Dark green dragon leaves (Oolong) want to unfold, grow and give the best aromas they have. If this Taiwanese Oolong is rolled and comes from high mountain Oolong, what would be the best teapot to brew it?
Dragons are extraordinary animals and High Mountain Oolong isn't just any tea either. Both live close to the clouds and can take a lot of heat!
Top quality Oolong brews best with water close to the boiling point. And the clay that best handles heat is Yixing zhuni.
Gao shan Oolong is tightly rolled, so it will expand best in a round volume.
Zhuni is also very hard and has little porosity. Very few fragrances are absorbed. This is very important for teas that have very light, delicate fragrances.
Here, it's a modern zhuni Long Dan, dragon egg, shaped teapot that gives birth to my Lushan High Mountain Oolong!
Single hole.
Weight: 99 grams
Volume: 12 cl (120 ml)
It was made in the 1990s in Yixing, China.
I like its traditional long walls under the cover! They are difficult to make, which is why potters usually make them shorter. They add more surface of contact between the clay and the brew.
The bottom mentions Meng Chen, the famous teapot maker, like so many teapots do.
A short poem says that 'the Taste is also a precious treasure'.
This teapot has an uneven surface on the lower right hand side. (See the pictures above and below). It seems a little bump happened during drying. This kind of little imperfection has no impact on the tea. One can consider that it makes this teapot special, unique. There's at least one reason to see this from a positive point of view: the price for this teapot is quite reasonable. (It's reserved)
I also found this nice small Lixin, pear shaped, zhuni teapot:
It's also made from modern zhuni that would be a good fit for unroasted high mountain Oolong (or top grade roasted WuYi Oolong)!
Weight: 107 grams
Volume: 10.5 cl (105 ml)
According to the seal on the bottom and inside the cover, this teapot was made by a female Yixing potter born in 1970 who started working in 1985. This is actually believable and shows that many young potters started their careers reproducing traditional shapes.
I love this kind of curved spout. It looks like a beautiful leg!
Update: This teapot is reserved as well. Thanks for your interest!
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