How to use a purple clay teapot for the first time?

As we all know, there are many things with a long history in China, including not only some utensils, but also some technologies, such as ceramic crafts and clay crafts and so on. The purple clay teapot is one of the representative works, and nowadays purple clay teapots can be seen in many places around the world. So, what should you pay attention to when using a newly bought purple clay teapot for the first time, and what should you do specifically?

1. Open the kettle

A new kettle needs to be processed before it can be used, and this process is called opening the kettle. There are many ways to open the kettle. Here is one way:

1. Boil in water for at least an hour. The specific method is to separate the lid from the pot body, put it in a pot of cold water, place the pot on the stove, and slowly heat it over low heat until it boils. Turn off the heat after 1 hour. This step can use the thermal expansion and contraction to allow the pores in the pot body to release the earthy smell and impurities contained in it.

2. Put the boiled pot and a piece of old tofu into clean water and boil them together using the same method as above for at least an hour. This step is called removing the heat, and its purpose is to remove the heat caused by high-temperature calcination during pot making.

3. Put the pot and a piece of tender sugarcane head into clean water and boil them together using the same method as above. At least an hour.

4. Put the pot and tea leaves into clean water and boil them in the same way as above for at least an hour.

Only after completing the above four steps can the purple clay teapot be officially used.

2. Pot Care

After the new teapot has gone through the opening procedure, it can be officially used. The process of use is also the process of maintaining the teapot. Compared to opening a teapot, the process of maintaining it is longer and requires great patience.

You must maintain the teapot while tasting the tea, rather than tasting the tea while maintaining the teapot.

Caring for a teapot is like cultivating your character. A well-maintained teapot should have a dull color and restrained luster, just like a modest gentleman, dignified and steady.

There are many ways to maintain a teapot, but the basic principles are the same, which are nothing more than the following six points:

1. Clean the pot thoroughly inside and outside:

2. Avoid contact with oil;

3. Use tea juice to moisturize the surface of the pot;

4. Scrub moderately;

5. Clean and dry after use;

6. Give the pot some time to rest.

It may sound scary, but it is actually not that difficult to do. It mainly involves paying attention to every little detail in your daily life. Specifically, we need to pay attention to several details: in the process of maintaining the teapot, we must always keep the teapot clean, especially do not let the teapot come into contact with oil and dirt, to ensure that the structure of the teapot is transparent; in the process of brewing, first pour boiling water on the outer wall of the teapot, and then flush water into the teapot, which is often called "moistening the pot"; wipe the teapot body with cotton cloth frequently, and do not leave tea soup on the surface of the teapot, otherwise the surface of the teapot will be covered with tea scales over time, affecting the appearance of the teapot; the teapot must have a "rest" time after soaking for a period of time, generally it needs to be dried for three to five days, so that the entire pot body (with a pore structure in the middle) can be thoroughly dry.

3. Common Misunderstandings

Due to the influence of publicity and other factors, some people have some misunderstandings about teapot care. The original poster must pay attention to this!

1. Don't be impatient. Maintenance is a long process and cannot be achieved overnight. Do not wipe the purple clay teapot with fine sandpaper, sandpaper, polishing cloth, etc. Doing so will damage the surface of the teapot, causing it to lose its natural luster and leave scratches, thus destroying the texture of the purple clay.

2. Avoid leaving any tea in the pot. Some teapot owners believe that drinking raw tea juice in the pot will help maintain the quality of the pot. This is a wrong understanding. Although purple clay teapots do have the characteristic of not becoming spoiled overnight, overnight tea will have a stale soup smell, which is very harmful to the purple clay teapot! It is also unhygienic and harmful to your health.

3. Some people use the same pot for every type of tea they drink. This is absolutely wrong! You must use the right pot for every type of tea you drink. You must make a strict distinction and not confuse them.

It takes a relatively long time to maintain a good teapot, and the person who uses the teapot needs to have good habits. But in the final analysis, you still have to have a teapot made of good clay first, otherwise it cannot be maintained. That is:

A pot made of good clay + a good way to maintain the pot = a good pot.