Yeah, what Chip said.
I have the O-cha pot...it is awesome...the swing type screen is not a basket...it is
like a suspended low-hanging bridge. It goes very close to the bottom of the pot...the leaves have the whole volume of the pot to expand. The pour is great and the leaves don't sit in any left over water.
Mmmmm, maybe I'll go use this sweet little teapot right now!
Later,
Dreamer
Got my kyusu in the mail today! 
Decided to break it in with some Yutaka Midori from O-cha. Probably not the best tea for the sesame filter but it came out great. I'm not a tea expert so I can't pick out any differences in flavor but the tea is a little smoother than with my coffee press. This is probably due to a more consistent temperature or the clay itself. It is definitely a lot smaller in person too. I opened it up and was thinking there was no way it would hold a cup of tea. To my surprise it actually held a little more than a cup. I figured they wouldn't lie about it being 10oz, but it sure is deceiving. I do have a couple of questions. If I pour it with my fingers supporting the bottom it kind of burns the hell out of my fingers, so what is the best way to hold it when you pour? Also how do I clean this thing out? The filter keeps the tea leaves from getting out
Here are a few pics:
Decided to break it in with some Yutaka Midori from O-cha. Probably not the best tea for the sesame filter but it came out great. I'm not a tea expert so I can't pick out any differences in flavor but the tea is a little smoother than with my coffee press. This is probably due to a more consistent temperature or the clay itself. It is definitely a lot smaller in person too. I opened it up and was thinking there was no way it would hold a cup of tea. To my surprise it actually held a little more than a cup. I figured they wouldn't lie about it being 10oz, but it sure is deceiving. I do have a couple of questions. If I pour it with my fingers supporting the bottom it kind of burns the hell out of my fingers, so what is the best way to hold it when you pour? Also how do I clean this thing out? The filter keeps the tea leaves from getting out
Here are a few pics:
Apr 23rd, '09, 14:51
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well..i dont think you really *need* to support the bottom as long as you have a hold of the side handle. i usually have one finger or thumb holding the lid knob to ensure the lid doesnt slide off when i tilt it all the way. as for the cleaning out i just dump my leaves into my compost bin by my sink ( or the trash) and rinse and swirl -swoosh - splash out the rest with hot water to get the remainder down into the garbage disposal ( or sink strainer)
Apr 23rd, '09, 15:23
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You can see one method of holding the kyuusu in this Rahmens video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54iG6deEaW0&
Although bear in mind that in most other respects, it is not entirely reliable
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54iG6deEaW0&
Although bear in mind that in most other respects, it is not entirely reliable
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"Never trust a man who, when left alone in a room with a tea cosy, doesn't try it on."
- Billy Connolly
The two hand method looks more reliable. Two things about that video (these might be why you said the other aspects were not so reliable). First I thought you were not supposed to mix around the tea. Second I don't think she got enough tea leaves into her kyusuchamekke wrote:You can see one method of holding the kyuusu in this Rahmens video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54iG6deEaW0&
Although bear in mind that in most other respects, it is not entirely reliable
Apr 23rd, '09, 16:23
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Ask and you shall receive! How to hold a Kyusu with photos.
That actually looks about right for leaf volume for Yutaka Midori.
Also, I was a skeptic, however the sasame filter works fine for fukamushi type sencha as long as you do not rush the pour, and then pour hot water for your next steep over the screen to clear it. I will often do a quick tip with the a finger over the spout to clear it as well.
That actually looks about right for leaf volume for Yutaka Midori.
Also, I was a skeptic, however the sasame filter works fine for fukamushi type sencha as long as you do not rush the pour, and then pour hot water for your next steep over the screen to clear it. I will often do a quick tip with the a finger over the spout to clear it as well.
Apr 23rd, '09, 16:27
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Apr 23rd, '09, 16:32
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Yeah, the video is a riot. I remember when this was first posted on TC or the "other forum," it was taken quite seriously by some posters. Apr 23rd, '09, 17:12
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The comedy duo The Rahmens has done a whole series of "instructional" videos. Some kind soul added English subtitles to the one about sushi. The humour might be a little more obvious with that one.
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"Never trust a man who, when left alone in a room with a tea cosy, doesn't try it on."
- Billy Connolly
"Never trust a man who, when left alone in a room with a tea cosy, doesn't try it on."
- Billy Connolly
Apr 24th, '09, 11:03
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YupOni wrote:That video is a mockery, I read somwehre that the girl says in japanese, that after brewing you can relax with a cup of coffee.
My favourite part is when she holds up the chasen (bamboo whisk), and the narration says something like, "No one knows what this is used for. It's a mystery."______________________
"Never trust a man who, when left alone in a room with a tea cosy, doesn't try it on."
- Billy Connolly
"Never trust a man who, when left alone in a room with a tea cosy, doesn't try it on."
- Billy Connolly
So I was using my kyusu for the second time today and noticed that after I preheat my pot and the water evaporates that once I put the tea into the pot it gives off an excellent aroma. I swirled the leaves around in the pot for a while and enjoyed the smell while my water finished cooling down. I then made my tea and to my surprise it come out tasting very bitter. Was not to happy with the outcome at all. Is it possible that I actually cooked the leaves a little or heated them up too much in the pot and this resulted in a bitter cup of tea? After some boiling water the kyusu is quite hot so I'm not sure if this is possible. I brewed some Yutaka Midori again as I always do at 165F for 45 seconds. I decided to try some gyokuro just in case because it is usually really smooth for me. Got the pot really warm and swirled the leaves around to enjoy the aroma (excellent again!). Used yame gyokuro from o-cha and brewed 140F for 2 minutes. Wow, this was actually kind of bitter as well. I'm pretty convinced that this is a bad thing to do now but want to see if I'm just crazy.
Apr 24th, '09, 16:09
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The aroma of warming YM leaf in a kyusu is one of my fave things! But I do allow the kyusu to cool a bit before putting the leaf in, and the leaf is in maybe 10-20 seconds before the water is added.thirtysixbelow wrote:So I was using my kyusu for the second time today and noticed that after I preheat my pot and the water evaporates that once I put the tea into the pot it gives off an excellent aroma. I swirled the leaves around in the pot for a while and enjoyed the smell while my water finished cooling down. I then made my tea and to my surprise it come out tasting very bitter. Was not to happy with the outcome at all. Is it possible that I actually cooked the leaves a little or heated them up too much in the pot and this resulted in a bitter cup of tea? After some boiling water the kyusu is quite hot so I'm not sure if this is possible. I brewed some Yutaka Midori again as I always do at 165F for 45 seconds. I decided to try some gyokuro just in case because it is usually really smooth for me. Got the pot really warm and swirled the leaves around to enjoy the aroma (excellent again!). Used yame gyokuro from o-cha and brewed 140F for 2 minutes. Wow, this was actually kind of bitter as well. I'm pretty convinced that this is a bad thing to do now but want to see if I'm just crazy.
A lot of things could have gone wrong, or a combination of things. Depending on how meticulous you are about parameters, a slight variation in amount of leaf (technically the weight), the water temp, how long you brew, etc.
But don't give up on smelling the warming leaf, just don't cook it.
blah blah blah SENCHA blah blah blah!!!
Mmmm maybe just the diagram on their site was bad...I didn't notice any photos showing the screen system clearly.Dreamer wrote:Yeah, what Chip said.
I have the O-cha pot...it is awesome...the swing type screen is not a basket...it is
like a suspended low-hanging bridge. It goes very close to the bottom of the pot...the leaves have the whole volume of the pot to expand. The pour is great and the leaves don't sit in any left over water.
Mmmmm, maybe I'll go use this sweet little teapot right now!
Later,
Dreamer
Apr 24th, '09, 16:22
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The diagrams do tend to exagerate the fact that the leaf is not on the bottom of the kyusu. I can see why you thought as you did.entropyembrace wrote:Mmmm maybe just the diagram on their site was bad...I didn't notice any photos showing the screen system clearly.Dreamer wrote:Yeah, what Chip said.
I have the O-cha pot...it is awesome...the swing type screen is not a basket...it is
like a suspended low-hanging bridge. It goes very close to the bottom of the pot...the leaves have the whole volume of the pot to expand. The pour is great and the leaves don't sit in any left over water.
Mmmmm, maybe I'll go use this sweet little teapot right now!
Later,
Dreamer
blah blah blah SENCHA blah blah blah!!!