Shui Ping (Yixing Tianqing Clay) 水平壶

Made by award winning Chaozhou teapot craftsman, Chen Zhijian. In his early years, Chen had came in champion in national wheel throwing competitions, with many of his works superceding his teachers in dexterity and refinement, especially in traditional and historical teapot styles from the early to late Qing dynasties. In other private commissions for KZ over the past years, Chen had been able to make impeccably refined and elegant pots, all the way from classical Qianlong Pear shapes to ultra thin walled “Nanban” styled teapots that wheel thrown and pulled to shape entirely from the inside of the pot, without any external surface touch ups, yet maintaining very thin walls. These teapots are treasures in the modern day, and will become heirloom treasures in time to come. Capacity：Approximately 70-75ml Form & Soul: The quintessential reference vessel of Chaozhou Gongfu Cha. Named "Water Level" for its mathematical symmetry, where the tip of the spout, the rim, and the crest of the handle sit on an absolute horizontal plane. Its generous, rounded chamber allows leaves to expand uninhibited. Character: Vibrant, balanced, and forgiving. The high density of Chaozhou red clay coupled with the spherical chamber distributes heat inward with absolute uniformity, pushing out crisp, high-pitched aromatic top notes. Pour Dynamics: A swift, clean, arc-like stream with a sharp cut-off, allowing rapid emptying to prevent leaves from stewing between infusions. Ideal Tea Companion: Phoenix Dan Cong (Feng Huang Dan Cong - Light/Medium Roast) like Mi Lan Xiang (Honey Orchid) or Yawan Xiang (Duck Shit Aroma). The vessel unleashes volatile floral and stone-fruit top notes while taming potential astringency. Directions for Usage and Care: As the teapot is entirely new and freshly off the kiln, please rinse the teapot with clean water and ensure that any grits or loose clay is washed away before usage. There is possibly some sandy clay residue which is used to prevent the lid from sticking to the pot during firing, this can be easily washed away. Also, this teapot is optimally fired, the teapot is ready for immediate usage after washing, you may want to fill the teapot with one or two rounds of hot water or with some light dilute good tea for five minutes, and then wash out, and it will be ready for brewing tea. Do not boil the teapot, and not with tea leaves and towels either! After use, please empty out the tea leaves from the pot and rinse it with clean water, and optimally with one douse of hot water before leaving to dry.