Chemical smell within craquelure porcelain Teacups???

[VanFersen]

It seems my luck is out of order at the moment when it comes to strange stuff and new orders? Some days ago I received a small package with some teacups from a well known German teavendor with good reputation. They sells more the high class stuff or at least their image shows this picture. Anyway - I was really impressed by those cups especially those small craquelure porcelain Cups I ordered for my small Chao Zhou teapot. In this very moment I was enjoying a Dan Cong session but the enjoyment arrived a bit later. Because first I used this cups. And in the first moment I smelled and tasted the Dan Cong within those cups it developed a distinct chemical scent and taste - a bit off. First I wasn't sure if it were those cups or the new never tasted before Dan Cong's fault. But as I tried simultaneously different types of cups I noticed that the reason were those cups.

But how is this possible? Normally porcelain should be neutral. Did something similar ever accrued to you too? What really bothers me somehow is the fact that the inside of those cups also met the inside of my porous teapot. When I do Gongfu cha, first I fill up the teapot with boiling water then I pour the boiling water into those cups. Then I put the leaves into the warmed up cup pour the water from those cups back into the pot - rinse the leaves and pour it out and then the first actual steep starts.

You might get what I mean. The "smelly" inside of those cups went for a quick rinse into the teapot - so I hope that nothing got stuck from that strange what ever it is into the porous clay of this very pot. Because finally I seasoned it so well that it is perfectly usable and I do not want to season it a third time.

P.s.: Strange thing happened. I washed those cups again with hot water and tried another round. Used one of those cups and another one. I poured out the tea at the exact same time and tasted sip by sip each cup alternately. And now it comes! - there is a fair amount of bitterness taste able within those strange cups while on the other side there is none noticeable within the other cup I used. Both were glazed cups. This is so strange!

[stevorama]

Interesting. I haven't had stinky cups before. Perhaps a long soak in some hot water and tea would help the smell of the cups. Or just sit them on a shelf for a month or two to air out. I doubt the one time you put the rinse back in the pot would do any harm. Maybe best not to do it again with smelly cups though.

[jayinhk]

There might be a residual aroma from the packaging materials used in China; I recently got a modern zini pot that STANK even after seasoning. I left it open and the smell dissipated. I then realized it was from the fancy box it was sent over in, not the pot itself. Try washing the cups out with soap and hot water and then seasoning them with tea and water as Steve suggested. If you can't get rid of the smell, return them!

[stevorama]

There might be a residual aroma from the packaging materials.

Yep. Definitely had teaware smell like chemicals due to this.