Mid-Autumn Festival Celebration with a New Tea Set

The Mid-Autumn Festival, a traditional Chinese holiday celebrating the moon and harvest, is September 8th this year.  Every year I buy moon cakes for my mom and my family and this year will be no exception.  But, for best selection, you have to buy your moon cakes in advance of the 8th.  Chinese bakeries and supermarkets all over the city have them for sale now and in so many different versions from traditional lotus seed paste ones to "snowy" ones (冰皮月餅) that are frozen (will have more on this later).  I'll drink tea when I have moon cake, so when I saw that T&T Supermarket was advertising 50% off a tea set with any purchase of a box of moon cake, I jumped!  I already have a number of tea sets but I love collecting tea sets and it does fill a gap in my small collection.  The tea set ends up being $12.99 for a pot and 6 cups in a traditional motif, and at this price I wasn't expecting a high quality tea set.  For a few reasons, it's not perfect...

There is also one in pink, different design though.

Metal strainer included.

The set is a basic set and I like the floral design.  However, the teapot when full did not pour very nicely.  Tea leaks out from the top and I should have expected this as the lid was not snug, with and without the strainer.  I also think this is because the opening where the tea drains is also at the top so you have to tilt the pot quite a bit.  When the tea pot is not as full, it pours fine.  It also drips slightly at the spout unless you pour quickly.

Normally if something doesn't work well I wouldn't bother writing about it but I do like the cups.  I really like how the cup fits in my hand and the edge of the cup is made thin compared to the body of the cup.  This is done to enhance the tea tasting experience.  The body of the cup also doesn't get too hot so you can hold the cup comfortably when the tea is hot.

So, the cups are great in this set,...the pot, not so much.  The pot's volume is about 1.5 cups of water when filled to the brim so you can adjust the amount of tea leaves you use to this volume.  This is perfect for tea for two or enough for a few friends to enjoy a taste, hence 6 cups.

This offer is until September 8th or while quantities last so if you want to pick up an "okay" traditional Chinese tea set, you can get this at a discount at T&T Supermarket with the purchase of any box of moon cakes.