Gong Fu Cha: A (Brief) List of Teawares
With millions (billions?) of people drinking tea gongfu style around the world, there are even more teawares, and styles of teawares, for use during tea brewing. Below are some of the more common types of teawares typically used during gongfu brewing. This list is not exhaustive, but is a good place to start to build out your own collection of teawares.
Yixing Pot |
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There are two main brewing vessels that can be used in gongfu tea brewing, with Yixing pots being the first. (A quick disclaimer here: Yixing is a very specific type of pot from a specific region with specific clay but is frequently used to refer to small unglazed clay pots in general, which is how we are using it in this post.) These pots are small and made from porous, unglazed clay. Over time, these pots will absorb tea into their pores through a process called seasoning. High-quality, well seasoned pots will enhance the flavor of your tea and true tea purists will reserve a pot for only one type of tea to maintain the quality of the seasoning. |
Gaiwan |
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Gaiwans are the second of the two types of brewing vessels. The name translates directly as "lidded bowl" which pretty much tells you everything you need to know about these! Gaiwans, unlike yixing pots, are neutral and will not take on any of the characteristics of the tea you are brewing, so are very versatile and can be used with pretty much any type of tea. These are a great option for newcomers to gongfu style brewing. |
Tea Board |
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Tea boards are traditionally used in gongfu tea brewing to form the base for your entire tea set. Tea brewing done right can get messy, and your tea board is there to catch the drips! These can range in size from only big enough for one cup and one brewing vessel, to so big they are built into tables and take up the entire tabletop. These can also be pieces of art, with some custom tea boards carved with intricate and unique designs. |
Fair Cup |
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Fair cups (or pitchers) are optional but pretty common in gongfu tea sets. These are used when multiple people are drinking tea, or your brewing vessel is larger than your drinking cups. Tea is poured directly from the brewing vessel into the fair cup and then distributed to each individual from there, ensuring everyone gets an equal portion of tea and that the quality of the tea is the same for each portion of a given steep. |
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Tea Cups |
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This one is pretty basic. Tea cups are what you use to drink the tea you have brewed... hopefully you don't need us to tell you that! For oolong teas especially, a special type of cup set called fragrance cups are frequently used. This combo of a tall, skinny cup and shorter cup is used to capture the aromas of the tea. Tea is poured into the taller cup, the shorter is place over top, and then the entire set is flipped over. Tea is drunk from the shorter cup, while the taller is used to smell the tea aroma. |
Filters |
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Filters are typically used to strain out small particles that may be in the tea liquor. They can be as simple as a wire mesh handheld strainer, or can be ceramic or clay with an integral filter mesh. |
Tea Pet |
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Tea pets can be almost anything, but are typically small ceramic or clay figures. Tea pets vary widely and can reflect the personality of their owners. They also tell a story of your tea drinking. Your tea pet drinks all the tea you don't and over time will absorb some of the tea, with some older tea pets forming a patina from all that tea!
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Tea Knife |
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Tea knives are used with compressed teas, typically puerh, that come in large cakes or bricks. The knife is pointed, and the tip of the knife is used to break off chunks of tea cake. Generally the goal is to maintain the size of the leaves, so the knife point pries off layers of compressed leaves. |
Tea Scoop |
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Tea scoops are vessels for portioning out dry leaves prior to brewing. For those who like precise weights, scoops can be placed on scales to weigh out specific amounts of tea. Otherwise, these can be convenient transportation vessels between your tea storage and your brewing vessel.
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Tea Utensils |
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Tea utensils can be varied and include a ton of different things, but in the context of gongfu tea drinking, these are typically a smaller spoon or scoop, a set of tweezers, and maybe a pick. The tweezers are used when pouring hot water between cups to avoid burning fingers.
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