Hello folks!

So, the way that tea ware effects the taste of your tea has been on my mind quite a lot recently. I think most of us can accept the fact that brewing in a gaiwan creates a different tasting brew than making tea with a brew basket in a mug, or brewing loose in a glass and sipping all day, or brewing tea in porcelain vs. yixing.

However, so much of that has to do with brewing style. Wouldn’t it be cool if we could really separate and tease out the effect that a brewing vessel or sipping vessel’s shape, material, heat retention, porousness etc, effects the final brew?

David just wrote an introductory article on the subject, just to get us all started and thinking about these things:
http://verdanttea.com/tea-ware-and-taste/

I would love to hear anecdotal feedback from all of you on this subject! I propose a simple experiment, for anyone that has two cups of about the same size (capacity), but made out of different materials or form in different shapes.

Step One: Brew tea any way you like; the way you normally like to brew would be ideal. If you can, use a tea you know fairly well.

Step Two: Now, pour a generally equal amount of tea into your tea cups.

Step Three: sip from both cups, back to back, and take notes. What differences can you taste? Is one more aromatic than the other? Is one warmer or cooler than the other? Does one have more texture, more flavor, more aftertaste?

Step Four: Repeat with more steepings, more teas, and / or more cups!

Step Five: Share your results here, or link to the Steepster tasting note where you saved your notes! If you can describe the shape and material of your cups, super cool!! If you have any photos of the tasting (instagram, anyone?), even more fun!!

In this way, I think it would be really fun for all of us to try out different styles of tea and tea wares to find new, unexpected or even ideal pairings. Anecdotally, I know that my teas taste really different if I sip them from a very thin, bowl-shaped Jingdezhen cup than when I sip them from glass bubble cups or heavier glazed and stoneware cups. I can also taste a big difference depending on the shape of the cup, even if the two pieces are made out of the same material: for example, a tall skinny cup is often more aromatic, but because the shape directs the volatile aromatics up into my nose more easily, and also because the brew is warmer with better heat retention in that shape (and heat makes things more aromatic!). However, these taller cups have me sip a little differently than a wide bowl, which can sometimes reveal different things in the aftertaste or give a less complex texture: and also, hotter things can sometimes be more difficult to taste with nuance!

Either way, this is a fun experiment I love doing with friends and at tea tastings, and I think it would be a cool thing for us to do, and all get together and share our own experiences on the subject.

This is more about the actual material and shape of the tea ware you’re using at the effects that those have on the brew, but I do understand it will be difficult to tease apart brewing vessel and brewing style. Whatever thoughts you have to share, I would love to hear them!

a fun experiment: How does your Tea Ware effect the taste of your Tea?

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