The tea ceremony and culture in Taiwan is a way of drinking tea different from the West. And a unique teapot set allows us to enjoy our favourite drink in a Taiwanese way. Our teapot set offers you the possibility of living a fantastic experience.
Tea is unique in that it quickly absorbs moisture and odors, so it should always be stored in a dry place, away from other elements that exhale too much aroma. The ideal is an airtight tin or any “caddy”. At the beginning of tea consumption and being such an expensive product, it was kept in caddies with padlocks. These caddies were usually made of silver, ivory, earthenware, or wood. If by chance the proper precautions have not been taken when storing the tea and it has acquired unwanted odors, do not worry too much, because the thing and there is a solution: spread the tea on one or more sheets of paper for a few hours in a cool place.
Let’s discover a different culture.
Drinking tea and tasting it with the guests that, far from being something ceremonial, is done daily and in each house differs significantly from how we consume it.
In small sips
The first thing that attracts attention when we come across an oriental teapot set is the size of its pieces. In the West, we are used to larger cups or even large mugs. The bowls of small size and teapots rarely have a capacity greater than 500 ml. It is usual in those countries.
However, this is how you have to have a new teapot set.
Well indeed. In Taiwan, the tea in the pot is infused repeatedly with boiling water to serve the guests again. So an essential element is a teapot set with a kettle with always hot water ready to refill the kettle.
Teapots, bowls and a jug
This oriental teapot set comprises a 400 ml teapot, four bowls with their corresponding wooden plate and two more pieces that we will explain below their usefulness.
The first one is a larger plate than the bowls. It shows guests the tea to be tasted before preparing the infusion. This is a ceremonial part, but it was always done in Taiwan. The leaves will also be deposited in this dish once infused at the end of the evening.
The second piece is a small jug from which tea will be served to the guests. In the East, the teapot set is an extraordinary element at home, often inherited from generation to generation and is used only to make tea. Once the leaves are infused, the drink is poured into another container (many times a glass jug), and it is from this container that it is served to the guests. This way, you can brew a second pot while there is still brew in the serving jug. And surprise, the capacity of our game has doubled.
Around tea: The tea service
Just like the custom of drinking tea comes from China, porcelain also originates from the same place. Each dynasty had its favorite and characteristic color for the porcelains in the tea service. The Sung was tan, that of the Yuan was blue and white, and that of the Ming was white with an almost transparent appearance.
The way to make tea is fundamental to enjoy an aromatic, delicious and comforting drink in winter when it is hot or excellent refreshment when it is cold. Here are the steps to follow to make a perfect drink:
- The teapot is scalded so that the tea gives off all its perfume; the water should be boiled when making the infusion.
- The amount of tea for the cups to be served is placed in the teapot. Generally, one teaspoon of tea is calculated for each cup and one more for the teapot.
- Pour the water over the tea when it starts to boil, keeping it covered for as long as the infusion lasts.
- The duration of the infusion is essential. It must remain for 5 to 8 minutes and then be served immediately. If time is short, you only get a pale and soft drink. A bitter and astringent drink is obtained if it is maintained for more than 10 minutes, which is considered a prolonged infusion.
- The filter is removed, or the tea is strained before serving it
- Never make a second infusion with the same tea leaves.
- It is taken alone, with milk, sugar, honey, lemon or mint, according to preferences
Why invest in a beautiful teapot set
The best tea is made in glazed porcelain and earthenware teapot set. The teapot set that we have at Nauradika offers these elements as the rest of the pieces, but as we say, many times in Taiwan, they used a simple glass jug. The oriental teapot setblends this idea with purely western elements, such as the micro-perforated filter included in the teapot (in Asia, most teapots do not have a filter).
