Good Samovar for a Beginning User
I always wanted a samovar, but found an in-store search impossible. Most tea shops didn't know what one was and, even in Los Angeles, I couldn't find a Russian supplier.
When I found this on Amazon, I found the look a little modern, but still elegant. So, I ordered one just to check it out.
The samovar isn't very tall, no more than about 18-20" tall. However, the bottom portion holds a great deal of water and heats fairly quickly. I tend to fill the bottom first thing in the morning, turn it on, and leave it on all day (I drink tea all day long). I can usually get about 6-8 mugs of hot water and about a good dozen or so tea cups of water. The samovar automatically detects when the water cools and re-heats the water as needed.
The teapot on top is very small for me. Only holds about 4 teacups and the opening is small for my tea ball so I'm forced to use teabags. The heating unit for the teapot is separate, so I can put on a pot of tea and then leave...
Poor Quality Product & Poorer Customer Service
I am avid tea drinker and I bought this item to enjoy a cup of tea. However, after trying the product two times, I realized that the product is working really poorly. The quality of the tea brewed with this product was lower than a low-quality teapot. Moreover, the bottom part takes forever to boil water and after it boils, it takes forever to fill a cup of tea with water.
Overall, the product is too low quality. I contacted the seller to return the item 4 weeks ago. Since 4 weeks the seller keeps sending me e-mails to hold the item until they give a decision. At the end, they just informed me that their return policy does not allow me to return this product.
First, I am completely dissatisfied with the poor quality of the product.
Second, I am completely dissatisfied with the poor quality of this seller's customer service which took 4 weeks and 15 back and forth e-mails to tell me that they do not accept the return.
I opened a claim about it and...
An ideal samovar
For those of you looking for a Russian-style samovar to make Russian-style zavarka (tea concentrate), this samovar works perfectly. It plugs into a standard outlet and keeps water hot by boiling it every half hour to forty-five minutes. The teapot on top sits on a large opening in the top of the samovar and is heated by the steam rising from the boiling. It cooks Russian Caravan and other smoky teas in one boiling cycle, though the longer you cook your concentrate on the samovar, the stronger and more flavorful the tea becomes. The pot remains very warm but is never too hot to handle. The water-release mechanism works great; you turn the key and water comes out into the waiting cup. As the water levels lower, the stream of water gets slower and slower, and if you are using a tiny teacup the distance from spigot to countertop might cause some splashing, but this is easily fixed by either adding more water or lifting the cup up. There is a setting on one of the handles to move between...
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