Firstly; Tea takes time.

Before considering the paraphernalia required for properly making tea,
we should consider the time required. If one is to get the full benefits and
experience of drinking raw/sheng Puer tea it is worth making the time to brew
gong fu' (功夫) style. Worth taking the time to experiment, explore, and develop
one'sskills and perception.

The idea of a 'Tea Ceremony' (茶仪/cha yi) does not have much currency in contemporary China. Brewing tea 'gong fu' style, may have some elements that appear ritualised, but it is not truly a ceremony. If it is to be worth it's name at all, what is important is to devote time to the tea making process and to make tea with awareness; more of a meditation than a ceremony - to make tea and experience tea with undivided attention, both toward ones own actions and to the experience it engenders within you.

Equipment for Brewing Puer Tea - Teapots and Gaiwan

Puer tea can be steeped in a number of ways, but ideally one should have the following equipment: a teapot or a porcelain steeping cup with a lid (盖碗/gaiwan), a fine tea strainer, a small glass jug to decant the steeped tea into and glass or ceramic cups.

If an Yixing teapot is used, one should dedicate a pot solely for raw (生/sheng) Puer teas and, ideally, distinguish between softer and stronger teas, which would mean a minimum of two pots.

A gaiwan will give the most accurate brew and, if you are drinking tea that is new to you, or that you are unsure about, it is best to use a gaiwan. Yixing teapots tend to soften the flavours of tea; make it a little smoother and more rounded, but because they are pourous, they also absorb flavours from the tea, which has a small impact on subsequent brews using different teas in the same pot. This is very important if there is a possibility that the tea you are trying has chemicals in it; this can have a distinct and long lasting effect on the pot and therefor subsequent steepings. It should be possible to steep a good Puer tea many times using either a teapot or gaiwan.

Gaiwan

It is good to use a relatively large gaiwan - the smaller they are the more they tend to stifle the tea - 140 ml is a good size even for one person. Gaiwan that are flatter in profile tend to stifle the fragrance more than taller designs, so buying one that is realtively tall is also worthwhile- the actual cup will still be somewhat wider than it is high. Look for a gaiwan that you can grasp comfortably between middle finger and thumb (with your first finger in, or lying across the top of the lid). The lid should rock slightly in the cup.

There are different designs of saucer: some saucers are made with a rim within which the base of the gaiwan sits, others have a shallow depression. Ideally, find a set where the gaiwan can be replaced easily on the saucer.

The thicker the walls of the cup, the more it will retain heat which may be important if brewing for longer periods, or drinking straight from the gaiwan. In any case, if the cup has a well flared rim and is not filled to the brim, it should not become too hot to work with.

Other options

If finding the time to brew 'gong fu' style seems unmanageable, a piao yi bei is worth trying. Designed to approximate gaiwan style brewing, a piao yi bei. sometimes referred to as a 'gong fu cup', is a glass jug with a (usually plastic) filter system that sits in the top and from which the tea is allowed to drain into the bottom of the jug by way of a simple ball valve. This method, however, will never produce the results of a gaiwan or teapot.

A final alternative method is to place some leaves in a ceramic or glass cup to steep the tea and then, once the water has been added, allow the leaves to settle before drinking from the same cup. The cup can be refilled a number of times using the same tea leaves. This method may suit a few teas, but generally we do not recommend it as it will not bring out the best in the tea.

Having acquired some good tea, the next step is to steep it well. Water quality, temperature, quantity of tea and steeping time all play a part. In China the initial steeping is not drunk. It is used to wash or 'flush' the tea - the leaves will not have opened sufficiently and the flavour not yet emerged. The second steeping may be drunk.

See here: for a brief slideshow depicting the essential equipment and method of steeping using either a pot or a gaiwan