Why Do We Use Fairness Cups?

Why do we use a fairness cup when drinking tea?

It has 2 functions. First, it’s an intermediary between the tea pot or Gaiwan and your tea cup. In Chinese Gongfu tea, if teas are soaked in hot water for long time, it will be oversteeped and get much stronger in taste. The fairness cup works as a transfer station, to make sure the liquor has the best taste after the proper time of steeping.

Second, with a fairness cup, everyone at the tea table is treated equally. It works to even out the color and the taste of the liquor in different batches. That’s why it is called fairness cup. Nowadays most fairness cups are made of transparent glass. So it allows us to appreciate the color of the liquor, which is also an important indicator to judge the tea.