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Re: Gaiwan
Posted: Fri Oct 16, 2020 9:34 am
by OCTO
@LeoFox
Getting your fingers burnt by a gaiwan is like getting hot oil burns while you're cooking... it comes with the territory and will greatly reduce as you keep on practicing and perfecting your skills. Wrist work, finger grip and lid control... all comes into play when you practice with your gaiwan. Some designs are easier to handle, some more challenging. All can be mastered with practice. My wife's gaiwan comes with easy handles that are wrapped in thread. Totally reducing the chances of getting burnt to zero... hahahaha.... But it kinda takes away the fun in the entire learning process.
- My wife's Gaiwan
- IMG_8058.jpg (107.68 KiB) Viewed 9687 times
- When I'm in the mood for a full tasting set...
- IMG_8421.jpg (207.31 KiB) Viewed 9687 times
Re: Gaiwan
Posted: Fri Oct 16, 2020 10:01 am
by StoneLadle
Gaiwan technique is like laser tag.. pew pew... It's subtle
Re: Gaiwan
Posted: Fri Oct 16, 2020 12:41 pm
by klepto
OCTO wrote: ↑Fri Oct 16, 2020 9:34 am
Getting your fingers burnt by a gaiwan is like getting hot oil burns while you're cooking... it comes with the territory and will greatly reduce as you keep on practicing and perfecting your skills.
Very true, at one point in time I couldn't even drink tea right after I poured it from the gaiwan also recently I had a misstep with a cup filled with boiling tea and spilled some of it on my leg and wasn't much bothered by it.
Taking your lumps while getting experience will be beneficial later also it is important to pick the right gaiwan too. A gaiwan not so eggshell thin that just touching the flared out part burns your hands and a gaiwan not so thick that it turns your tea into burned spinach soup.
Re: Gaiwan
Posted: Fri Oct 16, 2020 3:06 pm
by Noonie
StoneLadle wrote: ↑Fri Oct 16, 2020 10:01 am
Gaiwan technique is like laser tag.. pew pew... It's subtle
Re: Gaiwan
Posted: Sat Oct 17, 2020 11:13 am
by debunix
- Gaiwan shapes & burnt fingers.jpg (109.16 KiB) Viewed 9599 times
I find my finger get scorched when either or both A and B are too small. A narrow rim beyond the gaiwan lid (A too small) , even if the lid fit is low inside the rim, isn't enough distance for my sometimes shaky fingers. Similarly, if the lid fit is shallow inside the rim (B too small), even a wide flare doesn't prevent scorching. I like to see both A and B be generous, so the tea level (the red scalloped line) stays away from my fingers as I manipulate the gaiwan.
I LOVE this little gaiwan from Shawn McGuire (formerly Greenwood Studios, now
Great Wheel Studio on Etsy), because the flare is both wide and the lid set deep below the rim. PERFECT. A and B are both about 1 cm.
Plus it is gorgeous and goes wonderfully with these cups, better than the gaiwan that I bought at the same time, which has a reasonably deep B but was a bit too narrow in A, and often scorched my fingers. But it had a saucer and I worked out how to use it comfortably before it sadly was shattered (one of many victims of a tiled kitchen floor, never again!).
I have a bunch of these cheap ($4.99) gaiwans purchased at my local brick n' mortar shop in Chinatown, where A & B are more like 7mm, but using the grip I show here, making use of the saucer, I rarely scorch my fingers. Using them without the saucer, sometimes I get a scorch.
Many of the lovely shapely and aesthetically exciting gaiwans I see posted here and elsewhere look like A and B are both quite small, and it is that which makes me distrust them for my fingers. It obviously depends on the actual size of the gaiwan, and a larger one may have a proportionally smaller rim whose actual measurements are quite sufficient. I mostly use my inexpensive gaiwans for comparative tasting sessions, where the uniformity of their mass-produced design is more important than the details of their construction, but I am wary of buying any finer and artisanal pieces with such small rims, because I know I won't use them as much as Shawn's little gem.
Your finger-scorch tolerances and preferred minimum A and B may vary, of course!
Re: Gaiwan
Posted: Sat Oct 17, 2020 11:22 am
by StoneLadle
With all that scorching you should be scorch proof by now....
I'm so impressed!
I've been burnt a few times too, gaiwan, pot, kettle, whatever
Re: Gaiwan
Posted: Sat Oct 17, 2020 11:33 am
by debunix
It took me a lot of practice and a succession of inexpensive ('tuition') gaiwans to figure out what worked best for me. I was lucky to have my local shop easy at hand and be able to pay under $10 for a series of them before I started looking at the finer (and pricier) versions.
Re: Gaiwan
Posted: Sat Oct 17, 2020 11:36 am
by StoneLadle
I think it comes down to using tendons rather than fine muscle and a certain kind of Spiderman type finger splaying gaiwan rim gripping thing...
And the freaking lid oh for heaven's sake don't go there it's another nightmare scenario...
And to sniff or not to sniff...
Re: Gaiwan
Posted: Sat Oct 17, 2020 12:08 pm
by Teas We Like
debunix wrote: ↑Sat Oct 17, 2020 11:13 am
I find my finger get scorched when either or both A and B are too small. A narrow rim beyond the gaiwan lid (A too small) , even if the lid fit is low inside the rim, isn't enough distance for my sometimes shaky fingers. Similarly, if the lid fit is shallow inside the rim (B too small), even a wide flare doesn't prevent scorching. I like to see both A and B be generous, so the tea level (the red scalloped line) stays away from my fingers as I manipulate the gaiwan.
I LOVE this little gaiwan from Shawn McGuire (formerly Greenwood Studios, now
Great Wheel Studio on Etsy), because the flare is both wide and the lid set deep below the rim. PERFECT. A and B are both about 1 cm.
Plus it is gorgeous and goes wonderfully with these cups, better than the gaiwan that I bought at the same time, which has a reasonably deep B but was a bit too narrow in A, and often scorched my fingers. But it had a saucer and I worked out how to use it comfortably before it sadly was shattered (one of many victims of a tiled kitchen floor, never again!).
I have a bunch of these cheap ($4.99) gaiwans purchased at my local brick n' mortar shop in Chinatown, where A & B are more like 7mm, but using the grip I show here, making use of the saucer, I rarely scorch my fingers. Using them without the saucer, sometimes I get a scorch.
Many of the lovely shapely and aesthetically exciting gaiwans I see posted here and elsewhere look like A and B are both quite small, and it is that which makes me distrust them for my fingers. It obviously depends on the actual size of the gaiwan, and a larger one may have a proportionally smaller rim whose actual measurements are quite sufficient. I mostly use my inexpensive gaiwans for comparative tasting sessions, where the uniformity of their mass-produced design is more important than the details of their construction, but I am wary of buying any finer and artisanal pieces with such small rims, because I know I won't use them as much as Shawn's little gem.
Your finger-scorch tolerances and preferred minimum A and B may vary, of course!
Good discussion, one thing I would add is that thickness/thinness is a major factor for burnt fingers. Thick gaiwans are substantially more likely to scorch fingers than thin gaiwans.
Re: Gaiwan
Posted: Sat Oct 17, 2020 12:52 pm
by debunix
Teas We Like wrote: ↑Sat Oct 17, 2020 12:08 pm
thickness/thinness is a major factor for burnt fingers. Thick gaiwans are substantially more likely to scorch fingers than thin gaiwans.
This depends: a thick gaiwan used with boiling water for a flash infusion may not heat up enough to scorch fingers; but used for several such infusions in rapid succession, will hold in the heat and risk a scorching. Trying to prepare enough tea to share with colleagues up and down the hallway or take to clinic in my thermos (e.g., a pint to a liter at a time), the thinnest can keep those edges a bit cooler than the thickest. But then I started more often tossing the leaves into the thermos, which is lazy but eliminates the scorched fingers.
Re: Gaiwan
Posted: Sun Oct 18, 2020 1:40 am
by Iizuki
The easy solution is to get a big enough gaiwan so you don't have to fill it to the brim. I use a 140ml gaiwan to do 60ml brews with no burns whatsoever. When brewing solo, that is.
Re: Gaiwan
Posted: Sun Oct 18, 2020 6:38 am
by LeoFox
debunix wrote: ↑Sat Oct 17, 2020 11:13 am
I find my finger get scorched when either or both A and B are too small. A narrow rim beyond the gaiwan lid (A too small) , even if the lid fit is low inside the rim, isn't enough distance for my sometimes shaky fingers. Similarly, if the lid fit is shallow inside the rim (B too small), even a wide flare doesn't prevent scorching. I like to see both A and B be generous, so the tea level (the red scalloped line) stays away from my fingers as I manipulate the gaiwan.
I LOVE this little gaiwan from Shawn McGuire (formerly Greenwood Studios, now
Great Wheel Studio on Etsy), because the flare is both wide and the lid set deep below the rim. PERFECT. A and B are both about 1 cm.
Plus it is gorgeous and goes wonderfully with these cups, better than the gaiwan that I bought at the same time, which has a reasonably deep B but was a bit too narrow in A, and often scorched my fingers. But it had a saucer and I worked out how to use it comfortably before it sadly was shattered (one of many victims of a tiled kitchen floor, never again!).
I have a bunch of these cheap ($4.99) gaiwans purchased at my local brick n' mortar shop in Chinatown, where A & B are more like 7mm, but using the grip I show here, making use of the saucer, I rarely scorch my fingers. Using them without the saucer, sometimes I get a scorch.
Many of the lovely shapely and aesthetically exciting gaiwans I see posted here and elsewhere look like A and B are both quite small, and it is that which makes me distrust them for my fingers. It obviously depends on the actual size of the gaiwan, and a larger one may have a proportionally smaller rim whose actual measurements are quite sufficient. I mostly use my inexpensive gaiwans for comparative tasting sessions, where the uniformity of their mass-produced design is more important than the details of their construction, but I am wary of buying any finer and artisanal pieces with such small rims, because I know I won't use them as much as Shawn's little gem.
Your finger-scorch tolerances and preferred minimum A and B may vary, of course!
Wow, this is a great tutorial!
Re: Gaiwan
Posted: Sun Oct 18, 2020 9:18 am
by debunix
Iizuki wrote: ↑Sun Oct 18, 2020 1:40 am
The easy solution is to get a big enough gaiwan so you don't have to fill it to the brim. I use a 140ml gaiwan to do 60ml brews with no burns whatsoever. When brewing solo, that is.
Excellent point. I have tried to do this with some of my pots--fill them partway for smaller sessions--but I rarely manage to stop pouring at the right moment--my pouring autopilot makes this harder than it should be. My largest gaiwans hold about 70-80 mL to the lid-line, and I usually want them full each infusion.
Re: Gaiwan
Posted: Sun Oct 18, 2020 12:53 pm
by klepto
Teaswelike make a really good gaiwan, and my only complaint is when I death grip it the edge digs into my hand. It would be very hard to burn yourself with their gaiwan.
Re: Gaiwan
Posted: Sun Oct 18, 2020 2:45 pm
by LeoFox
klepto wrote: ↑Sun Oct 18, 2020 12:53 pm
Teaswelike make a really good gaiwan, and my only complaint is when I death grip it the edge digs into my hand. It would be very hard to burn yourself with their gaiwan.
How does it compare to your little horseshoe from mud and leaves?