I'm brand new to the forum and the tea community in general. I am really enjoying Japanese Green teas at the moment and have the bug to get a tetsubin. I've looked through a lot of threads here and researched as much as I can online but couldn't find much in the way of sizing recommendations. I'm a little hesitant to apply my version of common sense to this issue as it did me a disservice when selecting a kyusu which is probably way too big. That, and well, my common sense is not really the common version anyway
. So in an attempt to avoid making the same purchase mistake twice I thought I'd reach out to you all. My questions are derived from me being torn on whether to purchase a 1.4L and 0.9L tetsubin from Artistic Nippon. The 0.9L is available for immediate purchase at what seems to be a good price and well within my budget at $290 not including shipping. The 1.4L must be special ordered as it is not in stock and will take 3 or more months to receive. It is a bit more pricey at $380 not including shipping. Anything else listed in stock is getting outside my budget at well over $400 but not completely out of the question.
So in considering this, the smaller Teppachigata arare by Kunzan 0.9L seems like a better fit for my budget but I am worried that it might be too small. Then again, I am usually preparing Japanese Green tea for one on most days so maybe this would be perfect? Do you think the smaller size would better for day to day use for a 1 to 2 person kettle?
Or should I wait for a larger tetsubin which may have more versatility if I am to serve larger audiences during holiday get-togethers? Is the larger one more challenging to use during the smaller tea drinking sessions, which will comprise the majority of its use? I am currently using a 1.2L stainless steel kettle and it seems to work well. + or - a few mL doesn't seem like a big deal overall but I am guessing those that have gone before me can impart much wisdom on this consideration. Many thanks in advance for your help!
