Ode to the Kyusu

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ferg
Posts: 135
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Location: Cleveland, OH

Wed Feb 08, 2023 10:04 pm

:lol: I actually laughed out loud. Thanks for that @Baisao.
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debunix
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Location: Los Angeles, CA

Thu Feb 09, 2023 7:16 pm

We even have a pets of tea forum topic….right here.

Here is one of my tea quality control inspectors. Sometimes he even samples a leaf or two of the product.

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ferg
Posts: 135
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Location: Cleveland, OH

Thu Feb 09, 2023 8:43 pm

Hello @debunix! Good to hear from you again.

What a gorgeous cat you have there! :) ahem I mean tea inspector! :lol: Looks like he has claimed that spot, as your tea guardian.

And lovely setup! Everything in its proper place. I’ve always enjoyed your photographs over the years.

Wow, I was unaware we ever had a forum dedicated to our pets! I see Mrs. Chip brought it back to life. I’ll enjoy going through it, and perhaps add my own clan.

Thanks for the share! And I look forward to seeing your tea sessions shared with us.
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ferg
Posts: 135
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Location: Cleveland, OH

Sun Feb 12, 2023 4:59 pm

At last, I unboxed the kyusu! :D

I felt it was only right to pick up where I had left off, with a work by Taisuke Shiraiwa. I very much admire this potter’s craft and dedication to traditional kyusu making. This piece was baked in a gas kiln. I was drawn to the reduction on this one in particular, a nice brown, striking a medium between the red and black yohen displayed of others. It looks almost as if a piece of chocolate, with chunks of rihi and red sand scattered throughout.

Shiraiwa san
Shiraiwa san
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First cup of sencha in nearly five years. I had almost forgotten the taste, still lingering in the mouth. This kyusu brewed a wonderful cup! :mrgreen:

sencha at last
sencha at last
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Can you spot a fingerprint, atop lid? :)
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Baisao
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Sun Feb 12, 2023 7:14 pm

ferg wrote:
Sun Feb 12, 2023 4:59 pm
At last, I unboxed the kyusu! :D

I felt it was only right to pick up where I had left off, with a work by Taisuke Shiraiwa. I very much admire this potter’s craft and dedication to traditional kyusu making. This piece was baked in a gas kiln. I was drawn to the reduction on this one in particular, a nice brown, striking a medium between the red and black yohen displayed of others. It looks almost as if a piece of chocolate, with chunks of rihi and red sand scattered throughout.


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First cup of sencha in nearly five years. I had almost forgotten the taste, still lingering in the mouth. This kyusu brewed a wonderful cup! :mrgreen:


Image

Can you spot a fingerprint, atop lid? :)
That’s a lovely teapot. Taisuke’s reduction brown clay gives tea an amazingly smooth texture. It’s sure to make great tea. Congratulations!
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ferg
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Location: Cleveland, OH

Sun Feb 12, 2023 11:29 pm

Thanks @Baisao! There is something very satisfying in looking over and seeing a kyusu sitting there. Like an extension of oneself. That I have reclaimed a lost piece of me that has long been missing.

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Victoria
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Tue Feb 14, 2023 2:58 pm

Nice rihi kyusu @ferg. It’s so chocolaty brown, love that Taisuke incorporates sand particles so often. Homage to Hakodate 🍃
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wave_code
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Sat Feb 18, 2023 9:57 am

Endless downpours here today... A good excuse to stay in the apartment and test a new pot... Using this Bizen teapot to brew up a dry stored sheng. I'm guessing the clay itself might actually be tokoname given how much clay actually comes from there... Thanks to @Baisao for the seal help... Bizen marking but also a Jozan seal... So either we have a third Jozan on our hands now in a third location or something else is going on. Would seem like a very obvious fake to me to try and pass it off as a Yamada, and Miura seems too obscure or Not valuable enough to bother faking... Either way it's pretty well made with a nice clay ball Filter and a darker smooth outer coating and seems to be brewing quite nicely with a great pour.
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LeoFox
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Sat Feb 18, 2023 11:46 am

wave_code wrote:
Sat Feb 18, 2023 9:57 am
Endless downpours here today... A good excuse to stay in the apartment and test a new pot... Using this Bizen teapot to brew up a dry stored sheng. I'm guessing the clay itself might actually be tokoname given how much clay actually comes from there... Thanks to Baisao for the seal help... Bizen marking but also a Jozan seal... So either we have a third Jozan on our hands now in a third location or something else is going on. Would seem like a very obvious fake to me to try and pass it off as a Yamada, and Miura seems too obscure or Not valuable enough to bother faking... Either way it's pretty well made with a nice clay ball Filter and a darker smooth outer coating and seems to be brewing quite nicely with a great pour.
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Nice one. I've seen many bizen pots of this Chinese style with this mark. This should be from 19th century. These predate the wabi Sabi bizen we tend to see these days
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Balthazar
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Sat Feb 18, 2023 12:49 pm

Nice one indeed @wave_code!

... and nice to see posts from you again, @ferg. I picked up some pots of yours nearly a decade back on "the other forum", if memory serves you were transitioning into a coffee drinker at that time :) . Great looking Taisuke Shiraiwa pot!
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ferg
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Sat Feb 18, 2023 2:16 pm

Thanks @Victoria! Yes, I too like how Taisuke mixes materials from home into his works. The reduction on this is just right. :)

Hello again @Balthazar! Long time indeed. I do remember you picking up few of my pieces, originally from Origin Tea. If I recall correctly, a zini or purple with top hat shape and a fruit shaped Duanni.

And nearly so, I was always a coffee drinker, since days of high school. Then SBUX barista. So coffee has remained a steady for me each morning. On tea front, I moved to mainly English British style tea in Brown Betty for evenings. So kept it pretty simple.

Only recently started developing craving for matcha, and now sencha. :mrgreen:
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Balthazar
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Sat Feb 18, 2023 2:28 pm

ferg wrote:
Sat Feb 18, 2023 2:16 pm
Hello again Balthazar! Long time indeed. I do remember you picking up few of my pieces, originally from Origin Tea. If I recall correctly, a zini or purple with top hat shape and a fruit shaped Duanni.
Spot on, your memory beats mine. Must be the coffee :mrgreen:
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ferg
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Sat Feb 18, 2023 3:04 pm

@Balthazar haha, hope they’ve served you well! :lol:

I’m looking at making slight comeback in world of yixing, maybe pot or two. Couple things in the works atm.. :roll:
Last edited by ferg on Sat Feb 18, 2023 3:05 pm, edited 1 time in total.
WhisperingFrog192
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Sun Feb 19, 2023 2:28 am

Found a new kyusu during my usual thrift store trawl!
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Baisao
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Sun Feb 19, 2023 2:35 am

WhisperingFrog192 wrote:
Sun Feb 19, 2023 2:28 am
Found a new kyusu during my usual thrift store trawl!
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Now I’m kind of curious about the red glaze they use on these mass produced kyusu. There has to be some mid-century history there.
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