Ode to the Kyusu

[Stentor]

He said he does this from time to time to keep it clean and to remove "staining" from brewing different kinds of tea in the same kyusu, e.g. houjicha and sencha.
Maybe it gives the kyusu a neutral aroma again. Maybe it'll actually remove tea stains?
I guess we are much more afraid of damaging our precious teaware than the Japanese are.
If I had an old Tokoname kyusu I'd give it a shot but the two that I have are still very much in use and have only been used for sencha anyway.

[Tead Off]

He said he does this from time to time to keep it clean and to remove "staining" from brewing different kinds of tea in the same kyusu, e.g. houjicha and sencha.
Maybe it gives the kyusu a neutral aroma again. Maybe it'll actually remove tea stains?
I guess we are much more afraid of damaging our precious teaware than the Japanese are.
If I had an old Tokoname kyusu I'd give it a shot but the two that I have are still very much in use and have only been used for sencha anyway.

Most people are interested in getting their teapots seasoned by building up residue/oils from their tea. This helps to give the brew a better flavor in most cases. Why would you want to take this away from a teapot unless there was something amiss or you wanted to clean out an older, unknown pot that you bought somewhere and wanted to recondition. That's a lot of time invested to start from scratch again.

[Stentor]

Most people are interested in getting their teapots seasoned by building up residue/oils from their tea. This helps to give the brew a better flavor in most cases. Why would you want to take this away from a teapot unless there was something amiss or you wanted to clean out an older, unknown pot that you bought somewhere and wanted to recondition. That's a lot of time invested to start from scratch again.

Yes, I have been doing the same thing with my Tokoname teapots, strictly sencha from the start.
What it might be useful for is if you have one teapot that you don't want to dedicate to one type of tea but use as a "multi purpose" teapot instead.
Such a pot you would need to stay as neutral as possible. I was just wondering if this could be achieved by soaking it in a baking soda solution from time to time. I wasn't suggesting to do it with every teapot

[rdl]

Have any of you ever tried soaking your Tokoname kyusu in a solution of luke warm water and baking soda for a thorough cleaning? I got this tip from AN and was wondering if any of you have experience with it.

stentor,
i do this every so often. the apocryphal stories of seasoned pots, as well as real discussion, in my knowledge, are always chinese. not japanese. i prefer to clean my pot because sencha tea is so fresh and (i'm looking for the right word) pasty after being steeped. it adheres to the tea pot unlike other teas. i see it not building up a patina, but a layer of organic tea that can turn bad. i've used nothing but a hot water rinse for my oolong unglazed pots, but in my opinion sencha is different. you wrote AN suggests this; it would be interesting to see what other teaware merchants are saying.

[iannon]

The One Nerikome to Rule them all!

[Tead Off]

Have any of you ever tried soaking your Tokoname kyusu in a solution of luke warm water and baking soda for a thorough cleaning? I got this tip from AN and was wondering if any of you have experience with it.

stentor,
i do this every so often. the apocryphal stories of seasoned pots, as well as real discussion, in my knowledge, are always chinese. not japanese. i prefer to clean my pot because sencha tea is so fresh and (i'm looking for the right word) pasty after being steeped. it adheres to the tea pot unlike other teas. i see it not building up a patina, but a layer of organic tea that can turn bad. i've used nothing but a hot water rinse for my oolong unglazed pots, but in my opinion sencha is different. you wrote AN suggests this; it would be interesting to see what other teaware merchants are saying.

I think it's the same principle at work whether it's Chinese or Japanese tea. Both types build up a residue. I don't see how they turn 'bad' unless mold or some other problem develops from not rinsing with very hot water and allowing to dry properly. I have never had this problem with any unglazed Chinese or Japanese teapot. I think if one wanted to use a single teapot for different types of tea, a glazed or porcelain pot would be the best choice.

[sebpassion]

IMG_22472.jpg (53.51 KiB) Viewed 1204 times

this is my new 8oz gyokko kyusu and one of my mino cups

[chicagopotter]

The One Nerikome to Rule them all!

Looks like yours and chips are siblings...Do you know the maker or where did you get your?

[JustinW]

Teruyuki

I was going for a Hokujo originally, but after seeing this one I fell in love.

My first real kyusu. The one I've been using is the dark green Momiji one that's pretty common. It made an excellent first pot, but the difference compared to the Teruyuki is amazing.

As far as the brew goes, I found that it dulled the aroma a bit, but it improved the mouthfeel, and enriched the flavors.

It's a beautiful pot.

Justin

[exquisite]

Teruyuki became special for me, nowadays I only pull mine out for gyo:

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ter2.JPG (2.59 KiB) Viewed 1154 times

ter3.JPG (3.24 KiB) Viewed 1154 times

[exquisite]

ter4.JPG (3.2 KiB) Viewed 1152 times

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ter6.JPG (3.28 KiB) Viewed 1152 times

[Stentor]

this is my new 8oz gyokko kyusu and one of my mino cups

The HUGE lid is awesome. Where did you get it if you don't mind my asking?

[rdl]

Have any of you ever tried soaking your Tokoname kyusu in a solution of luke warm water and baking soda for a thorough cleaning? I got this tip from AN and was wondering if any of you have experience with it.

stentor,
i do this every so often. the apocryphal stories of seasoned pots, as well as real discussion, in my knowledge, are always chinese. not japanese. i prefer to clean my pot because sencha tea is so fresh and (i'm looking for the right word) pasty after being steeped. it adheres to the tea pot unlike other teas. i see it not building up a patina, but a layer of organic tea that can turn bad. i've used nothing but a hot water rinse for my oolong unglazed pots, but in my opinion sencha is different. you wrote AN suggests this; it would be interesting to see what other teaware merchants are saying.

I think it's the same principle at work whether it's Chinese or Japanese tea. Both types build up a residue. I don't see how they turn 'bad' unless mold or some other problem develops from not rinsing with very hot water and allowing to dry properly. I have never had this problem with any unglazed Chinese or Japanese teapot. I think if one wanted to use a single teapot for different types of tea, a glazed or porcelain pot would be the best choice.

Tead Off,
i am not suggesting anyone change their habits - if what is working works, by all means continue. my only two thoughts to your comments are, first, if the tea pot has a metal filter, that traps lots of tea residue in it that hot water won't wash away (of course it is possible just to remove it to clean, although it will loose it's shape), and second, if one tries a baking soda soaking and see the results of what is cleaned from the tea pot, well, that was enough to convince me.
i fully agree with your advice: "if one wanted to use a single teapot for different types of tea, a glazed or porcelain pot would be the best choice."

[el gringo]

Thought I'd post a pic of my first kyusu



Its only a cheapish pot from O-Cha, but I'm very pleased with it. It pours really well and is so much easier to use than my little glass teapot.

[AdamMY]

Thought I'd post a pic of my first kyusu



Its only a cheapish pot from O-Cha, but I'm very pleased with it. It pours really well and is so much easier to use than my little glass teapot.

Looks great El Gringo!