Teaware immigration!

[tortoise]

I ordered my first true kyusu this past weekend from AN, and it just completed it's overnight flight from Japan and is now in customs in Chicago. So fun to track a package you are anticipating, no?

I also got an entry level hagi yunomi, so they can keep each other company.

I ended up going with this hokujo over a very nice banko pot just because I really liked the shape. There will be time enough for a banko...or two.

Just gettin his papers straight in Chicago...

hokujosujihiki.jpg (16.16 KiB) Viewed 973 times

[Victoria]

Great! Congratulations!

[Chip]

I really like the round ball shapes. So many of kyusu are either tall or flatter. I always take a longer look at the more ball shaped.

I am sure this one will bring you much pleasure. If Hokujo kyusu-s were not so $, I would have purchased a bunch of them.

[tortoise]

I really like the round ball shapes. So many of kyusu are either tall or flatter. I always take a longer look at the more ball shaped.

I am sure this one will bring you much pleasure. If Hokujo kyusu-s were not so $, I would have purchased a bunch of them.

Well, a) it was my birthday present, so I could justify a nicer one.
b) normally I ask for a smoking pipe for my birthday, since I am a pipe smoker. Needless to say, my wife was more than happy to comply with my teapot request. For those of you with shared bank accounts, it helps to have a vice you can use for leverage. Ask first for something your significant other would rather not enable, then say, "well, ok, then how about this teapot?"
c) this kyusu was not as expensive as others by hokujo on the same site.

It will probably be a bit of trouble to get the spent leaves out, but it's a looker. Full report to follow.

[Chip]

Yes, some round ones have small openings making it harder to clean, but really not bad. It is actually a little harder to get the leaf in some of them, but yours looks plenty large.

We will anxiously await a full report.

[britt]

I ordered my first true kyusu this past weekend from AN, and it just completed it's overnight flight from Japan and is now in customs in Chicago. So fun to track a package you are anticipating, no?

I also got an entry level hagi yunomi, so they can keep each other company.

I ended up going with this hokujo over a very nice banko pot just because I really liked the shape. There will be time enough for a banko...or two.

hokujosujihiki.jpg

Not only is Hokujo a great choice for a kyusu, this particular one (sujihiki) is as well. I have had this one for a while now and it is one of the better kyusu, and one of the better Hokujo's, that I own.

One reason it is cheaper than his others is that it doesn't come in a wooden box. This probably saves $20 or more off the final price. I recently put mine in storage not because there was anything wrong with it, but because I had about two dozen kyusu, one third of them were Hokujo, and I needed some space. This one is fairly large at 12 ounces, so I kept out the smaller ones and stored this one. I think you'll be very happy with it. I've found this one is less likely to clog than some of the other shapes, but in general I've found the Hokujo's clog less than many other artist's kyusu when brewing deep-steamed sencha. Remember with this type of tea, and when using a kyusu with a clay sasame filter, to pour slowly and it should work well. I used my sujihiki with deep-steamed sencha and don't recall having any trouble.

[tortoise]

Thanks for the compliments and endorsement, Britt. That is encouraging because I haven't owned one before. I just kept coming back to it for shape and size. I'll be breaking it in with kaoru supreme YM and warashima asamushi, so I'll see both ends of the spectrum.

[Chip]

I suspect Britt has more packed away than most of us have out!

[britt]

Thanks for the compliments and endorsement, Britt. That is encouraging because I haven't owned one before. I just kept coming back to it for shape and size. I'll be breaking it in with kaoru supreme YM and warashima asamushi, so I'll see both ends of the spectrum.

YM is also a great choice for a sencha! Probably my all-time favorite.

[britt]

I suspect Britt has more packed away than most of us have out!

What I failed to admit was that I needed to reclaim some storage space for newly purchased teaware! When I first got into this habit I thought you just bought one pot and a bunch of tea and that was it. Little did I know back then about how the teaware would cost me far more than the teas!

[tortoise]

It arrived today and it's rad. Amazing how tokoname changes the smell and flavor somewhat. Deeper, thicker. I was amazed at how light the thing is. I wonder how many sessions it will take before my hand stops nervously quaking as a poor from it?

The hagi yunomi was a fun experience too. That mineral taste, the weeping...so poetic.

[Chip]

It arrived today and it's rad. Amazing how tokoname changes the smell and flavor somewhat. Deeper, thicker. I was amazed at how light the thing is. I wonder how many sessions it will take before my hand stops nervously quaking as a pour from it?

The hagi yunomi was a fun experience too. That mineral taste, the weeping...so poetic.

Ha, the nervousness of a new kyusu! I think we all know the feeling. Think of it as an extension of your arm, like a TeaBorg! BUT always pay attention, it is those little lapses in concentration when a lid slips and breaks, etc.

Enjoy your first (?) Hagi! Maybe you will want to join us in an upcoming Hagi SO (special offer). Check out the Hagi/OTTI forum of TeaChat!

I suspect Britt has more packed away than most of us have out!

What I failed to admit was that I needed to reclaim some storage space for newly purchased teaware! When I first got into this habit I thought you just bought one pot and a bunch of tea and that was it. Little did I know back then about how the teaware would cost me far more than the teas!

+1!