Tea pot

“ Sometimes the teapot, whether ceramic, pewter, or silver, was placed upon a dish or small, tile-like stand with feet. These teapot stands served as insulation by protecting the surface of the table or tray from the damaging heat of the teapot. Stands often were included in tea sets but also were sold individually, such as the “Pencil’d China ... tea pot stands,” advertised in 1775, and the “teapot stands” of “best London plated ware” imported in 1797. [69] The stands must have been especially useful when silver equipage was set on a bare table top ”

“ Britannia ware is exceedingly unwholesome for any sort of cooking, as one fourth of the composition is copper. Block tin for a common tea-pot is less objectionable, and much cheaper. All tea-pots should, after using, be thoroughly emptied of the old leaves, and washed very clean in warm water, and set open in the sun and air for several hours. To make good tea, the tea itself, whether black or green, must be of excellent quality. There is no economy in buying that which is low-priced. Green tea, if fresh and good, and not adulterated will look green in the cup, and have a fragrant odor. ”

“ In France, little silver canisters of tea are placed on the table, where it is invariably made. One tea-spoonful of the leaves is a fair portion for each person. Tea is better made in an earthen tea-pot, which tea connoisseurs are particular to have. They also drink the beverage without milk, and with loaf-sugar merely.
Water at the first boiling-point is generally considered better for tea or coffee, and, in fact, any kind of cooking which requires boiling water. ”

“ Another reprehensible practice of some Tea makers is that of adding fresh leaves into the tea pot with those that have been already once drawn, as it cannot add to either the strength or flavor of the Tea by putting more leaves in the tea pot after the first drawing, for the simple reason that the Tea water will not extract the theine from the dry leaves of the fresh Tea. ”

“ It has been long observed that the infusion of tea made in silver, or polished metal tea-pots, is stronger than that which is produced in black, or other kinds of earthenware pots. This is explained on the principle, that polished surfaces retain heat much better than dark, rough surfaces, and that, consequently, the caloric being confined in the former case, must act more powerfully than in the latter.
It is further certain, that the silver or metal pot, when filled a second time, produces worse tea than the earthenware vessel ”

“ Scald the tea-pot, and if the tea is a strong kind, a tea-spoonful for a pint of water is sufficient—if it is a weak kind, more will be required. Pour on just enough boiling water to cover the tea, and let it steep. Green tea should not steep more than five or six minutes before drinking—if steeped longer, it will not be lively. Black tea requires steeping ten or twelve minutes to extract the strength. ”

“ Crooked spouts were very liable to become obstructed by the tea leaves. "One drinks tea for pleasure, and one may justly feel irritated if the beverage declines to come out of the pot." The true form of teapot, we are told, began with Kung Ch ́un, from which one infers that the tea bowls of the T ́ang and Sung usage were in vogue up to his time. ”

“ In winter the vessel should be made hot and the leaves heated in it before the water is poured on, for about a minute, while in summer the tea-pot need not be heated or the water poured on while boiling, but should be 201allowed to cease for a few seconds, more or less, according to the heat of the day. It is also a needless operation to pour a small quantity of water on the tea for a preliminary drawing, as is frequently done. Always fill the tea-pot, or pour in at once the quantity required, but for the more temperate seasons a modification of these methods may be adopted. ”

“ To begin with, never use a tin teapot if an earthen one is obtainable. An even teaspoonful of dry tea is the usual allowance for a person. Scald the teapot with a little boiling water, and pour it off. Put in the tea, and pour on not over a cup of boiling water, letting it stand a minute or two for the leaves to swell. Then fill with the needed amount of water still boiling, this being about a small cupful to a person. Cover closely, and let it stand five minutes. Ten will be required for English breakfast tea, but never boil either, above all in a tin pot. ”

“ When of metal, tea sets (fig. 11) usually consisted of a teapot, containers for sugar and cream or milk, and possibly a slop bowl, while ceramic sets, such as the one seen in Family Group (fig. 1) , included cups and saucers as well.
Figure 11.—Silver tea set consisting of teapot, sugar bowl, container for cream or milk, and waste bowl, made by John McMullin, of Philadelphia, about 1800. Matching coffee and hot water pot made by Samuel Williamson, also of Philadelphia. The letter “G,” in fashionable script, is engraved on each piece. ”

“ The reason for pouring boiling water into the tea-pot before the infusion of the tea is made, is, that the vessel being previously warm, may abstract less heat from the mixture, and thus admit a more powerful action. ”

“ Teapots based on Chinese models and often decorated with Chinese motifs were fashioned in ceramic and silver. No doubt many an 18th-century hostess desired a silver teapot to grace her table and add an elegant air to the tea ceremony. A lottery offering one must have raised many a hope, especially if, as an advertisement of 1727 announced, the “highest Prize consists of an Eight Square Tea-Pot,” as well as “six Tea-Spoons, Skimmer and Tongs.” ”

“ While the tea set illustrated in Family Group appears to have all the basic pieces, it can hardly be considered a “complete” tea set when compared with the following porcelain sets listed in the 1747 inventory of James Pemberton of Boston:
In addition, the Pemberton inventory lists a silver tea pot and “1 pr. Tea Tongs & Strainer,” items that were undoubtedly used with the ceramic sets. ”

“ If green tea is good, it will look green in the cup when poured out. Black tea should be dark coloured and have a fragrant flowery smell. The best pots for making tea are those of china. Metal and Wedgwood tea-pots by frequent use will often communicate a disagreeable taste to the tea. This disadvantage may be remedied in Wedgwood ware, by occasionally boiling the tea-pots in a vessel of hot water. ”

“ Unless you have domestics on whom you can implicitly rely, it is well to go into the eating-room about ten minutes before the announcement of tea, and to see that all is right; that the tea is strong and properly made, and the pot (which should be scalded twice) is not filled nearly to overflowing with a superabundance of water. The practice of drowning away all the flavour of the tea is strangely prevalent with servants; who are also very apt to neglect scalding the tea-pot ”

“ The charcoal is not lighted until the Samovar is placed on the table, the water being drawn on to the tea as required, the tea being first put in a porcelain or earthenware tea-pot and filled from the Samovar; the first water is poured off the tea as soon as it is put on, being used merely to carry off the dust. ”

“ Not seen in this detail of the painting is the entry of a male servant who is carrying a tall silver pot, which may have contained chocolate or coffee. These two other social beverages of the 18th century were served in cups of a deep cylindrical shape, like the three seen on the end of the table. The shallow, bowl-shaped, handleless teacups and the saucers are arranged in a neat row along one side of the table. The teapot rests on a square tile-like stand or dish that protects the table from the heat. Nearby is a bowl to receive tea dregs, a pot for cream or milk, and a sugar bowl. ”

“ Each person has a common tin quart pot and a pint pot, slung to his saddle; the tea and sugar are carried in small bags. The quart pot requires very little fire to make it boil. When it begins to boil, it is taken from the fire, the tea is dropped in, and the pint pot is placed on its top as a cover. When the tea is ready, the sugar is dropped into the pint, and the tea is poured from one pot to the other till it is mixed. The pint is always kept clean for drinking out of, but not the quart, for the blacker it is, the sooner will the water boil. ”

“ It is a good plan to empty the kettle and refill it with fresh cold water, and make the tea the moment it reaches boiling point. Soft water makes the best tea, and boiling softens the water, but after it has boiled for some time it again becomes hard. When water is very hard a tiny pinch of carbonate of soda may be put into the teapot with the tea, but it must be used very sparingly, otherwise it may impart a very unpleasant taste to the beverage. Tea is better made in an earthen than a metal pot. ”

“ As the privileges of the side-table—besides including the small prerogatives of sitting next the toast, and taking two cups of tea to other people’s one, and always taking them at a crisis, that is to say, before putting fresh water into the tea-pot, and after it had been standing for some time—also comprehended a full view of the company, and an opportunity of addressing them as from a rostrum, Mrs Gamp discharged the functions entrusted to her with extreme good-humour and affability. ”

“ When the water boils, a lump of burnt sugar is added, and the pot, being placed in a filagree silver stand is handed round; each person drawing the maté into his mouth through a silver or glass tube which is furnished at the lower extremity with a bulb pierced with small holes. The natives drink it almost boiling hot; and they have always some of this tea ready prepared, whether employed at home or in the fields. ”

“ The best rule for making tea is the old-fashioned one: "one teaspoonful for each person and one for the pot." The pot should first be rinsed with hot water, then the tea put in, and upon it should be poured enough water, actually boiling, to cover the leaves. ”

“ The use of tea-water simply increases the amount of tannin, darkens the color, destroys the flavor and only adds to the quantity of leaves already in the pot without in the least affecting the active principle, so that if it be necessary to increase the strength of the tea prepared, draw some fresh leaves in a separate vessel and add the liquor to that already made. ”

“ In giving a list of these, we will suppose that one person has to be catered for: a well-made strong quart tin pot, with both hook and handle, is better for making tea in than the conventional teapot; it is also useful for an endless number of other cooking purposes. A knife, fork, and spoon, should be packed in a leather hold-all, like that filled with small tools, which we have already represented on page 43. ”

“ For those that like it so, have a small pot of water on the server. If the water is not boiling fast when poured on the tea, and is beginning to cool, the tea will be flat and insipid, and the leaves will float on the surface of the cups. ”

“ In the interior of Australia all the men drink tea. They drink it all day long, and in quantities and at a strength that would seem to be poisonous. On Sunday morning the tea-maker starts with a clean pot and a clean record. The pot is hung over the fire with a sufficiency of water in it for the day's brew, and when this has boiled he pours into it enough of the fragrant herb to produce a deep, coffee-colored liquid. ”

“ I prefer a good Chinese blend, especially on tramp. It is not, however, possible to prepare tea in any elegant fashion. There is no “five o’clock” in the wilds. You brew a pot of tea at any hour which taste suggests. The luxurious may [Pg 165] carry a small teapot and merely boil the water in the can or coffeepot. But the rougher method is not without appeal. You can sift two spoonfuls of tea into your coffeepot when the water is boiling and at once take it off the fire. A better plan is to cut off a small square from your mosquito netting and tie the tea in that. ”

“ Buy the best green tea you can find and use it freely on a hard tramp. Black, or Oolong tea, is excellent in camp. It should be put in the pot with cold water and brought to the boiling point.
Almost any man can cook potatoes, but few cook them well. Most people think them best boiled in their jackets, and to cook them perfectly in this manner is so simple and easy, that the wonder is how anyone can fail. A kettle of screeching hot water with a small handful of salt in it, good potatoes of nearly equal size, washed clean and clipped at the ends, these are the requisites. ”

“ Customarily they strain the liquid before drinking, but frequently the tea and pulverized leaves are drank together in the same manner that the Turks and other Orientals use coffee.
In Cashmere a beverage called “Cha Tulch” is prepared from tea by boiling the leaves in a tin-lined copper pot to a strong, dark decoction, and while boiling briskly phule (red potash) , anise-seed and a little salt is added, after which it is poured into a kettle and finally served in porcelain tea-cups. ”

“ In pouring out, do not fill the cups to the brim. Always send the cream and sugar round, that each person may use those articles according to their own taste. Also, send round a small pot of hot water, that those who like their tea weak may conveniently dilute it. If tea is handed, a servant should, at the last, carry round a water-pitcher and glasses. ”

“ When you are to get water for tea, to save firing, and to make more haste, pour it into the tea-kettle from the pot where cabbage or fish have been boiling, which will make it much wholesomer by curing the acid and corroding quality of the tea. ”

“ Anderson, produced common brownware pans and crocks, and by Mr. Gardner the addition was made of Rockingham ware tea-pots. By the present firm this branch of manufacture has been considerably improved, and so greatly extended that at the time I write, I am informed, no less than twenty-six thousand tea-pots can be produced by them per week. Majolica and jet ware goods are also largely made and are of good quality, and a speciality of the firm is its artistic engraving of ferns and other decorations of the finer qualities of tea-pots, jugs, &c. ”