Yixing teaware is considered the finest way to brew tea by connoisseurs the world over.  For thousands of years yixing clay has been revered for its ability to enhance the flavor and experience of tea.  The porous nature of the clay allows each vessel to absorb minute amounts of tea each time it is used.  Over time this results in a fine patina that can, after many years of use, produce tea simply by adding hot water to the pot or cup. 

For this reason it is important to never clean your yixing tea ware with soap and water, but only rinse it out with hot water after each use.  Additionally, it is best to brew only a single type of tea in one pot.  Some connoisseurs will further limit a vessel’s use exclusively to tea produced in a given region or harvest.