The Art of Tea
Did you know that in China alone there are hundreds and thousands of tea varieties? Their taste is not only defined by the land – aka terroir - but by the skill with which they are cultivated and processed. Hundreds of years of diligent attention has been paid to tea cultivation, evolving through tradition, culture, and through the hands of masters. You could say, it’s an art.
Sourcing it is the same; we taste thousands of teas to find those that really speak of their origin. Making and enjoying it to its very full potential therefore, should be approached within the same ceremony. It’s no coincidence that the Chinese tea ceremony (功夫茶) - originating in the Chaoshan area of Eastern Guangdong in southern China - literally means “making tea with skill”.
So it is that our we designed our teaware range to remain true to the principles of these ceremonies, suited to modern life, with the intention of delivering not only great taste, but a moment of calm appreciation.
Our Own Teaware
From day one, it was important to us to develop our own unique teaware to ensure tea could be enjoyed at its best.
Working with skilled glass blowers, we abide by simple parameters:
5 Years
Every master who makes JING Glass has a minimum of 5 years’ experience hand-blowing and crafting glass.
10 Steps
Making each piece requires mastery of a minimum of 10 steps. At every stage, the glass is heated and shaped into our signature designs.
4 Days
Each piece of JING Glass takes four days to produce. Slow heating and cooling enables the highest degree of precision and detail.
Making Tea With Skill
Developing our own teaware range was, and is, a labour of love. Ensuring you get the very best from your tea, however, doesn't stop there. Making tea with skill and precision is the final art. Here are our golden rules for tea making.
Large, loose leaf
Use loose, large leaves that have space to move in the water’s convection currents that swirl the leaves and aid infusion. Large leaf tea provides a slower rate of infusion, helping to extract the full depth of flavour. Using tea bags? Select those that contain whole leaf tea and use a pyramid shape bag with plenty of space.
Water Quality
Use a jug-softener and filter. Soft water with low mineral content allows the flavours of your tea to sing. Filtering your water will reduce chemicals like chlorine, which mask and ruin the flavour of good tea. We don’t recommend distilled or de-mineralised water because your tea will taste flat and lifeless.
Water Temperature
70-80°C bring out the freshness and sweetness of white, green and yellow teas, without extracting bitter tannins.
Boiling water brings out the rich, complex and fruity tannins in Black teas. This temperature applies to Pu erh and Oolong. A temperature-controlled kettle is the simplest solution.
Or, for 70°C-80°C water, add 20% cold before topping up with boiling water.
Proportion/Decanting
It’s all about the right proportions of tea, water, and time. On every tea product page, we recommend the exact amount of tea per cup (the number of grams per 250ml) and the amount of time to let the tea infuse.
Pour all your tea down to the very last drop – it makes or breaks your tea.
You’ll get the full range of flavours and won’t leave your leaves to stew and ruin your second cup.
Picking the Right Teaware For You
Tea Infuser Set
FOR ONE
This complete tea set for one includes our 300ml Tea Infuser, small bamboo Uplift Tray and glass Tea Timer. The glass lid keeps the tea warm while it infuses, and can then be inverted to hold the infuser basket, so no drips or spills and you are left with the perfect cup of tea. Our bamboo Uplift Tray is non slip, keeping your items in place as you move. The glass Tea Timer lasts for 3 minutes, just enough time for a perfect infusion of your favourite tea.
JING Tea-iere
FOR SHARING
If you love the simplicity of our tea bags but want to explore loose leaf tea with ease, our Tea-iere is the answer. Unlike cafetieres, our Tea-iere does not have a plunger. Instead, the filter is built into the lid giving your tea leaves space to fully open, and infuse your tea with flavour and colour. The lid is easy to remove and both lid and the glass body are dishwasher safe.
The JING Tea Master
FOR MASTERS
Meet your new loose tea companion. Ancient in spirit, but young at heart, the JING Tea Master draws on thousands of years of Chinese tea culture to bring the gong fu tea ceremony to life today. Savour the best of your tea over quick, multiple infusions. The JING Tea Master is crafted from double-walled porcelain to protect your hands, but keep your tea hot.
Read more on how our Tea Master was designed.
