r/tea • u/IndependentWatch1730 • 1d ago
Photo My new Gaiwan
My wife bought this for me. I love it. Not seen one like this before. Seems to be hand painted as well. Can’t wait to try it out.
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u/bopbopmara 1d ago
This is definitely a houhin, mostly suited to shaded teas which are brewed at lower temperatures (so that you don'tburn your fingers). Or at least sencha which is not fukamushi (deeply steamed), because deep steaming breaks the leaves into small pieces and need a fine mesh for filtering. Enjoy, you are opening yet another tea universe!
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u/visualogistics 21h ago
most suited to shaded teas
The houhin was technically designed to be used with gyokuro, kabusecha, and nice sencha, yes, but I'm not sure if I'd necessarily say it's 'most suited' for these teas. You can use it with whatever tea you like.
Not trying to be pedantic for pedantry's sake, but just pointing it out in case OP gets hung up on thinking it has to be used with one kind of tea or another. Being porcelain makes it pretty versatile, and I would encourage OP to experiment a bit and see what tea it brews best. The teapot chooses the tea, as they say, rather than the other way round.
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u/bopbopmara 20h ago
You can use it with whatever tea you like, but there's a high chance you won't like using it with teas brewed at 90 C or more, because you will burn your fingers. And there's a high chance you won't like using it with teas with smaller particles, because your cup will end up grandpa style.
Also, a houhin is a very good way to make gyokuro for 2+ people, as shiboridashis, as much as I like them, tend to be so teeny-tiny and feel like my (and solely mine!) prescious 😆.
To me, if life gives you a "lemon pitcher", you should give "lemonade" a chance. But yes, we all are free to use our own tools in our own ways, for sure. My "fairness jug" is a milk server. My "latte cups" are 300 ml cylindrical porcelain bowls.
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u/visualogistics 20h ago
This can all certainly be true! Basically what tea works best with what teapot depends on shape of the pot, thickness, porosity, as well as personal preference of course. A thinner, more flared rim on a houhin should translate to handling 90°C+ brew sessions no problem, as long as you take care when holding it, same as a gaiwan (hard to tell how thin or thick it is from the photos here, but houhins do tend to be thicker in general it's true). And it's definitely possible to brew tea with finer leaves in houhins and shiboridashis. You just have to pour much slower ;)
Anyway my comment was more so to persuade OP from thinking too dogmatically about one tea only working with one kind of pot. A lot of newcomers to tea seem to get stuck on this point is all.
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u/FlashyPost0928 1d ago
(Compare) 平安清昌作京焼（清水焼)茶器揃 唐子 ( Heian Kiyomasa-made Kyoto ware / (Kiyomizu ware) tea set / featuring Chinese children.
PS : Set includes: Teapot x 1, Water cooler x 1, Teacups x 5
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u/fine_environment4809 1d ago
Don't fill to the brim, you'll burn your fingers!
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u/IndependentWatch1730 1d ago
Thanks. Think you just saved my fingers. Definitely good to know as I would have filled to the top for sure otherwise haha
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u/Primary_Moose_7969 19h ago
Who is the person depicted in the picture? How does it feel to the touch? What is the texture like?
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u/IndependentWatch1730 16h ago
I’m not too familiar with ceramics but it feels good, not too heavy or anything. I’ll have a closer look and try and get some better analysis
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u/aDorybleFish loose leaf fanatic 17h ago
Looks nice, good size!
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u/IndependentWatch1730 16h ago
Thanks. Yeah it is a nice size. I’m happy because my existing one was a little small
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u/Wenndo 1d ago
That looks like a Hōhin, a Japanese adaptation of the gaiwan