A small water kettle that retains heat?

[Amaikokonut]

So I have a fancy Zojirushi water boiler, and it is by far my favorite and most-used household appliance. But as of now, when I decide to do fancy gongfu tea, I dispense water from the boiler into a preheated 16oz travel mug so I can carry it over to the table where I'm having tea. This is... effective; it keeps the water pretty hot throughout the session, but aesthetically, it's a bit, well, out of place, not to mention has pretty terrible pour.

I would really like to get an actual kettle, ideally with a capacity of 16-24oz, that can still retain heat pretty well. Since I'm not actually boiling the water into it, it doesn't need to be stovetop safe.

Size seems to be my biggest problem though, seems like most water kettles out there are meant for huge stovetop burners and I simply don't need something that cumbersome.

Is cast-iron what I'm looking for? They seem to run in more reasonable sizes, and everything I hear about them says they retain heat pretty well, but I'm not sure if that assumes the whole pot is heated on the stove, which I don't intend to do. Is there such a thing as an insulated kettle?

Any ideas? What do you guys use to hold water for tea sessions?

Thanks

[wyardley]

You could use an insulated thermos (Zojirushi makes one which keeps the water at temperature for quite some time, and has about the quantity you're looking for) thermal carafe. But anything is going to lose heat at some point, especially if part of it is empty.

Also, most thermal carafes don't have as good a pour as a kettle. I do sometimes use a thermos if I want to brew tea outside, especially if I'm brewing something which I know will work well with water that's a bit below boiling temperature.

I usually just use my Zojirushi for hot water drinking or casual tea brewing, but what I do in either case (water boiled on the stove or in the hot water dispenser) is to pour into a kettle which *can* be heated, and then use an alcohol burner or hot plate to re-heat as necessary.

I don't think an insulated device is ideal for the style of brewing you're talking about, because there's not that much control of the water temperature (either up or down) once it's in there.

[MarshalN]

I'd recommend an alcohol burner with your kettle. It's not hot enough to boil anything, but enough to keep things warm. The problem with thermos (and I used one for years like what you're doing now) is that they get lukewarm, and also pours terribly, as you already know.

I think a cheap tetsubin or a cheap ceramic kettle should work.

[tkellyd]

Hello Amaikokonut:

Sounds like you've got a dilemma. It seems to me that if you want temperature-controlled water that the only way that you will get it is by using the Zojirushi directly. There really is no other way (unless you are going to have a thermometer in your makeshift 'fair pitcher'). The temperature is going to diminish any way you look at it after being taken off of/away from, the heat source.

The next best thing would be to take the kettle to tabletop, and I do mean kettle, not cast iron teapot. If you pour boiling water into a cast iron teapot, what you are doing is heating the teapot thereby lowering the water temperature of the water within. That's the problem with cast iron teapots. You can't pre-heat them to adequate temperature.

I recommend purchasing a medium sized tetsubin (as well as a cork placemat from IKEA; they are ideal for protecting your tabletop). It doesn't come with bells, whistles, lights or LCD display but can be aesthetically appealing nonetheless and can only enhance your tea experience.

Best,

- tkellyd

[JP]

I just use a simple thermal carafe. Basically a thermos with a handle and a pour spout. There are many different designs of those.