The unofficial/official HAGI topic!

[Victoria]

[woozl]

Forget the Hagi,
It was 12 F this AM
I wanna be with the palms.
Oh, nice cup btw

[Seeker]

Vic, is that So Cal, or are you on vacation?
Nice cuc!

[Tead Off]

For all you Hagi-lovin' folks, have you seen a Hagi Kensui very often?

Hagi kensui.jpg (45.21 KiB) Viewed 883 times

I just posted it in the Tea Swap section. Sorry for the plug, but, this may be just what someone has been looking for all their lives!

[Victoria]

Vic, is that So Cal, or are you on vacation?
Nice cuc!

I am on Maui and this is part of my Hagi in Paradise segment.

Sorry Woozl! Spent the day at Makena Beach, now I'm having a nice little ham and cheese sandwich on Hawaiian sweet bread, sitting on my lanai, with the cool trade winds blowing and the palm trees swaying, checkin' in on TeaDay and my friends who are chillin'. Literally. Heh.

[Janine]

Ooh Victoria, what a great time to go. I'm in San Fran with a cold and feeling incredibly tired. Sounds like you are having a wonderful time - I'm glad for you to enjoy it! Somewhere the sun is shining It's been a few years since I've been to Maui

[woozl]

Hagi in paradise

[Victoria]

Today's installment: Hagi in Paradise: Makena Beach

[Seeker]

Yay - Hagi in paradise!
Wonderful - wish I was in Maui! My sister and her partner
just got back, and I haven't been in awhile. Love to go again.
May you soak it up thoroughly V, savor it, revel, enjoy.
Cheers.

[kymidwife]

I'm just wondering if anyone has noticed a particular pattern or sequence for how the crackling occurs on their Hagi pieces, and if the pattern/sequence is related to the various glazes? I know that soaking/preheating/temp changes may affect how fast a piece crackles... and I actually love the crackling effect... but I noticed the strangest thing with my new Tebineri San Sai yunomi.

The yunomi is pretty large in volume, so I often only fill it about half-way. I noticed after 2 uses... the crackling has already noticeably begun... BUT... the crackled surfaces were those that were minimally exposed to tea contact! Specifically, I see the greatest crackling near the upper interior closer to the rim... about the top 1/3 of the interior is prominently crackled all the way around... and most of the entire exterior. The bottom 2/3 of the interior has some subtle crackling which gradually diminishes as the eye follows downward, with the very bottom bowl of the cup still a smooth, pristine, essentially uncrackled white glaze. I am so puzzled as to why this sequence is occurring, quite opposite to the progression some of my other pieces have followed. A few photos (not artistic, took them quickly just to illustrate...)

[Victoria]

Wow that is very interesting Sarah, I have not seen that before. Did you give this wan a pretreat only to that level? Or on usage only pre-warm to that level? Otherwise, I have no idea.

[Chip]

I'm starting to realize that my ice splits are way too big for my normal tea routine, i.e. Chinese teas taken out of small cups. Anyway, is Hagi like yixing in that it's one tea type, one hagi? Or am I free to use different kinds of tea in the same hagi?

Sorry we missed your question, M-T.

I tend to stick with one general tea type per Hagi. This was reinforced recently when a Biwa leaker that had not leaked for at least 100 steeps suddenly began to leak again, and when I put just plain hot water into it, it leaked tea.

So, this tells me that it is likely better to stick with one general type.

[Chip]

Thanks for sharing your Hagi vacation photos, Victoria.

That is really unusual crackling, Sarah. I have not seen that before, especially on the outside. Looks dramatic though.

Haven't christened the Sansai Tebineri yet so I cannot share from experience with this particular piece. But this really seems atypical, which I guess is typical for Hagi. I have not seen that effect in any Hagi yet.

[IPT]

I often see that in pieces with the crackled glaze. I'm talking about Chinese pieces. I don't have much experience with the Hagi Ware. I believe it is because the glaze in the bottom stays wet and so doesn't keep adding coat after coat of tea stain, while the upper sections dry quickly and keep adding more to it. That's just my hypothesis. The crackles will even out with time.

As a note; here many people will fill their bowl, cup, or teapot with really strong tea, set it aside and let it evaporate away. It will make darker staining very quickly, but the evaporating tea always molds, so I don't really think it is a good idea. I don't like that quicky route. I kinda take pride in the staining of my pots and cups and don't wish to rush it.

By the way, that's a wonderful Chawan.

[edkrueger]

I'm just wondering if anyone has noticed a particular pattern or sequence for how the crackling occurs on their Hagi pieces, and if the pattern/sequence is related to the various glazes? I know that soaking/preheating/temp changes may affect how fast a piece crackles... and I actually love the crackling effect... but I noticed the strangest thing with my new Tebineri San Sai yunomi.

The yunomi is pretty large in volume, so I often only fill it about half-way. I noticed after 2 uses... the crackling has already noticeably begun... BUT... the crackled surfaces were those that were minimally exposed to tea contact! Specifically, I see the greatest crackling near the upper interior closer to the rim... about the top 1/3 of the interior is prominently crackled all the way around... and most of the entire exterior. The bottom 2/3 of the interior has some subtle crackling which gradually diminishes as the eye follows downward, with the very bottom bowl of the cup still a smooth, pristine, essentially uncrackled white glaze. I am so puzzled as to why this sequence is occurring, quite opposite to the progression some of my other pieces have followed. A few photos (not artistic, took them quickly just to illustrate...)

Wow, that is awesome. I wish I had bought one.