first Japanese pot - help me decide

[10/6]

Try artisticnippon , for a tokoname kyusu

Always a good idea. Very pleased with the customer service and product.

[Randoom]

The clay filter seems so wide-meshed or am I wrong?

They have some nice small pots in my budget, have to think about that

[Geekgirl]

Very true. The gyokko pots from Artistic Nippon are very nice, and reasonably priced, and I see he has a new small pot from Sekiryu.

[Randoom]

... and I see he has a new small pot from Sekiryu.

that is the one I am interested in

[Geekgirl]

The clay filter seems so wide-meshed or am I wrong?

They have some nice small pots in my budget, have to think about that

Those small pots at A.N. have a sasame filter, which is clay. It has very small, fine holes. I can brew fukamushi in mine with no problem. It works almost as easily as a 360 stainless screen, and is aesthetically more pleasing, I think. The wide screen keeps it from getting clogged very easily and slowing the pour too much. If the screen does clog, you can usually give it a little tap on the side with your hand and clear the screen, due to it being very flat.

If you are looking for a small clay kyusu, IMO you really can't go wrong with the gyokko pots, and the sekiryu looks to be equal to those.

[Randoom]

Thanks for your reply.

I think I go for the sekiryu pot from artisticnippon. Nearly the same prize as the one from my first post and as I have read around in the forum, they have good quality there.

[Chip]

The value of AN's 4 small pots is hard to argue, they are quite nice and pretty inexpensive at 35-45 USD. They are however small. Still, if one wants a smaller pot, they are a great buy in craftsman quality kyusu-s.

I like having both (sasame) clay and stainless steel mesh around. I seem to feel the clay requires a little more care in the clean up, might just be my mind set.

Once the clay is broken, well, it is not easy to fix. The SS can be replaced if you ever had to.

[Randoom]

aaaah go away with your valid arguments

Hm I think I have to have a night of sleep over it before I consider which one to buy.

[Chip]

A flatter pot loses heat faster, gyokuro prefers colder water, a premium gyokuro will prefer 135* F or even less.

Sencha likes it hotter, around 170* F. Thus a taller or more rounded pot is desirable.

Shouldn't a more spherical pot work with gyokuro as well, as long as you were careful with the water temperature going into the pot in the first place? Wouldn't the only difference between it and the flatter pot be how quickly the pots lose heat?

True, just repeating the logic. I thought of this as I posted, I start with 135* water, how much cooler would I want it, not much.

[Chip]

aaaah go away with your valid arguments

Hm I think I have to have a night of sleep over it before I consider which one to buy.

Just buy one you think you like, you will not regret it. And you can always buy another later. and another and another and another and another...

[olivierco]

This kyuusu



has the same seal that the gyokko from artistic nippon so the quality is equivalent (I own both)

[Chip]

Good point, Olivier. I have seen a lot of kyusu crossover from one type of screen to another. And sometimes there is a lot of grey area between "craftsman and production."

I am thinking in some cases a craftsman makes an original which is then placed into "(re)production," and sometimes ... or most times ... we don't have any idea of how a kyusu is ultimately "made."

Then there is the craftsman who oversees the entire production of his original. but you will likely pay MUCH more than 40 bucks for this.

[Oni]

Alternatively you could buy a banko kyusu that would cost about 60 + shipping, but many people want tokoname kyusu first because it is the most famous kyusu making region, but trust me shidei clay and banko wear are just as good.