Teapots and Infusers
Tea wares enhance the appreciation of your tea in two ways – their
functionality helps you to make your tea well and their beauty of form
and texture creates an atmosphere of deep appreciation.
The Chinese say you should choose your teapot based on “a fateful
encounter of the eyes” - in other words choose the teapot that
immediately stands out; one that you like from the moment you see it.
Your teapot, if used correctly, will be a good companion for many
years, so it is important that you choose one of high quality, that can
stand the test of time in terms of beauty and quality.
When choosing a teapot, its important to consider which material best suits the tea it will make. Glass and porcelain suit green and white teas best but can also be used to make any type of tea. Teapots made form Yixing clay are best suited to Oolong, Black and Puerh teas.
Jing tea wares are made by master craftsmen and women who experience fair and decent working conditions. Our Glass and porcelain is made in Taiwan in modern, well managed factories where a day's work is never more than 8 hours and wages afford a good standard of living.
Tea bowl - Gaiwan - Teapot
Until the Ming Dynasty, most tea was made in bowls. Then a saucer was added so that people did not burn themselves on the hot surface of the bowl. Then a lid was added to help hold back the leaves as as the tea was sipped or decanted into smaller cups. This simple combination of saucer, bowl and lid was called the Gaiwan. The Gawian is still used today professional tea tasters in China and Taiwan and by connoisseurs. We regard it as the most versatile and delightfully intimate vessel.
Some claim that the teapot was made after the Gaiwan. The Gaiwan was
considered unsuitable for ladies becasue it would force them to stick
out their elbows when using it – unforgivable behaviour! A teapot could
be used delicately with one hand.
Glass
The beauty of glass is that you can enjoy the site of the leaves
opening. You can also see the water change colour and this can help you
judge the optimum level of infusion. The quality of the glass you use
will really affect your enjoyment of tea – would you drink a rare
whisky or fabulous wine out of a mug?
Jing ensures that its glass is made to the highest standards by people who work in totally fair decent conditions. The glass is all hand blown in Taiwan from the purest materials – look at the clarity and lack of dull, yellow or green colours in it. The producers work no more than 8 hours days and earn a wage that affords them a high standard of living in Taiwan.
Porcelain
Porcelain is different to bone China, which is found in most crockery shop in Europe and the USA. Porcelain has a much higher percentage of Silica and no bone (calcium phosphate). This makes the finished product silky smooth and slightly translucent rather than opaque and brittle.
Yixing
Yixing, a small town in Jiangsu province has been the home of unglazed teapots for centuries. Beautiful clay has been gathered there for centuries from the shores of nearby Lake Tai. This makes a perfect base for pottery intended for tea making as the mineral rich clay maintains water temperature, absorbs the flavour of the tea, purifies the water, softens any sharp or harsh tastes and fosters infusions of great strength and character. The absorbent nature of the clay means that only one tea should be used with each pot.
