7 Day Wood Fired Jianshui Tall Shi Piao Lotus Teapot 110ml :: Seattle Inventory 13

This teapot was wood fired in a kiln in Jianshui for 7 days. This teapot was fired in the same batch, same kiln, as our wood fired teacups. This teapot is thick walled and high fired. It pours fast and easy. It measures approximately 110ml in volume.

Wood fired kilns in China use prepared pine wood. There are multiple firings where the kilns are manned 24/7 with 4 people. Temperatures are kept constant around 1270°C (~2300°F). It is a hot and labor intensive job. The fires must be managed precisely to avoid temperature spikes or drops. The risk is high and pieces often fail. Between firings the kiln is allowed to cool down entirely. The entire process for firing these teapots takes nearly half a month. It was an incredibly expensive endeavor and the cost of these teapots reflects that. 

During the wood firing process the pitch in the pine vaporizes into the smoke and settles on to the shelves above the tea wares. As the pitch gathers it drips on to the teapots creating the wood fired pitch glaze you see on these teapots. As the smoke and heat swirl through the kiln additional pitch is deposited on the sides as well.

We really love Jianshui clay. It has a purity and soul that comes through the tea session. For these teapots we used the rare Wanyao clay. With changing government regulations it has become difficult or impossible to mine for new clay under Wanyao village in Jianshui. Most Jianshui teaware now are made of a blend of clay from as far as 25km away. It's still good clay, but the purists prefer the old Wanyao clay. The clay in these teapots was mined 20+ years ago, processed, and has been aging since then.

Jianshui clay is amazing to brew with. We believe the quality of the clay speaks for itself. 

These are single fired and unglazed. This is a true clay which lacks any sand. The natural minerals in the clay will enhance the flavor of your tea. Jianshui is in Yunnan, and the clay used in these teapots comes from the same mountains that grow puerh tea trees. We appreciate that connection. We blogged about this unique town here.

This is a unique teapot. You will get the one pictured here.

Check out our video series from Jianshui: