Looking for directions on how to brew the perfect tea?  Wondering how to expertly season your Yixing teapot? It's best to type in key words by subject or verb. Write us if your question doesn't get answered with our FAQ and we'll be happy to help you further. brew@specialteapots.com

What is the shipping charge for teapots and tea?

Teapots ship for about $12.00 per teapot. Tea sets, because of their size, are slightly higher to ship. Shipping may vary slightly with the order processed, shipping distance and company rates. We at SpecialTea Pots  try to keep all our prices reasonable, charging actual shipping rates for products sent.

Teas ship for $2.50 per order. You may order as many teas as you want with this shipping charge. If you are from Washington State we will add tax to your teapot order, and tea order tax will be given back in the form of extra tea with your order. As it is the most cost effective way to refund shipping.

For shipping Express Mail or for Next Day Air  call us at 360.479.1661 for a quote.

Please note Prices and insurance may be higher to Alaska and Hawaii. Please allow more time for shipping as Priority mail may take longer  to these destination

Post office boxes and most shipping to Alaska and Hawaii will be sent USPS.

Do you know anything about Hall teapots?

It's fun to have an affordable collectible like teapots that you can use every day. While many of the highly collectible items like artwork and photography are out of the financial reach of the average American, American pottery is still a good value that you can collect without a great stain on your budget. With the value expected to rise on pottery, isn't it nice to have something you can afford that you can also use every day?

Hall China Company picture taken by Dustin M. Ramsey

The Hall China Company began producing teapots in 1903 in East Liverpool, Ohio. Robert Taggert Hall re-developed the durable single fire process after those made years before in China during the Ming Dynasty. Inadvertently, Hall China Company  became the first pottery in the world to produce pottery  which was completely lead-free. This was due not to particular environmental or health concerns, but due to the fact that the lead components would not work in the very high temperatures Hall China was fired at.

Sometimes the Hall China company makes popular original vintage Hall teapots again. You can tell an original teapot by the stamp, color, or the workmanship. Check with the experts to determine the true value and year of a Hall teapot. 

If you've ever owned a Vintage Hall teapot, you'll know what all the fuss is about. These teapots are as functional as they are beautiful. First they are chip resistance, second they are non-porous, and lastly they can be found without the fine line crazing most older teapots have.

A few types of Hall tea pots are the Airflow, Bird Cage, Donut, Globe, Hook, and Windshield. The Hall China Company also made several commercial teapots designed for restaurant use.

Perhaps the most dramatic teapot made by Hall China Company is the beautiful Vintage Airflow Teapot. Introduced in 1940, the Airflow is a hit with the collectors. Red and colbalt blue with a gold trim are todays sought after colors by the casual collector. 

 

 

Donut teapots are on of the most popular shapes ever produced. This Hall China Company teapot was introduced in 1938. Many collectors find this Deco style fits nicely with the newer Retro styles being created in homes today. The Donut teapot teapot was part of a series of 6 teapots created by Hall called the Novelty teapots. This came in quite a few colors and decaled patterns as well. Today Hall is again producing the cute Donut teapot . The newer teapots have the square Hall back-stamp as opposed to the round one used on older teapots. Collectors generally prefer the older teapots to the newer ones.

The Windshield Teapot was named from the stylized upper rim created in the popular Art  Deco style. This teapot can be found with hand painted gold as well as decaled gold. The six cup shape was introduced in 1941 as one of Hall China's Gold Label series teapots. The spouts on the older teapots are thought to be of higher quality and are subsequently prized by collectors over the newer teapots.

 

The value on American pottery is expected to rise in the future. Many of SpecialTea Pots Vintage Hall teapots are under the collectors recommended value.

What types of tea are there?  Why are they different?

Tea is an herb with leaves and buds from the Camellia sinensis plant. Tea, in America, also refers to the process of steeping herbs in water.

Camellia sinesis bush

The four main types of tea are black, oolong, green, white and pu erh. Just to confuse the matter further, oolong can be a process as well as a tea. All five tea types come form the Camellia sinensis plant. The technique by which each one is produced and processed determines the tea type and flavor.

 

Five main Camellia sinesis tea types

• White tea: Unwilted and unoxidized
• Green tea: Wilted and unoxidized
• Oolong: Wilted, bruised and partially oxidized
• Black tea: Wilted and sometimes crushed, and fully oxidized
• Pu-erh: Post fermented tea green tea that has been allowed to ferment like compost

Interesting Canellia sinesis teas

• Milk tea: Black or green tea with real milk infused in the process.
• Blooming tea: Generally jasmine scented tea formed in the shape of a ball with flowers sewn in. 

Non teas called teas in America

• Herbal tea usually refers to a tisane (any tea that is from a herb that is not from the Camellia sinesis herb plant) some examples; chamomile, lemon balm, peppermint, and spearmint.
• "Red" tea rooibos ( pronounced roy-bos- Jill likes to remember the pronunciation by saying Roy's your boss). Rooibos is a herbal plant from South Africa sometimes called  red bush or bush tea as well as red tea. Unlike tea rooibos does not get bitter with a longer steeping. Boiling the South African herb actually brings out the sweet flavor.