TeaChat

Nice vid! Nice collection too!

Geekgirl wrote: Gaiwan #2 and #4 (same make in different colors, clearly,) sit more with the flare of the gaiwan resting on the flare of the saucer, rather than foot in saucer ring.

Yep this is exactly what I am describing. The "foot" is not long enough, therefore the cup sits on the "flare" instead, causing swiveling and sometimes suction.

Nice video btw.

couple of notes: the #2 and #4 gaiwan that I would characterize as "tippy" or wobbly, sit differently in the saucer. They also both have a slightly notched foot. These two, and the all-white one #5, feel like the best made out of my 5. They are very light, very transparent, and very smooth. #2 and #4 are also my cheapest gaiwan, at less than $5/set from Serenity Art.

While I totally understand why someone would pay top dollar for fine wares (and I do it too,) it just goes to show that occassionally you find a "win" in the bargain section.

I guess the main difference is the depth of the saucer's indentation. Greek's saucers are very shallow and flat. Both gaiwan shown above, the body's footer do not touch or sits into the indentation. Instead, almost floating on the rim of the indentation, so it will not create suction.

pb2q wrote:Almost certainly not intentional. I've assumed that these imperfections are the result of manufacturing

I'm happy to be wrong about this.

I'd always suspected that the imperfect lid fit was intentional - the way that the lid is keyed relative to the gaiwan opening was obvious out of the box - but it's good to see that confirmed also.

However, as a saucer user, I can say that my small gaiwan TG does occasionally suffer from suction. Perhaps this is only an effect of the tea pearls...

Regarding lid fit, the only of my gaiwan that have "perfect" fitting lids are the Teavana one (the problem suction one, I should do a review on all the ways this gaiwan is poorly designed...) and the blue one #3 in my wobble video above. The others have lids that sit at an angle, or with a bit of a gap, which makes pouring easy.

Geekgirl wrote:How does this compare with what everyone else is describing?

My TG small gaiwan tilts about the same as your #4, not as much as your #2 appears to tilt. It typically sits a little cockeyed.

Good info in this thread.

I want that gaiwan but cant because I'm UK.

Support my thread

http://www.teachat.com/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=14069

RE the suction I've got a really nice JDZ gaiwan where the bottom of the saucer has no bottom. It slots in but there's no base....works very well.

My small Tea Gallery gaiwan arrived yesterday, and I just finished a tea drinking session with it. It is beautifully made from very fine porcelain, and my cup can sit upright in the saucer. I was able to create a vacuum with water yesterday so the saucer stuck to the cup once, but I wasn't able repeat the feat.

I can see becoming more adept at using the gaiwan to the point where drinking tea from it would be second nature and relaxing. When I held the saucer in one hand, and pressed down (gently) to brace the lid against the cup with the other hand, I felt that the whole unit remained secure while I drank directly from the gaiwan. But, it did feel a bit weird to drink from something so small. Do most people drink directly from it, or pour the tea into a separate cup for drinking?

JRS22 wrote: But, it did feel a bit weird to drink from something so small. Do most people drink directly from it, or pour the tea into a separate cup for drinking?

I do drink directly from gaiwans, usually when I am drinking green tea. That being said, not as much green tea is used compared to oolongs and such, so with them I usually brew them in a larger gaiwan.

So to answer your question on this particually gaiwan, I typically pour it into another cup, but that is because I am not drinking a tea I feel comfortable with drinking directly from a gaiwan.

I have the small and medium size gaiwans from TG, and I love 'em both.