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Under development - The clay, which the Chinese call zisha or purple clay, is highly fired yet totally unglazed to retain its natural porous qualities. The pots absorb the flavor and the aroma of tea so intensely that the Chinese dedicate one pot to just one type of tea, an oolong, or a Keemun, or even a grassy green Dragonwell. Mixing teas will not only taint the clay but may make any subsequent tea taste "off." The legend is that, after twenty years, one needn't even put leaves into the pot, just water, which will then be flavored with the essence of decades of tea drinking.
Perhaps the most famous Sung-era story, one shared by writer John Blofeld in "The Chinese Art of Tea," is about a nobleman who lived in the area of Hu-Chou. The man had amassed a collection of teapots known to be the most beautiful and ethereal. He acquired teapots everywhere and anywhere he traveled, using them lovingly to drink his daily tea. With the same ardor, he sought the finest tea farmers and purchased only the freshest most perfectly processed teas.
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When choosing a Yixing teapot, the best size is about one cup. I prefer a round teapot rather than a upright. It is my personal belief that the tea soup, the infusion of the tea leaves by the swirling of the leaves in the pot, is better with a round teapot. GreenTeapots.co.uk has a good selection and reasonably priced.
Sometimes you'll find a larger pot or a tea set on our site. Each pot is handmade with the artists chop (signature) on the bottom. Some of the very special pots are only made by one artist. These pots are very collectible and, as an artists reputation expands, can become quite valuable. Only one type of tea should be used in each teapot. Some say that after many uses, you can brew tea in an Yixing teapot without adding any tea leaves.