Before using a new teapot, it is important to clean it in order to prepare it for your tea of choice. Naturally, the handcrafted clay absorbs and retains some of the smell and flavour of the tea after each use, a property which makes each tea ceremony more enjoyable than the last. However, this means that each teapot should only be used to steep one kind of tea.

Luckily, this cleaning technique can also be used to “reset” a teapot so that it can be used for a different kind of tea; for example, a teapot used for light oolong teas such as Tie Guan Yin and Jade Oolong can be reset to become a teapot for green tea, for dark oolong teas, or for any of the many varieties we have available, if you just follow these instructions:

Boiling the Teapots (Recommended)

Select a boiling pot that is large enough to contain your teapot(s) submerged in water. Make sure the boiling pot and lid are very clean and have no oil. Never use soap, cleansers, or scrubbing brushes on your Yixing teapots.

Carefully place your teapots in the boiling pot with their lids off and fill it with water until the teapots are all submerged. If you have a clean cloth, you can wrap the teapots to protect them from damage during the boiling.

Set the stove to “boil” and wait until the water reaches a rolling boil.

Once a full rolling boil is reached, set the stove to “simmer” and wait for the boil to slow down. When the water is boiling gently, set a timer for 30 minutes.

After the 30 minutes are up, turn off the stove and leave the teapots in the boiling pot with water to let them cool gradually. Cooling the teapots too quickly may damage them.

Cleaning the Teapots with Tofu (Optional)

Note: The following process is only necessary for newer teapots that have a clay-like smell.

Many tea drinkers find that tofu is excellent at ridding a teapot of any odours. First, fill each teapot with plain unflavoured tofu. Place the teapots in the boiling pot, fill it with water, boil, simmer, and cool as before.

Treating the Teapots with Sugarcane (Not Recommended)

Some teapot owners believe that using sugarcane can bring moisture and a blush to Yixing teapots. In our experience, we found that this process does not affect the moisture or shine of a teapot. The steps are the same as with tofu, but using sugarcane instead .

Seasoning the Teapots (Recommended)

This process is used to enhance the relationship between the teapot and tea. Each teapot should be boiled individually along with the tea to which you wish it to be bound. After placing a teapot in the boiling pot with water and the tea leaves, proceed as with the previous two examples.

Now your Yixing teapots are clean! Use them in good health and with good company.

1. Cast Iron Teapots - are great teapots that can produce flavorful teas because it dissipates heat evenly and its teapot material is known to enhance the taste and flavor of the tea by extracting certain minerals from the tea and release those minerals to the tea water. It gives the tea drinker rich and lavish amount of flavor, texture and aroma.

2. Glazed Cast Iron Teapots – are the perfect teapots for situations wherein good looking teapots are a plus. These teapots are able to brew tea well with its fine and artsy features. One downside, however, of a cast iron teapot, is that it can form rust easily because of its iron metal content. But that glitch can be counteracted by thoroughly drying the glazed iron teapot in between brewing teas. Some cast iron teapots for sale are also now improved and enhanced since manufacturers lined the inside part of cat iron teapots with enamel. Thus, rusting and oxidation is prevented.

3. Clay Teapots or Yixings – blend in the characteristics of the tea into one beautiful mix after brewing and they are best used for brewing teas like pu-erh and oolong. Clay teapots can actually extract tea oils and brew them up nicely to give out that luscious and delicious cup of tea. If you are the avid tea drinker then purchasing a clay teapot can be a very good investment. One amazing trick this teapot does is that you end up with better tasting teas every time you use it. Clay teapots are also very easy to care and maintain. These teapots have the ability to absorb and retain the flavor of the tea through time and you just end up with richer and more delectable teas. It is advised, though, that you only use one type of tea for one clay teapot. If your tea choices range from oolong teas to black teas then it is so much better to buy more than one teapot. One clay teapot for one variety of tea is the best way to go.

4. Kyusu Japanese Teapots – are very similar to Yixings when it comes to ways in brewing teas. The advantage with this teapot, however, is that it can be functional with any kind of tea. Yes, you can brew different types of teas with Kyusu Japanese Teapots.

5. Ceramic Teapots – boasts good functionality and well designed artistic features. And because of its material, it can offer you a wide variety of colors to choose from. It can be functional and decorative all at the same time.

6. Glass Teapots – are not as great in keeping teas warmer compared to other types of teapots but the one advantage about this type of teapot is that you can actually see the brewing process. And for some people, that is such a cool experience. It can also please the person who loves collecting teapots as a hobby. These glass teapots may be so delicate and fragile but it still can brew teas perfectly well.

Intro: Its color close to that of azure mud always puzzles collectors over miscalling it “green mud”, which is in a color just like the green grass. Motoyama green mud is forged from raw ore and gets its name “Blackish Green Mud” on account of its cyanine color with green hues (while without grayish tone).

Kiln temperature: about 1120℃.

Shrinkage ration: about 14%.

Ore field: Ding Mountain, Huanglong Mountain in Yixing city, Jiangsu province.

Mud properties: it is good in viscosity and fair in tensile force, glossy in surface and appropriate in texture; it belongs to high-quality muddy ore, yet with a poor output.

Pot-making difficulties: there is a stringent requirement on kiln temperature as the mud is easy to deform: turning in mild color and luster at sufficient kiln temperature, while paler and bald at insufficient one; it also takes greet efforts to collect the raw materials and to get them refined.

Product properties: it is in peculiar color of cyan with green hues, expressing delicacy and beauty. It turns in thick color, becomes mild, crystal and the most changeful once drenched, and thus it is full of a great sense of achievement to admire its beauty.

Tea-making suggestions: Pu’er tea specie, Tie Guanyin tea specie and other semi-fermented tea species, deep fermented tea species (Dark Green tea), raw tea species such as Oolong tea (light-baking species), Green tea, Longjing tea, Black tea eetc.

Tea-making characteristics: its tea performance is gentle and velvety and tea aroma gets condensed in it; it’s easy to handle the tea-making time; it is the very assistant to make a nice cup of tea while feeling relaxed.

Intro: Xiao Meiyao Zhuni should be attributed to one rarity of the three Zhusha species—Red mud. It’s right in scarce at this moment. On account of high shrinkage ratio and large slurry content, ore mud of high mesh count will present corrugations after burned, which is neat in surface at first glance while shows many subtle flowing textures naturally contracting and shrinking on the side at scrutiny. The so-called Xiao Yao is the name of a place lying about 500 meters away from Huanglong Mountain, instead of a small colliery where the teapots were burned. There were a few small collieries there used in sintering tiles and pots in the past and that place was named in kenning as Xiao Meiyao as time passed away. Zhuni ore was firstly produced there since 1950s despite in small output. People at that time did not take an interest in Zhuni pot, and the big and medium ones dominated the pot family. Zhuni mud of high viscosity mined from Xiao Meiyao was rarely made into pots; instead, it was directly added to purple mud or clear water to make the mud stickier. In Doctor Gu’s opinion, that’s the major reason why it’s hard to see a Xiao Meiyao Zhuni pot nowadays. According to the experience of numerous users, Xiao Meiyao Zhuni pots are far better than Zhaozhuang Zhuni pots both in tea-making and pot-caring and it has a better ventilation performance. Xiao Meiyao is really the only choice for Tie Guanyin tea.

Tea-making suggestions: the only choice for Tie Guanyin tea, also excellent for Taiwan High Mountain tea, Pu’er tea, Oolong tea (light-baking species), Longjing tea etc.

Intro: Hei Jixing is in dark liver color with red hues. It is covered with black spots outside which are the pounded and thumped products of grounded yellow rock crust of Zhuni ore while mixed with brown Zhuni raw ore specially selected from Zhaozhuang Mountain in Yixing city.

Kiln temperature: about 1150℃.

Shrinkage ration: about 18%.

Orefield: Zhaozhuang Mountain, Yixing city.

Mud properties: this famous mud is agreeable to tea due to its gentle performance, sedate color and light weight.

Pot-making difficulties: procedures are extremely complicated.

Product properties: once used, it becomes warm and humid in color and texture. The masterwork of mud shows its natural specialties far beyond the touch of works added with chemical oxide.

Tea-making characteristics: this famous mud is agreeable to tea. The savory and mellow mouth feel leads to various aftertastes.

Intro: Green mud, nicknamed as “Mung bean mud” by collectors, is famous for its “bean-green color” because it resembles Mung bean skin in pure grass green color. The yellow grounds of dark green mud suit both the refined and popular tastes with their unrivalled beauty and purity. Teapot made from it is simple and unadorned in texture, fine and particle-feeling in chiltern. Teapot is originally beige with cyan, and gradually turns into mild bright color after been drenched. Due to its sound performance in wrapping slurry, it is easy to get cared while drenched in water and gives out a gentle cyanine light. It originates in mineral ranges in Huanglong Mountain and comes from the intercalating grease in Zisha mud; hence it is named as “mud in mud”. It is low in output, tender in quality and weak in fire-resistance compared with purple mud. The raw ore is a rock in slate gray with green, in flake or powder, and fingers will get dyed once in touch with it. It also usually used in coating or painting the pot casing to make the Zisha pot more colorful.

 Kiln temperature: about 1160℃.

Shrinkage ratio: about 14%.

Orefield: Dingshan, Taixi in Yixing, Jiangsu province.

Mud properties: puffy and loose, in high tension and low viscosity, with particles easy to converge and squeeze.

Pot-making difficulties: it will be not bright enough in color, neither tight in structure at a lower temperature, while shading-covered at a higher one. The kiln fire is hard to measure as the pot gets irregular color if it burns too much, while insufficient wetness if it burns inadequately.

Product properties: It is in refined elegance, outstanding mud color and sound water absorption. The gentleman-like green mud which is appreciably in sweet yellow is a relatively uncommon kind of mud.

Tea-making characteristics: on account of its sound performance in high temperature, it’s easy to master the flavor shade. The savory and mellow mouthfeel leads to various aftertastes.

Tea-making suggestions: a good choice for Oolong raw tea (light-baking species), Tie Guanyin tea (moderate-baking or deep-baking species), Pu’er tea species, green tea, black tea etc.

Intro: Da Hongpao teapot fulfils viewers with a feeling of embracing peace and prosperity with its dazzling red color and splendid temperament; it’s the nunsuch Zhuni near extinction.

Kiln temperature: about 1080℃.

Shrinkage ration: about 30%.

Orefield: the yellow cores of yellow rocks, in Zhaozhuang Mountain, Dingshan Village, Yixing City, Jiangsu Province.

Mud properties: it is hard to master while being processed on account of its low tension force and shrinkage ration about 3 times of purple mud specie, so it was only used in burnishing and toning red mud in ancient times. It is one of the most mysterious legendary Zhuni species of high quality.

Pot-making difficulties: it is easy to corrugate, craze, cave in and deform, getting yellowish and restored at a comparatively low kiln temperature, while deformed and blistered at a high one, with a yield rate less than 20%.

Product properties: it is unparalleled in mud family due to its tout texture, meticulous crafts, sturdy and heavy hand-feeling as well as ruddy and showy color; the mineral particles contained in adobes sharply swell once drenched in hot water and become red with purple, that’s why it displays a beauty of wrapped slurries while carefully cultivated.

Tea-making characteristics: the teapot can easily infuse tea once warmed up in advance; the tea tastes pure and mild, flavorful and smooth, just like the Lumenis One; hence teapot fans name it lovely: killer of tea fans.

Introduction: the color of black mud is as black as ink. The black mud is unfathomable as the unbounded black sky. With added gold sand, it is like the twinkling star suspending in the vast black sky. It is mysterious and silent so that people all love and cherish it. In early times it was the most common pug。 For the iron content of it is very high, it gains much love and appreciation after many years’ of usage, and becomes the favorite pottery of pot lovers. When you use the new pot, you can obviously feel it gritty, and after a period of time, you can find that some place on the pot body turn into grey and black, then become ink black some days later. The tea brewed in it tastes good and wins many praises!

Kiln temperature is about 1140 degrees centigrade.

Shrinkage radio is about 14%

Orefield: Ding mountain and Huanglong mountain in Yixing, Jiangsu province、natural color pug.

Pug property: The structure of raw material is loose so you should be careful and cautious in the process of machining and shaping.

Difficulty: it is with lots of holes caused by dropping sands, easy to wrinkle, and the firing rate is medium.

Characteristic: many pot collectors consider mistakenly that black color will appear on the pot after firing. The reason of this misunderstanding is that the firing temperature is lower in the early time, and this Duan pug series needs high temperature ( the firing temperature is about 1175-1180 degrees centigrade)。 Therefore，when the pug cannot be fired completely, the pots will turn back and present the raw ore color in the presence of water( pot collectors call this phenomenon as “ black appearing” ); The true reason is not the disadvantage of pug, but the low temperature. Don’t be confused by the causal relationship.

Tea-making characteristics: it makes the tea pure and mild, and the tea-making time is easy to handle, so no matter beginners or veterans can use it properly. It possesses a peculiar temperament of golden mean.

Tea-making suggestions: the best choice for Oolong raw tea (light-baking species), Tie Guanyin tea (medorate-baking or deep-baking species), Pu’er tea species, Green tea etc.

Laoduan pug is produced in Huanglong Mountain in Jiangsu. It is a kind of paragenic mineral of Benshan Green pug and Purple pug. Benshan Green pug and Purple pug are both the raw ore of red stoneware. The meaning of paragenic is forming naturally, and the two kinds of pug have the same properties. Laoduan pug is the Shu pug which has experienced long time cellar storage.

Pug property: Laoduan pug is sweet and tender, fine and soft. After being sintered, it becomes dazzling yellow and red, and is loved by pot collectors.

Kiln temperature is about 1150-1200℃

Shrinkage ratio is about 12%-13%

Stewing: it fit a large number of teas. Generally speaking, its air permeability is good. The tea is soft. The skill requirement oftea making is not high, even the green hands can make it. The teas that fit the pug includes: Pu’er tea series, Tie Guanyin and half fermentation tea series, heavy fermentation tea series(dark green tea), Oolong tea and raw tea(light baking fire series), green tea, Longjing, a famous green tea produced in Hangzhou, black tea, and so on.

Introduction: grains in pug are big. The structure is obviously loosen; the active-part is with obviously the double-pore structure, and with unhindered cross-ventilation. The long time you use it, it will be outstanding and become the best material to make pots. The tea tastes good and is full of praise. The temperature used in the early mixture of pug and the early kilning temperature is lower，so common Duan pug products will become black. In recent years, the kiln used in firing is high temperature kiln that can sinter Duan pug pots. It can be easily heated up to the temperature you need, and it will form the truly high quality crystal, without no black color.

Brewing suggestion: Pu’er tea series, Tie Guanyin and half fermentation tea series, heavy fermentation tea series(dark green tea), Oolong tea and raw tea(light baking fire series), green tea, Longjing, a famous green tea produced in Hangzhou, black tea, and so on.

Kiln temperature is about 1150℃

Shrinkage ratio is about 13%

Orefield: Ding mountain and Huanglong mountain in Yixing, Jiangsu province.