Chawan

A Gong Fu tea set brings together the pieces you need to brew in the Gong Fu Cha (工夫茶 – tea brewed with skill and effort) style: a small brewing vessel, cups, and often a fairness cup to decant into. We chose pieces that work together in size, material, and style.

Our collection includes sets in porcelain and glazed ceramic, silver, and clay from several of China's pottery traditions, along with travel sets, matcha sets, and a Chaozhou charcoal stove and clay kettle.

What's in a Gong Fu Tea Set

The center of every set is the brewing vessel – a gaiwan or a small teapot, usually somewhere between 90ml and 200ml. These sizes suit one to six people and many short infusions from the same leaves.

Many sets also include a Gong Dao Bei (公道杯 – Fairness Cup), also called Cha Hai (茶海 – Sea of Tea). You pour the whole infusion into it at once, so the leaves stop steeping, and every cup gets tea of the same strength. Some sets add a tea strainer, wooden tea tools, or a Hu Cheng (壶承 – Teapot Rest) that catches drips under the pot.

Porcelain and Glazed Tea Sets

Porcelain is neutral. Its glazed surface doesn't absorb tea or alter its taste, so it works with every tea type and shows the true color of the liquor. If you brew a wide range of teas, it's the most versatile choice.

Many of our porcelain sets come from Dehua, in Fujian province – one of China's foremost porcelain centers. It is known especially for Mutton Fat Jade Porcelain (羊脂玉瓷 – Yang Zhi Yu Ci), a milky-white porcelain that glows softly when light passes through it.

Silver teaware

Silver conducts heat quickly and evenly, so the leaves open all at once. That suits hot water and very short steeps, which bring out sweetness and aroma before bitterness has time to build. In the case of silver-lined porcelain teaware, the porcelain outside keeps the pieces comfortable to hold.

Clay Tea Sets

Clay brings its own character to the tea. Its mineral composition and porosity affect how tea extracts and how its texture comes across, and unglazed clay develops a patina over years of use. Each tradition behaves a little differently:

• Yixing ZiSha (宜兴紫砂 – Yixing Purple Sand) – The classic clay of Jiangsu province. Its slightly porous body softens harsher edges and rounds out the brew, which suits pu-erh, aged teas, and darker oolongs.

• Jianshui Zitao (建水紫陶 – Jianshui Purple Pottery) – Dense, iron-rich clay from southern Yunnan, polished to a smooth, semi-matte finish. Because it's relatively low in porosity, it doesn't lock onto one tea type and works for pu-erh, oolong, and black tea alike.

• Dehua clays – Dehua is best known for porcelain, but its local clays make some of our most distinctive sets. Dehua Zhu Ni (朱泥 – Red Clay) pairs especially well with Wuyi rock oolongs. High-iron clays, often wood-fired, give each piece its own texture and finish.

Travel Tea Sets

A travel set packs a gaiwan, a fairness cup, and cups into a compact case, so you can brew Gong Fu style at work, on the road, or outdoors. The pieces are designed to nest inside one another, keeping the set small and light.

Charcoal Stove and Clay Kettle

In Chaozhou, where Gong Fu Cha took shape, water for tea has traditionally been boiled in a small Sha Diao (砂铫 – Clay Kettle) over a Tan Lu (炭炉 – Charcoal Stove). Many tea drinkers find that water boiled in clay gives tea more body – it's worth testing for yourself.

Charcoal is best used outdoors. Indoors, make sure the room is well ventilated, or use an alcohol burner instead.

Matcha Sets

A matcha set brings together the three essentials for preparing matcha: a Chawan (茶碗 – Tea Bowl), a Chasen (茶筅 – Bamboo Whisk), and a Chashaku (茶杓 – Bamboo Scoop). A wide bowl gives the whisk room to move, so the matcha froths evenly.

How to Choose a Tea Set

Start with how many people you brew for. A vessel around 90ml is ideal for one; 110-120 suits two or three; 150-200 suits four to six.

Then think about what you like to drink. Porcelain is the most flexible if you brew many different teas. If you lean toward one category, a clay set can complement it.

Not every set includes a fairness cup. If yours doesn't and you're brewing for more than one person, add a Gong Dao Bei from our Teaware Accessories so every cup gets the same tea.

Whatever the material, wash teaware with hot water only. Detergents leave residue that clay in particular absorbs and passes on to the tea.