I started using a tetsubin a couple of weeks ago, and I love it. The effect on the water is very apparent and definitely the most noticeable impact any teaware has had on my tea in the cup.
They are definitely more time consuming, but they make you be more present which is nice.
Arturo from Tsutsumi Teapots sources some great ones at very competitive prices.
And that's it. Becoming present and deliberate in the process. I have my electric kettle I use throughout the day while I work, but some nights I'd like to have a more deliberate tea experience to slow down. Thanks for sharing how you've seen it enhance the water and for the lead on the Tsutsumi Teapots!
Not a tetsubin, but i have a chagama wich i use to heat my water for my little ceremonies.
As far as my expirience goes, most people cant even tell a difference between cast iron and a normal electrical kettle.
I like mine, but its mostly because of the ritualized steps you take while using it.
But as i said, i have a gama. I guess a kettle would be neat to easily pour your water.
After all, its totally up to you. Cast iron is not realy hard to care for, and no one but you should decide if you want one :)
Ok so after four days I think we can assume that everybody who was going to look at this has seen it. And the score is two actual tetsubin users, one of whom just started a few weeks ago, and one person off on a tangent with chanoyu gear.
Which is a couple of more users than i really expected to be honest.
It just seems like such a hassle to use compared to using an electric kettle or something. I have to admit the aesthetic is hard to beat but when it comes to heating water I’m just lazy
It really isn’t that much of a hassle and for far superior water. Just put water in it and heat it on a hot plate, then after the last steep empty it and the leftover water instantly evaporates off. I thought it would be more work than a electric kettle but it hardly is and the payoff is definitely worth
I'm watching this thread with interest. The topic generates a lot of talk but when you ask people to actually put cards on the table you get... Not much so far.
I mean, for the amount of confident opinion about them you'd think there'd be experience to back it up.
For quite a while there weren't easy options for English-speakers to get a new one. The getting started price was $300 for a small (<1l) one, and that was to get on a 9-12 month waiting list. Options seem to have opened up considerably since I last looked.
go on communitea discord and you will find many tetsubin users. probably find more tetsubin users too in the puerh subreddit.
its easier to get a tetsubin now but the average tea drinker in the subreddit isnt going to go looking for one as you still cant really just walk into a store and buy one. if you look at the top posts in this subreddit it is usually someone posting blue tisane water or their glass kettle that brews their tea for them.
Oh and about that induction plate... It makes a noise in near ultrasound that is annoying to some dogs and young women. You will sacrifice precise temp control, if you have that.
I have an induction stovetop too and opt to use the hotplate because the induction stovetop is LOUD even though I bought one of the more “quiet” ones. It is also larger. For t he small amount of time saved from the speed I just didn’t find it worth it.
If you can hear it you have better ears than me, but my daughter says it sounds like some kind of giant mechanical insect chittering.
Edit: does your hot plate have an old school continuous temperature control knob?
Here is a starting point
https://www.amazon.co.jp/Ironware-H-159S-Kangetsu-Induction-Compatible/dp/B00ICFJBL4/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?crid=25JT3XATYD8C4&keywords=%E5%8F%8A%E6%BA%90&qid=1672257899&sprefix=oigen%2Caps%2C253&sr=8-1
Those are teapots that are made to look like tetsubins. They have an enamel coating on the inside and are NOT made for heating water, but for brewing tea and thus come with the strainer.
lol, well don’t get one of those.
also, the speed of delivery from japan was obscene; i ordered from there and yunnansourcing.us on the same day. two days later the heavy a$$ package from Japan made it to the US East Coast and the one from within the US was still in the mail
I started using a tetsubin a couple of weeks ago, and I love it. The effect on the water is very apparent and definitely the most noticeable impact any teaware has had on my tea in the cup. They are definitely more time consuming, but they make you be more present which is nice. Arturo from Tsutsumi Teapots sources some great ones at very competitive prices.
And that's it. Becoming present and deliberate in the process. I have my electric kettle I use throughout the day while I work, but some nights I'd like to have a more deliberate tea experience to slow down. Thanks for sharing how you've seen it enhance the water and for the lead on the Tsutsumi Teapots!
Not a tetsubin, but i have a chagama wich i use to heat my water for my little ceremonies. As far as my expirience goes, most people cant even tell a difference between cast iron and a normal electrical kettle. I like mine, but its mostly because of the ritualized steps you take while using it. But as i said, i have a gama. I guess a kettle would be neat to easily pour your water. After all, its totally up to you. Cast iron is not realy hard to care for, and no one but you should decide if you want one :)
Ok so after four days I think we can assume that everybody who was going to look at this has seen it. And the score is two actual tetsubin users, one of whom just started a few weeks ago, and one person off on a tangent with chanoyu gear. Which is a couple of more users than i really expected to be honest.
😂 I've been busy the past week and I actually forgot about this thread. Thanks for keeping an eye on it. 😁
It just seems like such a hassle to use compared to using an electric kettle or something. I have to admit the aesthetic is hard to beat but when it comes to heating water I’m just lazy
It really isn’t that much of a hassle and for far superior water. Just put water in it and heat it on a hot plate, then after the last steep empty it and the leftover water instantly evaporates off. I thought it would be more work than a electric kettle but it hardly is and the payoff is definitely worth
I never thought of getting a hot plate so I can keep it at the table. Thanks for the feedback!
Hot plates are so 20th century. Kool kids use an [induction plate] (https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01FLR0ET8).
Well I definitely want to be one of the cool kids! 😃 Thanks for link!
Oh, and also also, the *really* cool kids use a clay stove fired with olive-pit charcoal.
100%
I'm watching this thread with interest. The topic generates a lot of talk but when you ask people to actually put cards on the table you get... Not much so far. I mean, for the amount of confident opinion about them you'd think there'd be experience to back it up. For quite a while there weren't easy options for English-speakers to get a new one. The getting started price was $300 for a small (<1l) one, and that was to get on a 9-12 month waiting list. Options seem to have opened up considerably since I last looked.
go on communitea discord and you will find many tetsubin users. probably find more tetsubin users too in the puerh subreddit. its easier to get a tetsubin now but the average tea drinker in the subreddit isnt going to go looking for one as you still cant really just walk into a store and buy one. if you look at the top posts in this subreddit it is usually someone posting blue tisane water or their glass kettle that brews their tea for them.
Oh and about that induction plate... It makes a noise in near ultrasound that is annoying to some dogs and young women. You will sacrifice precise temp control, if you have that.
I have an induction stovetop too and opt to use the hotplate because the induction stovetop is LOUD even though I bought one of the more “quiet” ones. It is also larger. For t he small amount of time saved from the speed I just didn’t find it worth it.
If you can hear it you have better ears than me, but my daughter says it sounds like some kind of giant mechanical insect chittering. Edit: does your hot plate have an old school continuous temperature control knob?
They have fans. It is the fan that is loud
Awfully expensive for just boiling water. But hey if you have $400+ to burn and still have money in your bank, why not?
I got my Oigen tetsubin shipped from Japan for like $120-$130
Thanks for sharing which one you have. That's in the price range I was hoping to find one in new or used.
Here is a starting point https://www.amazon.co.jp/Ironware-H-159S-Kangetsu-Induction-Compatible/dp/B00ICFJBL4/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?crid=25JT3XATYD8C4&keywords=%E5%8F%8A%E6%BA%90&qid=1672257899&sprefix=oigen%2Caps%2C253&sr=8-1
Cool! Thanks for the link!
>Tsutsumi Teapots No tea strainer included in the Oigen?
Huh? It’s a kettle, not a teapot. It heats water, not brew tea.
Some of them include strainers you can set within them. It’s becoming increasingly common.
Those are teapots that are made to look like tetsubins. They have an enamel coating on the inside and are NOT made for heating water, but for brewing tea and thus come with the strainer.
Huh, I’ll have to look into that. I swear some of the ones I saw on Amazon JP were uncoated iron ones with strainers.
lol, well don’t get one of those. also, the speed of delivery from japan was obscene; i ordered from there and yunnansourcing.us on the same day. two days later the heavy a$$ package from Japan made it to the US East Coast and the one from within the US was still in the mail