A Cup Made for Drinking Alone
Ming-dynasty writer Zhang Yuan, in his 茶录, ranked the ways of drinking tea by how many people were at the table: 独饮曰神，二客曰胜 — drinking alone is called divine, with one guest it's called excellent. Everything past that, he implied, was just a gathering.
Baoputang's 独乐杯 — Dule, "solitary joy" — is built around that first ranking. The line engraved on this cup, 但取幽人适, "only seeking the ease of the recluse," comes from the same idea: tea reduced to its simplest possible form, one pot, one cup, no fairness pitcher in between to manage. A small pot, 150–180ml, pours one cup. A slightly larger one, 220–300ml, pours two — the only concession made for a second person, should one show up.
It's teaware designed for an absence rather than a presence: built for the version of tea that happens when no one else is at the table, and the whole ritual can be simplified down to exactly what one person needs.