Hatin the fact

[spot52]

I religiously used and swore by one of these...


Then I got the sampler from dens and I was ready to hate one of these...

I even broke the handle the first time I used it. I hated the design and was ready to give it away as a present. But because it was broken I resolved to use it.

And now it has become my clutch pot. I swear the taste is different, and I like it more. Just goes to show ya...


Cheers!

[Chip]

Kyusu-s for the win!!!

My older ones have had just about every tea imaginable brewed in them.

I have had more than my share of crippled kyusu over the years that remained in service well beyond the call of duty.

[Oni]

Teafriend, did you pourpousely torture that defenseless teapot? That looks like a hate crime, I own one of those black hohryu kyusu for more than a year, and it has been a faithful friend to me, we had lots of great sencha, until his evil little brother the banko kyusu seduced me. I own various teaware, I collect teaware for more than 4 years now, I never damaged one of them, I gave the old one as present to people, I believe if you respect the work of the artist and you like it (otherwise don`t even buy), you cannot damage it.

[edkrueger]

Oni, can you tell me more about the Banko one?

[spot52]

Teafriend, did you pourpousely torture that defenseless teapot? That looks like a hate crime, I own one of those black hohryu kyusu for more than a year, and it has been a faithful friend to me, we had lots of great sencha, until his evil little brother the banko kyusu seduced me. I own various teaware, I collect teaware for more than 4 years now, I never damaged one of them, I gave the old one as present to people, I believe if you respect the work of the artist and you like it (otherwise don`t even buy), you cannot damage it.

Actually, I dropped it in the sink. I was rinsing out the last straggling spent leaves and the little booger slipped out of my hand. The handle lost a piece or two, but they were glued back into place. It is the first piece of teaware that I have ever broken. But it still works!
Cheers!

[Chip]

I own 3 with tiny "chip"ped spouts. It pained me each time it happened. I have used them long and hard. Just tiny momentary lapses in concentration I guess. Or maybe I am a klutz. Either way, accidents do happen, sometimes more to some people than others.

This does not mean I love them less or disrespect the artist/craftsperson. It is life, impermanent.

[Oni]

I like the banko beacause of its size, 250 ml, the hohryu was 380, never used it full, we drink tea 3 person at a time, so the banko makes 200-220 ml of tea and it is used to the rim at full potential, and it fills 3 cups 70 ml each, and it retains the aroma of tea super fast, after a pack you can clearly smell it, it has a stange purple shine, and it brews stronger and sweeter tea, hojo says that it steals a bit of aroma and gives more taste, and I read somewhere that yixing purple clay pots do the same, and that mumyoi or zhu ni clay doesn`t steal aroma and enchaces the taste but not at the extent of purple clay, and that the tetsubins effects are far greater than the purple clay`s, but these are either too nuanced diffrences, or too sci fi for me.

[Tead Off]

Oni, not sci-fi to me. It's the iron content that distinguishes the pots you mention. The banko pot I own continues to knock the socks off my wife and myself. I have not had better tasting tea than what comes out of this pot. Plenty of aroma, too. A great find at a great price. Hats off to Hojo who has explained the differences of equipment rather well.

[Oni]

This is the strange purple shine that I noticed.

[Tead Off]

That's what makes the tea taste so good.