Ode to the Kyusu

[debunix]

Going to brew up a session in my little Nosaka pot in his honor.

[Chip]

Without going in to detail at this time it looks like the Shimizu Ken pots up on Hojo will be the last. Due to ill health. Thoughts and wishes to him and his family.

Of course I sorry to hear this. I will cherish the representations of his Kyusu-s each time I use them to brew even more so ...

[Alex]

Just a heads up that tokoname.jp have 4 natural gisui in stock.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tokoname-Shud ... 7675.l2557

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tokoname-Shud ... 7675.l2557

And a couple of others not listed. Just message them and say you want to buy.

[BioHorn]

Just a heads up that tokoname.jp have 4 natural gisui in stock.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tokoname-Shud ... 7675.l2557

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tokoname-Shud ... 7675.l2557

And a couple of others not listed. Just message them and say you want to buy.

Sigh! This one is a favorite:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Tokoname-Shudei ... 28049b8621

Should also be on "Wish it were my teaware..."

[bryan_drinks_tea]

Ordered a new kyusu. Ushirode pot by Maekawa Junzo. From Artistic Nippon.

I've had this teapot for a week now, and I love it. I've been brewing hon Yama sencha from thés du Japon and it's fantastic. The new pot can't handle fuka though, so I guess I'll have to get one for fuka too.

[Ferg]

Enjoying some of Xell's Yame fukamushi sencha botan in my new kyusu, Shimizu Ken 160ml sado mumyoi clay oxidation teapot, from Alex! First cup of tea at the new place (and first time using both tea and pot). The feel of the clay is wonderful, especially the handle. Pour is excellent as well. The tea is herbaceous (not sure how else to describe it). Very vegetal and strong upfront. I need to experiment with my other kyusu before being able to determine what effect the clay has upon the tea itself. I really enjoyed the shincha and think I can get used to making this part of the daily routine. Thanks to both of you for making this tea session happen!

TC Pic 1 Medium.JPG

[Alex]

Very nice! enjoy her!

[Frisbeehead]

Received my first kyusu today! I got it from Artistic Nippon. I bought it on Tuesday, and it came in the mail today (I'm in Ohio USA)...I couldn't believe they shipped it that fast!

I love it.

http://imgur.com/grs1gnt

Here's a better shot of the coloring (with flash) :

http://imgur.com/QmjqslN

Sorry for the URLs instead of direct pictures, they won't upload because they're too big I think. I took them with my iPhone. How do you guys go about posting pictures you took with your phone?

Anyway I am still waiting on an order of shincha from O-Cha to arrive, so I brewed up some silver needle in it. It worked well (although it was my first time ever trying silver needle so I had nothing to compare it to unfortunately). Can't wait to try the sencha with it!

[JRS22]

That looks like my first pot. It's a good start.

With Imgur, I do as follows:
Get embed code
Change size from original to medium
Choose BBCcode

Then I paste that into the post.

[debunix]

Lovely pot that looks ready for any tea.

[Frisbeehead]

I do have one question:

Do these teapots season at all? The clay seems to be unglazed, but high-fired. I've never heard of kyusu seasoning so I would assume no. But the clay almost seems like it would absorb something. Thoughts?

I have read on Hojo about their Nosaka and Mumyoi pots imparting minerals and having an effect on the tea. After reading a little about this here on this forum, though, there seems to be a lot of conjecture and differing opinions.

I'm not really concerned about it that much, as I'm just going to use it for shincha mostly, and maybe a little gyokuro and white tea. No darker teas though. But I am curious.

Edit: Concerning care for this new kyusu:

After using it and emptying out the tea leaves, I wash it out with hot water. Is it okay to dry it off with a clean towel afterwards? With yixing pots I know most people let them dry naturally, which is what I've been doing with my first yixing that I got not too long ago. I realize that this kyusu is much different, but I am just interested to see what others do. I figure wiping it off with a towel is just fine.

[Frisbeehead]

That looks like my first pot. It's a good start.

With Imgur, I do as follows:
Get embed code
Change size from original to medium
Choose BBCcode

Then I paste that into the post.

Indeed, I'm very happy with it.

Thanks for that tip, if I need to post any pictures off imgur again I'll do that.

[kyarazen]

yep they do season. especially for shudei

I do have one question:

Do these teapots season at all? The clay seems to be unglazed, but high-fired. I've never heard of kyusu seasoning so I would assume no. But the clay almost seems like it would absorb something. Thoughts?

I have read on Hojo about their Nosaka and Mumyoi pots imparting minerals and having an effect on the tea. After reading a little about this here on this forum, though, there seems to be a lot of conjecture and differing opinions.

I'm not really concerned about it that much, as I'm just going to use it for shincha mostly, and maybe a little gyokuro and white tea. No darker teas though. But I am curious.

Edit: Concerning care for this new kyusu:

After using it and emptying out the tea leaves, I wash it out with hot water. Is it okay to dry it off with a clean towel afterwards? With yixing pots I know most people let them dry naturally, which is what I've been doing with my first yixing that I got not too long ago. I realize that this kyusu is much different, but I am just interested to see what others do. I figure wiping it off with a towel is just fine.

[pizzapotamus]

Don't worry about "seasoning" it at all although like you said it is unglazed so it can pick up flavors from tea and you do want to mind what you brew in it. I stick to just sencah/gyo in mine although the occasional silver needle or the like isn't going to ruin it or anything. Don't go sticking Earl Grey in there though

I give the outside a wipe with a soft cloth after using it but for the insides I'm an air dryer, can't see any harm in toweling the inside though if you felt like it.

[Alex]

For maintenance I just wash out with hot water from the tap to get leaves out. Like fill and dump 3 times and then while the pot is still warm pour boiling water in and dump that and then wipe outside before putting back on the shelf with the lid next to it.