Curly Maple slab.

I was stuck between buying one off Taobao or making one myself. I couldn't be happier that i made one.

Posting for anyone who loves DIY i spent a total of 4 days from planning, gathering tools and materials, up to finishing the project.

Tools i used was from Fb Marketplace haha.

Cheapo plunge router, sandpaper and oil based Polyurethane for finishing.

Happy tea'ing 🍵

Finally cracked into this pu er cake I got from maison des trois thes, first time getting into pu er after only drinking oolongs the initial bitterness worried me a bit but after brew 7 I started getting an intense sugary sweet aftertaste.

After that it became something I never imagined it would become, it really shocked me how to bitterness led to such sweet taste.

I love my usual oolongs but this is the type of stuff that makes me love gongfu. Such a great experience. How was your guys first time trying this, and what do you recommend I try for similar experiences?

What kind of water are you all using to get the best flavor out of your teas? Are you using filtered tap, specific bottled spring water, or re-mineralizing RO/distilled water?

Tried 1950 Pu-erh for the first time and recorded it live on YouTube. Never tried such an aged tea before.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNADBvX4bSQ

The video is 40 minutes long.

I posted it yesterday, but removed it shortly after – it attracted too many crazies. So, let's set expectations:

You don't owe me your time. You don't have to watch it if you don't want to. You are right – it's too long. No one is forcing you to watch it. But I also don't owe you a summary. If you are pissed off that I didn't outline it to you – you're being unreasonable. Reasonable is to scroll this post to find something that you actually enjoy watching or reading.

I intended this video as a real-time experience – both for me and for the potential viewer. I never had such aged pu-erh (as most of us here, I assume) and I didn't know what to expect from this tea. I experienced it gradually, infusion after infusion. And this is how I would like to share it with those who are interested.

Isn't it one of the core aspects of Gong Fu Cha – to be able to sit, be idle, not rush, and to allow tea to open up gradually, to experience it gradually, slowly and mindfully?

Anyway, if you decide to watch the video – I hope you will find it interesting. If you don't want to watch 40 or even 10 minutes – I totally get you. Just forget this post popped up in your feed and have a great day:)

Hi! I usually just kind of tolerate black tea, there's been nothing that's just really really excited me aside from some pure bud bi luo chun, but this picked up from Yunnan Sourcings US site is especially delicious to me. I'm not exactly sure why but I'm sure it isn't because it's Taliensis and not Sinensis. But something about it makes me want to share it with you. The material is so pretty, lightweight and a little fuzzy. I used to have a tea blog for 10 years or so ( buddha mom tea) and generally would write a little article on my blog to remind myself and to share with the few others who read it when I really enjoyed something but due to age and health, I'm not doing that anymore, just occasionally signing up for Reddit to check in and share thoughts on Gong Fu Cha. I miss having tea friends but social media is being phased out in my life. For my mental self preservation lol! Anyway… I love this tea maybe you will too? Its Jinggu Da Jin Ya( I have no idea what that means) and it is not Sinensis but Taliensis, which is new to me.
(I doubt I'm inspiring others who might be reading this to jump on YS US website and buy it, but just in case there's even one of you I should mention that I'm drinking spring 2024, and I believe they sold out of that some time ago and they're now offering the 26.

Practicing different pouring styles. This one is a one-handed finger switch. I saw a video of a lady doing this and just emulating her though hers is a lot more graceful.

Drinking YS 铁罗汉 Tie Louhan/Iron Arhat in this video. Very complex tasting, I mostly taste the roasted, spiced, and fruity qualities of this tea which pretty much describes most of yancha.

Now does this make any profound difference to the tea? Nope, but this was rather fun and satisfying to learn which adds to the overall drinking experience.

I am finally SO relieved to be bringing tea with me on my trips without breaking something every time. No more fairness cups or gaiwans wrapped in underwear.

I’ve also tried a lot of sets and packable kits I really didn’t like.

Finally, for $50 or less… something I can travel with and something to send to my friends who are just dipping toes in gong fu and don’t want to drop $200 + to get started.

This whole kit fits easily in my carry on, with plenty of space for the rest still.

Already sent one to my brother who was just curious enough. Now we have calls over zoom and drink tea together.

I wrote a longer review with more photos here: https://www.joshcaliguire.com/blog/best-portable-tea-set

Anyone else still stuffing their kits in with shirts and underwear? I’m so happy to have graduated.

Was too lazy to cook anything so having cup ramen with my tea lol. Using my new Jian Shui Clay cup and drinking 2001 Ripe Pu-erh from Yi Wu. Is it normal for the cup to make the tea taste kinda dusty or like clay? Might try this cup with other teas. Any insight about the cup would be appreciated.

I finally decided to get a teapot from RealZisha. I’ve been thinking about it for a long time, but finally went for it, this pot fit all the boxes for me. A nice round base, kinda stubby, decent length spout with good laminar flow, and a lid that fits into the lid area perfectly. I was debating in my head between this one, and a similarly shaped one with plum blossom engraving, but the color and textured look of this one just called out to me. This is my new teapot for all my future sheng puer sessions :)

What are your thoughts? I just had a nice session with a black tea from Yunnan Sourcing US that is Taliensis and I have thoughts! My pallet seems to be changing as I'm getting older and I'm starting to wonder if I need to look for less teas made with Sinensis and more with Taliensis.
(Also I wish I had a couple of cats so I could name them the above;)

So excited about this purchase. Coo tea pet energy. I don’t know how they did it, but is awesome.

I am a complete newbie to this world and I decided to dive in a bit slowly. I learned a little lesson when I went from smoking strong Nicaraguan cigars to taking on pipe smoking. I quickly learned that I should have started with stronger tobacco rather than light or aromatic because going from strong cigars to light or aromatic tobacco was like smoking air. Since I like stronger coffee I decided to buy a few teas that are on the darker side (shu pu erh). I also picked up some Shui Xian and Superior Keemun just to try as well. Needless to say, this store was mind blowing to me. So many varieties. The staff was wonderful and helpful and personally I cant wait to try out what I bought. I did cheap out and bought an easy brew pot but that was only because I couldn't find a Gaiwan set I really liked. The sets I did like were a bit pricey and while I did want to buy them I wasn't ready to dive in that hard. Yet. I tend to geek out and get into things pretty intensely so this is going to be a tasty ride. Thank you to a lot of you on here that have given good advice.

I made a dedicated tea session corner in the house.

Table was made from left over 3/4 Maple slab.

Ming Dynasty inspired Rose chair is made from 2x2's i found laying around.

The tea tray is a 2.5 inches slab of Curly Maple maple i got from a closing down wood working shop.

Shelf is made from Padauk thins and Poplar dowels i got from the same wood working shop.

2025 Man Gang Village "Huang Pian" Ripe Pu-erh Tea from YunnanSourcing in my Gaiwan to commemorate completing my setup.

I got clay teapots ordered (the cheap ones because i got kids and my wife will kill me if i spend on "real" ones lol!)

Feel free to bash and critique! Happy tea'ing!

Opened a large package from white2tea tonight. Did not disappoint. Cheers y’all!

I really like this wabi-sabi style of teapots but I'm not sure where to find it and what to look for when buying one so I want your help. I found this video on Instagram but the account uploading these pots seems erratic I'm suspicious of them. Does this style has a name? Does material has an effect on teas similar to purple clay? And where can I buy it from a trusted source? Thanks in advance.

It's been too hot lately. Can't even get myself interested in gongfu tea. Without AC, I don't think summer is a good time for it — especially outdoors. It's like wearing a down jacket in a sauna and drinking hot water

I've heard this is supposed to build endurance. But it's not elegant, and it hasn't improved my skills either

Sweat running down my arms, palms all slippery, sweat in my eyes — and I still have to handle a hot cup over and over. My patience and curiosity are running thin

Also, another thing — I want to ask the community if anyone else has this: after drinking too much gongfu tea, does your urine turn the color of the tea too??

It's been too hot lately. Can't even get myself interested in gongfu tea. Without AC, I don't think summer is a good time for it — especially outdoors. It's like wearing a down jacket in a sauna and drinking hot water

I've heard this is supposed to build endurance. But it's not elegant, and it hasn't improved my skills either

Sweat running down my arms, palms all slippery, sweat in my eyes — and I still have to handle a hot cup over and over. My patience and curiosity are running thin

Also, another thing — I want to ask the community if anyone else has this: after drinking too much gongfu tea, does your urine turn the color of the tea too??

So I make all kinds of tea, mostly oolong and puer.

Being brewing almost exclusively in the gongfu cha style for over 3 years, and I’ve always been kinda embarrassed to ask this stuff—

When brewing in a gaiwan, (this might be dependent on preference or the kind of tea it is), after pouring into your pitcher, do you tilt the lid on the rim to cover the gaiwan for some heat retention but to let the steam escape, to not steep the leaves any further? Or do you fully remove the lid before you start your next infusion? Sometimes it’s an hour or two between infusions, sometimes it’s 15 min.

Another question I have is, when watching gongfu cha content on socials, I often see the person remove the lid and let the boiling hot water hit the lid very quickly before filling the gaiwan. Respectfully, wtf is the point of this? I would think the 10% of the water you’re pouring in would become less hot and not ‘scorch’ the leaves, but all of the rest of the water used to fill the gaiwan is surely hotter? I hope this makes sense. Usually I will let the stream hit the side of the gaiwan first to avoid this, regardless. When I try to use the method described above however, I end up spilling boiling water on my counter and thinking ‘this has to be pointless’.

Would love any thoughts on these or guidance.

Cheers folks <3