Combo Picture

My wife is not with me this week, so I have some down time in my personal life.

Took this combo picture. Not exactly the most perfect of pictures. Still need to master flash and settings to get better pictures.

Oh, I have been drinking the 2008 Pu-Erh tea for the last few days. I also got a new Yixing Jar to store the pu-erh. A post on that will be coming soon.

Blind Leading the Blind

In the realm of Yixing teapots and clay, it is very much the blind leading the blind especially amongst the english educated and europeans who cant read chinese. Their knowledge is based on second hand information and translated by Babel fish.

So the more one researches on Yixing Teapots and Zisha clay using english, the more confused one gets. This is afterall largely a chinese culture and artform whereby one can only scratch the surface of this ancient topic using the english language.

While I may have studied mandarin for 10 years in Singapore, I never really paid much attention in class. I regret not mastering the chinese language better. There are so many great chinese forums relating specifically to Yixing teapot collections on the net, unfortunately I have a hard time desciphering what is contained within.

But who knows........... the lack of knowledge and confusion amongst even "experts" could be what makes Yixing teapots "Mysterious" and "exciting". As fellow teapot lovers continue in our quest for the Holygrail of teapots, be mindful of the many pitfalls and unscrupulous vendors that abound in this industry.

Teapot Philosphy

What got me started on this topic is a question I posed myself........"How many teapots am I gonna buy?"

And truthfully, I cannot answer that question without first dissecting the purpose of buying teapots.

I believe there are 2 main reasons why one buys teapots. 1) For brewing teas and 2) simply for the sake of building a collection of teapots. If I choose 1, then that ends my teapot buying and search as I already own 3 teapots. If I choose 2, I end up buying more teapots than I can use in my life time.

After giving it some thought, I decided that it is best I combine both reasons together when buying teapots. And by so doing, not only will I buy less, but I will only buy good quality teapots pieces that end up fufilling its purpose.

Hopefully by combining the 2 reasons for my future teapot purchase, I will be able to enhance a teapot's personal and sentimental value and thus making each teapot more special, enjoyable and memorable....... Of course it also greatly helps in justifying paying a higher price for a teapot to the Mrs.

Xishi Revealed

I am most excited about this purchase, thus it is with much happiness and pride that I officially present Ms Xishi to my blog readers (if I have any, Ha Ha!!)

I was torn between this teapot and the other Zisha Teapot made by Shen Chai Er. For practical reasons, the Zisha teapot was the obvious choice. However the clay and shape of this Xishi pot cried out to the collector in me. Due to a strong external influence, a.k.a wife,I had to make a choice between the 2.

In the end, a compromise was struck, and I was allowed to reserve Ms Xishi for 1 month.

Xishi actually refers to this specific shape of teapot which represents the Breast of Xishi, one of the 4 great beauties of China. However, I do not which breasts or if the size is correct. Nevertheless, it is a really cute teapot.

History of the teapot design: The enamel flower decorations on the teapot are from an Era when Yixing teapots were gaining popularity with Europeans around the 18th Century. However they found the Yixing clay rather boring as compared to their glazed and decorated teapots. I find the flower design on the teapot very apt for a Xishi teapot which makes it even more feminine.

Clay Material: This is the area that will probably stir up a hornets nest as many are sceptical when a teapot is supposedly made of "ZHUNI" as this clay is rare and considered to be extinct some 30 years ago. It is almost like the "Holy Grail" of clays for Yixing teapot collectors. Because of the high shrinkage of Zhuni, many teapots crack while firing and so there is a high failure rate. So couple the fact that the clay is rare and high failure rate, many teapot artist are reluctant to make teapots out of Zhuni now even if they have Zhuni clay in their storage.

Density: Zhuni is very dense. Much more than Duanni or Zisha. Compared to my Duanni teapot of similar size, my Xishi teapot is about 15% heavier.

Color: Zhuni is red in color. Some have described it as "Pig-Liver" color and I can for certain say that it looks like fresh pig liver. The color does change somewhat under lighting conditions because at times it almost becomes reddish brown especially after a tea session. This is indeed a very intriguing aspect of Zhuni Clay.

Function: Given the short spout, the flow is not as nice as my Duanni or Zisha teapot, but it is decently smooth. The lid fit is also good and water flow can be stopped by covering the breathing hole on the lid. So overall build quality is top notch for a Zhuni Clay teapot.

Personal Feelings: I feel fortunate to be able to add this Xishi teapot to my collection. Had I hesitated and let it slip past my fingers, I will surely regret it. Once again, many thanks to Cozy for holding it for me and keeping it away from many keen buyers.

Cozy Teahouse 2009 - (F) Pu-Erh

In addition to the 2008 fermented Pu-er cake, I also purchased this 2009 Pu-Er cake made from 2005 leaves.

The leaves are younger than that of the 2008 cake so it has a less "earthy" taste. As it is a wet-stored cake, there is still a "shui" taste to it, thus it needs to be stored for another year before it is good for drinking.

This cake costs MOP200 because the tea leaves are of better quality than the 2008 cake.

I will let it sit for another year and then update when I start tasting it.

Cozy Teahouse - Tea Expo 2008 Pu-Erh

After finding so much hair in my Dad's Pu-Erh Cake, I decided I needed a more hygenic Pu-Er for my consumption.

Cozy Teahouse recommended me their "in-House" cake which was made for the 2008 tea expo. It was not very expensive, costs MOP100 per cake and is ready for consumption having been stored for a year.

The tea has a dried longan taste and relatively smooth to the mouth and throat. However I did notice that there were quite a number of twigs in the cake then I would like it to have.

All in all, it is a good tea to drink for the price. And most important, it is not filled with hair.

Xishi is HOME!

Depute of Little Ms Xishi. I decided to post a teaser of this little teapot by just showing the teapot lids.

She is the red lid on the top.

As you can see, her shine is already the strongest of the lot. That is because she is made of the rare ZHUNI Clay.

This could be the Holy Grail of Chinese teapots for me.

Many on the net have been trying to determine what Zhuni is like, the color, texture and shrink lines etc. I am fortunate enough to actually own a Zhuni Teapot without having to break the bank.

Ms Little Xishi has a "pig-liver" color. Hopefully through the picture of the 3 lids, you can see the color properly.

More of Xishi to come!

More teapot posing.

More pics with my teapot and tea. Taking such pictures are not as easy as I thought.