🍵gaiwan or yixing: how i actually decide

the session that settled it for me: a 2023 Mi Lan Xiang that tasted flat in porcelain and came alive in clay

Porcelain gaiwan, 100-120ml

(rinse first) my default for anything I haven't brewed before, it tells the truth about the leaf

the tea that started this list. first two steeps in the gaiwan were thin, switched to yixing on steep 3 and the honey note finally showed up

Small unglazed yixing pot, zini clay

dedicated to oolongs only, never soap. resteeps well past what the gaiwan gets you on the same leaf

Fenghuang Shuixian base cultivar (unroasted)

tasted this next to the Mi Lan Xiang to understand what the honey-orchid processing actually adds

Tasting cups, 20-30ml, thin porcelain

Gongfu tray with drainage

bought the cheap one for two years, upgraded, wish I had sooner tbh

Second yixing pot for green/lighter oolongs

still deciding if I actually need this or just wanted an excuse

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