Closer, but not at all the same.