I didn't mean to, I swear, and who knew it would be drinkable, and perhaps, yes perhaps I am poisoning myself by not boiling the pot and scouring the pot and exorcising the pot of all its potential unclean sediments, dusts, minerals and demons! I don't care!
Damn Dong Ding tastes GREAT. I think this pot is enchanted and yes, I mean in that scary Angela Landsbury kind-of way. It's practically talking to me, and I am listening. The other Jian Shui pot, 'Purify The Heart' sits patiently by and watches, they are so similar but this new one has that high polish which gives it such a gleam, it truly does seem to have the potential for some kind of alchemy.
Physically the pots design makes me laugh, it is an unseemly thing truly, crooked and puffy and sideways and stout.
From The website...
Jian Shui Clay "Great Virtue" Gourd Teapot by Chen Quan * 210ml
The history of Jian Shui purple pottery, which is also known as Southern Yunnan red jade, goes back hundreds of years. During the Song dynasty it was celadon; during the Yuan it was blue and white ceramics; during the Ming it was coarse ceramics; during the Qing it was purple pottery. Today, it is considered to be among the four famous types of Chinese pottery and represents the traditional folk art of Yunnan's Jian Shui county.
Jian Shui purple pottery takes advantage of rich and unique local deposits of red, yellow, purple, cyan, and white 5-color clay.
It applies multiple hand techniques including filled engraving, broken tablet style, and glazeless polish. No external or internal glaze is applied. Instead, meticulous polishing with local river rocks which are just a bit harder than the pottery giving the pottery its unique character and lovely finish. The pieces are described as having “body like iron, color like copper, reflection like a mirror, and sound like a chime.” They possess their own antique character that sets them apart from other types of pottery and places them in the class of exceptional pottery.
The unique glazeless polish ensures the all types of Jianshui purple pottery are acid resistant, alkali corrosion resistant, breathable, moisture resistant, and insulated.
Another advantage of Jian Shui pottery is the use of Hong He county’s relatively un-tapped clays which when fired are more than twice as dense (and heavy) as Yixing clays. These clays are also extremely pure and unadulterated by pollutants.
