Having a new teapot is always exciting, especially if you want to use it to make the perfect cup of tea. However, a new teapot cannot be used straight away; it needs to go through the process of opening and nurturing the pot. This not only removes impurities from the teapot, but also improves the teapot's ability to absorb tea flavor. Today, let's talk about how to properly open and nurture your teapot, so that your new teapot can accompany you through more wonderful tea times.
What is an open pot?
Opening a teapot is the process of treating a new teapot before it is used for the first time. By cleaning and initially steeping the tea, it removes impurities from the surface of the teapot and substances left over from the manufacturing process. At the same time, this process lays the foundation for the teapot's future use.
Steps for opening a pot
- Cleaning teapots: Wash the inside and outside of the teapot thoroughly with water and do not use any cleaning agents as they may remain inside the pot and affect the flavor of the tea.
- soak in water to remove odor: Place the teapot in a pot and add enough water to submerge the entire teapot. Boil over medium-low heat for 20-30 minutes, adding a little tea to help remove earthy and other odors from the teapot.
- Cooling and drying: Remove the boiled teapot and place it in a cool, ventilated area to cool naturally and dry.
How do I keep my pot?
Keeping a teapot means that during the use of the teapot, through constant brewing and cleaning, the teapot gradually adsorbs the aroma of tea and develops a unique pot flavor. This not only enhances the aroma and flavor of the tea, but also makes the teapot more aesthetically pleasing.
How to keep a pot
- special pot for special use: It is best to use each teapot for only one type of tea, as this allows the teapot to absorb a single tea aroma and avoids a mixture of flavors. For example, purple sand teapots are usually used to brew oolong tea or pu-erh tea.
- Frequency of tea making: Regular use of the teapot for tea brewing will help the teapot to quickly absorb the aroma of tea. For initial use, you can make tea once a day, which will speed up the process of maintaining the pot.
- Cleaning method: After each tea-making session, wash the inside and outside of the teapot with warm water to avoid tea stains. Do not use chemical cleaners such as detergent, just rinse with water.
- dry naturally: Place the cleaned teapot in a cool, ventilated place to dry naturally, do not wipe it with a cloth to avoid leaving fibers.
- Potting Cloth Wipe: You can prepare a special cloth for wiping clean teapots. Often gently wipe the surface of the teapot, can make the surface of the teapot to form a layer of uniform tea oil coating, increase the gloss and beauty of the teapot.
Tips for opening and keeping a pot
- Patience is the key: Both opening and keeping a pot require patience and should not be rushed. Especially for keeping pots, it takes many times of tea brewing to gradually show the effect.
- Use of high quality tea leaves: The use of quality tea leaves when opening and maintaining a teapot not only enhances the tea aroma adsorption capacity of the teapot, but also avoids the impurities in poor quality tea leaves from affecting the quality of the teapot.
- Avoid high temperature drastic changes: Teapots, especially purple clay pots, are prone to cracking when exposed to high temperatures and drastic changes. Avoid suddenly rinsing a hot pot with cold water when opening and brewing tea.
concluding remarks
Opening and caring for your teapot is an important process to make your new teapot shine, with the right method and patience, your teapot will become more and more useful and the tea brewed will become more and more fragrant. I hope that today's sharing can help every tea lover, so that you can find more fun in the world of tea.
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