The ancients said that tea utensils are the father of tea. From the perspective of traditional tea tasting art and tea drinking culture, tea sets are not merely containers for holding tea soup but an indispensable part of the entire tea tasting process. Tea utensils of fine texture, elegant shape, and rich cultural significance play a crucial role in enhancing the tea soup, preserving the tea aroma, and elevating the enjoyment of tea tasting—this is what Lu Yu referred to as "benefiting the tea."
The evolution and development of tea utensils have always been linked to changes in tea or tea brewing methods. Conversely, different types of tea and brewing methods call for different tea utensils, and tea sets throughout the ages have been created to adapt to the various teas and drinking habits of each dynasty.
Regarding tea bowls of the Tang Dynasty, Lu Yu stated that "bowls from Zhao Prefecture are the best," mainly because the celadon from Zhao kilns helped highlight the soup color appreciated by tea connoisseurs of that time.
By the Song Dynasty, due to the practice of tea competitions where white soup was favored, the black-glazed bowls from Jian Prefecture became the preferred tea utensils.
During the Yuan and Ming dynasties, tea competitions declined, and loose leaf tea became mainstream. Accordingly, white porcelain and elegant blue-and-white porcelain emerged to complement the green soup of loose tea. Meanwhile, with the development of loose tea brewing art, teapots underwent significant changes and became ideal for self-serving and drinking.
By the Qing Dynasty, as brewing techniques became increasingly refined (such as Gongfu tea), purple clay teapots gained popularity and became widespread. At the same time, offering tea to guests became a common folk ritual, leading to the popularity of lidded cups. Today, tea tasting art places higher demands on tea utensils, offering tea enthusiasts a wider range of choices. Residents in northern China mostly prefer jasmine tea and often use larger porcelain teapots to brew, then pour the tea into cups. People in southern China generally favor pan-fired or baked green tea, and they customarily use lidded porcelain cups or bowls. In Fujian, Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, people have a preference for oolong tea, making Gongfu tea sets suitable. Gongfu black tea sets can also be used similarly. For ordinary black tea, brewing with a purple clay teapot can be quite enjoyable. When tasting various fine teas, especially high-end ones like Longjing, Biluochun, Junshan Yinzhen, and Baihao Yinzhen, colorless and highly transparent glass cups or white, thin-walled, fine porcelain cups are most ideal, enhancing both the visual appreciation and the pleasure of tea tasting.