I'm grateful for the welcome, and thanks reminding me to explore old threads! I've already learned so much by doing so; the amount of accumulated information here is fantastic even though the forum is only a few years old. I'd actually looked around a bit and found @swordofmytriumph's experiments with his Nosaka some time ago before writing to Hojo and felt encouraged; really looking forward to doing some exploring of my own. Hopefully he'll be back in the office soon! Going to do so more browsing at your suggestion in the meantimeVictoria wrote: ↑Sat Jun 20, 2020 7:05 pmWelcome to TeaForum archimon. Hojo’s teas and teaware are overall are top quality. If you order a kyusu it makes sense to add some tea as well. I’ve sampled a few gyokuro that we’re gifted over the years, all were high quality. I haven’t tried any of his oolong or Darjeeling. Regarding Nosaka clay kyusu and Watanabe Tozo, you can search here on TeaForum, there are many threads and posts regarding both. I have a Shimizu Ken Nosaka kyusu without Namamigaki from Hojo. It’s a great kyusu for both Japanese greens and greener high mountain oolong. I prefer the textural quality of Nosaka clay without Namamigaki, the shinier smoother one I have with Namamigaki is great, it just doesn’t give me the same vibe.
Glad to hear that you're a fan of Hojo's teas and the Nosaka, too. I'll try to report back once I've gotten the tea from Hojo; looking forward to some exploration over the next few months (especially since I won't be able to head to Taiwan as planned... ).