Tea enthusiasts often have unique insights into teapots and tea. Zisha teapots vary in shape, clay, and capacity. Different teas paired with different pots can produce distinct flavors.
Green tea is non-fermented and represents the largest category of tea production in China, accounting for about 70% of total output. It also has the longest history among tea types. Green tea is produced extensively across China, with major provinces including Zhejiang, Henan, Anhui, Jiangxi, Jiangsu, Sichuan, Hunan, Hubei, Guangxi, Fujian, and Guizhou. It is made from tender tea shoots through processes such as fixation, rolling, and drying. The dry leaves, brewed tea soup, and tea base are predominantly green, hence the name. Green tea retains a high amount of natural compounds from the fresh leaves, including over 85% of tea polyphenols and caffeine, about 50% of chlorophyll, and minimal vitamin loss. This results in its characteristic "clear soup, green leaves, and astringent taste." Recent scientific studies show that the natural components in green tea have unique effects in anti-aging, cancer prevention, anti-cancer, sterilization, and anti-inflammation, surpassing other tea types.
Major varieties include: West Lake Longjing Tea, Biluochun, Huangshan Maofeng, Lushan Cloud Mist, Liuan Guapian, Taiping Houkui, Guzhu Purple Bamboo Shoot Tea, Xinyang Maojian Tea, Zhuyeqing, Enshi Yulu, and Putuo Buddha Tea.
Green tea has a delicate soup color and is sensitive to overheating, so choose a Zisha teapot that meets the following criteria:
Clay: All clay types, such as purple clay, green clay, and red clay, are suitable.
Shape: Large lid, short and wide body rather than tall.
Capacity: 250cc or larger.
Black tea (known as Hong Cha in Chinese) is the opposite of green tea—it is fully fermented (fermentation degree over 80%). The name comes from its red soup color. During processing, chemical reactions occur: tea polyphenols decrease by over 90%, producing new components like theaflavins and thearubigins. Aromatic compounds increase from over 50 in fresh leaves to more than 300. Some caffeine, catechins, and theaflavins form complex compounds that contribute to black tea's fragrant, sweet, and mellow characteristics. Black tea aids digestion, promotes appetite, diuresis, reduces edema, and strengthens heart function. It has strong antibacterial properties, helping prevent colds, tooth decay, food poisoning, and reducing blood sugar and hypertension. Long-term consumption may also reduce cardiovascular diseases.
Major Chinese black tea varieties include: Keemun—produced in Qimen, Zhide (Anhui), and Fuliang (Jiangxi); Dian Hong—produced in Menghai and Shunning (Yunnan); Huo Hong—produced in Liuan and Huoshan (Anhui); Su Hong—produced in Yixing (Jiangsu); Yue Hong—produced in Anhua, Xinhua, and Taoyuan (Hunan); Chuan Hong—produced in Yibin and Gaoxian (Sichuan); and Ying Hong—produced in Yingde (Guangdong). Among these, Keemun Black Tea is the most famous. Besides China, India and Sri Lanka also produce similar broken black teas. Gongfu black tea is unique to China and a traditional export commodity. The world's four major black teas are: Keemun, Assam, Darjeeling, and Ceylon Highland tea.
Black tea has a long-lasting fragrance, sweet nature, and rich red soup. Choose a Zisha teapot with the following conditions:
Clay: Purple clay, red clay, Jiangpo clay, etc.
Shape: Taller, deeper, and narrower body.
Capacity: 200cc or larger.
Oolong tea, also known as Qing Cha, is semi-fermented and named after its creator. Both green and oolong teas come from the same tea plant, with the key difference being the fermentation process. During fermentation, catechins combine as temperature rises, darkening the tea and reducing astringency. These combined catechins form oolong tea polyphenols. Polyphenols and antioxidative catechins affect enzyme activity in the body. About half of the catechins in tea leaves convert into oolong tea polyphenols, giving oolong tea unique benefits beyond green tea, such as preventing tooth decay, eliminating free radicals, improving skin allergies, weight loss, anti-tumor effects, and anti-aging.
Oolong tea is mainly produced in Fujian, Guangdong, and Taiwan. The best varieties include Wuyi Rock Tea from northern Fujian, Tieguanyin from southern Fujian, Guangdong Dancong, and Taiwan Dongding Oolong.
Oolong tea is also called Gongfu Tea due to its specific brewing method, which requires strict standards for teaware, especially the teapot:
Clay: Purple clay, green clay, red clay, and Jiangpo clay are all suitable, with red clay being the standard. Zhu Ni clay, with its high density, minimizes loss of aroma for high-fragrance teas. A flat, round Zhu Ni teapot, fired at high temperature, enhances tea characteristics and concentrates heat to elevate aroma, making it the best partner for oolong tea.
Capacity: Choose based on the amount of tea, generally between 80cc and 200cc.
Shape: 1. Tieguanyin: Prefer short rather than tall pots to express the tea's aromatic qualities and smoothly release its floral notes.
Dark tea (Hei Cha) is post-fermented and unique to China, with a long history of production, primarily as compressed tea. Dark tea is made through microbial fermentation, a process over 400 years old. Due to the coarse raw materials and prolonged pile-fermentation, the leaves turn dark brown, hence the name. Dark tea offers multiple benefits: supplements dietary nutrition, aids digestion, reduces grease, improves gut health, lowers lipids, aids weight loss, softens blood vessels, prevents cardiovascular diseases, antioxidative, anti-aging, longevity, anti-cancer, anti-mutation, lowers blood pressure, improves sugar metabolism, reduces blood sugar, prevents diabetes, sterilizes, reduces inflammation, diuretic, detoxifies, and reduces harm from smoke and alcohol.
Dark tea is mainly produced in Anhua (Hunan), Hubei, Sichuan, Yunnan, and Guangxi. Major varieties include Anhua Dark Tea, Hubei Lao Bian Tea, Sichuan Border Tea, Guangxi Liubao Loose Tea, and Yunnan Pu'er Tea. Among these, Yunnan Pu'er is renowned both historically and internationally.
Dark tea has a strong, dark soup, so pot selection requires attention:
Clay: Purple clay (suitable for both raw and ripe Pu'er), green clay (suitable for raw Pu'er).
Shape: Pots with larger bellies to avoid overly strong tea soup due to Pu'er's high concentration.
Capacity: 200cc or larger.
Yellow tea has tender buds and leaves, with visible hairs and a fresh, mellow fragrance. Its basic processing is similar to green tea but includes a yellowing step, resulting in yellow soup and leaves—a outcome of pile-yellowing during processing. Depending on the variety, yellowing may occur before or after rolling, or after initial drying. For example, "Junshan Yinzhen" from Junshan Island in Dongting Lake, Hunan, uses only plump buds and involves ten精细 steps: fixation, spreading, initial drying, re-spreading, initial wrapping, re-drying, re-spreading, re-wrapping, drying, and grading. The processed "Junshan Yinzhen" has hairy exteriors and golden-yellow brightness.
Yellow tea is mainly produced in Anhui, Guangdong, Guizhou, Hunan, Hubei, Sichuan, and Zhejiang. Based on bud tenderness and size, it分为 yellow bud tea, yellow small tea, and yellow large tea. Major varieties include Junshan Yinzhen, Weishan Maojian, Huoshan Yellow Bud, and Huoshan Yellow Large Tea.
Notes for selecting a pot for yellow tea:
1. Clay: All clay types, such as purple clay, green clay, and red clay, are suitable.
2. Shape: Larger lid.
3. Capacity: 200cc or larger.
White tea is characterized by silvery-white hairs, often described as "green dressed in white," with plump buds, yellow-bright soup, fresh and mellow taste, and tender even base. Brewed, it offers a deliciously fresh and mellow flavor with additional pharmacological effects. Traditional Chinese medicine considers white tea cool-natured, effective in reducing heat and fire, preventing cancer, combating summer heat, detoxifying, and treating toothaches, especially aged white tea with tips.
Its processing typically involves withering and drying, with withering being key. Withering can be indoor or outdoor solar, depending on climate. Ideal conditions are clear spring or autumn days or non-sultry summer weather, using indoor or compound withering. The refining process involves removing stems, flakes, waxy leaves, red sheets, and dark sheets, then baking over low heat until fully dry (4-5% moisture), using heat only to enhance tea fragrance before packing while hot. White tea processing preserves enzyme activity without promoting oxidation, maintaining its hairy fragrance and fresh taste.
White tea is a specialty of Fujian, mainly produced in Fuding, Zhenghe, Songxi, and Jianyang. Major varieties include Silver Needle, White Peony, Gong Mei, and Shou Mei. Particularly, Silver Needle, covered in white hairs and straight as needles, is one of the most beautifully shaped teas, greatly beloved.
White tea requires a brewing environment that facilitates heat dissipation, so note the following when brewing:
Clay: Purple clay or green clay.
Shape: Larger lid, narrower belly, taller body.
Capacity: 300cc or larger.
Others: Besides these six basic tea categories, there are reprocessed teas包括 scented teas, compressed teas, concentrated and instant teas, liquid tea drinks, flavored teas, and health teas. Scented teas are made by blending various flowers with green, black, or oolong teas. Compressed teas are made by steaming and pressing green, black, oolong, or dark teas into shaped products.
When drinking scented teas, selecting the right pot is crucial for the most aromatic flavor:
Clay: Purple clay, green clay, or Jiangpo clay.
Shape: Larger lid, moderate belly.
Capacity: 250cc or larger.
Generally, if possible, use one pot for one type of tea (one pot serves one tea) to avoid flavor mixing. Fairness cups are best made of glass or porcelain for easy cleaning and no flavor retention. Brewing times vary: 10-30 seconds for oolong or semi-fermented teas, and no more than 40 seconds for fully fermented teas. Being in an elegant, clean, and free tea-drinking atmosphere helps one enter a state of mind, calm and focused, savoring slowly. Even a cup of ordinary tea can reveal its true essence, reaching the highest realm of tea appreciation.