Tomorrow is my birthday. On a Monday. Bah. So early Saturday morning my husband comes down the stairs with a box, saying that he wanted to give me my gift early so I could enjoy it through the weekend.
The sight of the box alone sent me into shock. There it was – what I really wanted for my birthday but had never dared tell him. How did he know of its existence? Where in the world did he get it? How did he become a mind reader?
But there it was. The lovely corrugated cardboard box wrapped in rope that could only be holding one thing…my very own Sorapot.
It is a weighty pot in brushed silver. A thing of beauty on it’s own, but far more beautiful with tealeaves in it. A bit clumsy to use in terms of opening and closing, but honestly worth the bit of extra effort not to pinch your fingers in it. The first pour was a bit awkward, since I’m used to pouring slowly – it needs to be thoroughly tipped in order to pour correctly. But once I got the hang of it I was golden.
We don’t have a display cabinet in our house. This teapot may be a game changer in that regard. Will this be the Wagenfeld Teapot of my generation? So far, loving my Sorapot…and feeling quite a bit spoiled for my birthday!
Tea in Tech 
April 27, 2009 at 4:26 pm
Awesome! Congrats!!! I need to have my hubby talk with your hubby before my next birthday. 🙂
July 16, 2009 at 12:40 pm
What I’d like to know is how the tea tastes in a Sorapot. Is it like a glass pot? Or what does it remind you of? And what does it do to different kinds of tea?
July 17, 2009 at 11:27 am
I think the flavor is comparable to what you would experience in a glass pot. I really love how it gives a great deal of space to the leaves I put in it, and I enjoy the angle at which I can look at them (watching leaves steep is one of my favorite things about drinking tea). Much of my love for this pot is purely aesthetic, but that’s the way I roll.
Pouring from the pot is a bit of a challenge for me. A slow pour will cause it to spill out down the body of the pot – perhaps I need more practice. But I like the way the air comes into the body of the pot, throwing the steeped tea and leaves around with a gratifying gurgle. It’s a very different pouring experience from other pots, because the only way air gets back into the pot to displace the tea is through the spout.
I’ve used it mostly for oolongs. Greens and Blacks look pretty in it, and I’m not a big pu erh or white teas right now. Oolongs are showstoppers in this teapot. Quite lovely.
October 2, 2009 at 4:46 am
The Sorapot is a beautiful teapot (beauty, of course, is in the eye of the beholder), but it couldn’t possibly be compared to the Wagenfeld teapot for several reasons. Despite its appeal, the Sorapot is nonetheless quite primitive, perhaps on purpose cf the packaging. It is clumsy in use, as you rightly pointed out, but it is also physically clumsy, or if you like, weighty rather than elegant or graceful. In use it reminds you of those horrible stainless steel teapots they hand you in diners that always drip on the table and napkin. It combines a number of different materials: steel/silver, borosilicate, etc, which is rather unnecessary from both design and utility perspectives. And it is not not innovative in terms of material. The Wagenfeld, on the other hand, is everything opposite. It is simple, light, serene, elegant and graceful, very effective both for brewing, pouring, and viewing; it is the quintessential modernist tool, all made of one material in continuous, flowing lines; and borosilicate was at the cutting edge of material science in 1932. Way in a different class cf the Sorapot, which is why it became an instant classic. A thing of beauty is a joy forever, and that can be said of the Wagenfeld. Will the Sorapot stand that test?
October 2, 2009 at 11:52 am
Thank you for your post, Bruce. I agree with what you have to say – the Wagenfeld is elegant and functional, while being innovative. I find the Sorapot to be elegant and innovative in a less traditional way in terms of material and execution, but mostly in design and not so much in use (it’s counter-intuitive to lay a teapot on it’s side in order to add leaves, and strange to pour water up a spout. Nothing I would do at the table while hosting). But once everything is put together, and the tea is in the pot, it really is a thing of beauty.
Are there any other teapots since the Wagenfeld that have generated as much “buzz” as the Sorapot? This is the base from which I drew my comparison. I’m going to do a bit of research on my end and see what I find. If you know of any, kindly post if you wish. Thank you again for sharing your thoughts.