煎茶中国茶台湾茶向け日本の急須/茶壺専門店　東山堂

Kyoware blue white teapot

Name: Kyoware blue white teapot
Brand: 煎茶 中国茶 台湾茶向け 日本の急須/茶壺専門店 東山堂
SKU: 46603866571033
Availability: OutOfStock

¥49,500 JPY

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This teapot features a pale blue-and-white porcelain color, a rounded shape, and a straight spout. It is a Chinese-style teapot with a backhand shape. It has just the right capacity for brewing Chinese or Taiwanese tea.

Potter Yasuhisa Shibata has trained for many years under the third-generation Kyoto ware master Tosai Sawamura. The Sawamura family has been Kyoto ware artists since the Taisho era (about 100 years ago), and they have inherited the traditional techniques and aesthetic sense of Kyoto ware. They mainly produce tableware used in traditional Japanese restaurants.

Mr. Shibata is also good at making tableware in the shapes of bamboo and bamboo grass used in Japanese restaurants. High modeling skills are required to make tableware with intricate craftsmanship, and such handicrafts are becoming less common these days. The vessels and teapots that Shibata makes are very delicate, and you can clearly see the high level of modeling skills.

Kyo-yaki pottery often copies Chinese ceramics, and teapots and other sencha tea wares originally from China are popular. Mr. Shibata inherits the tradition of Kyo-yaki sencha tea wares and makes elegant and beautiful teapots.

(Brief biography of Shibata Yasuhisa)

Born in Kyoto in 1977

Started making pottery under the third-generation Sawamura Tosai in 2000

Graduated from Kyoto Prefectural High Technical College of Potters in 2001

Opened a kiln in Hanazono, Kyoto after 12 years of training as an apprentice in 2012

Moved to Nishiyama, Kyoto in 2014

Kyoto Certified Craftsman for Kyo-yaki and Kiyomizu-yaki in 2014

What is particularly noteworthy about the shape of the teapot is the beauty of the details. The handle is slightly thinner at the bottom than at the top, giving it a refined impression. The border between the handle and the body is filled with the same clay and finished smoothly, creating a beautiful seam.

The bottom is also distinctive. The outline of the bottom is slightly thick, and the outer lines are carved away to highlight the inner lines. The bottom has a three-dimensional, light feel. Mr. Shibata's creativity can be felt even in the bottom.

In the production process of ceramics, the molding process is often the end of 70 to 80% of the whole process. However, for this blue-and-white porcelain teapot, the molding process is only 50% of the total process. The remaining 50% of the process, glazing and firing, is also very time-consuming.

If the glaze is applied evenly, it will not have a smooth surface or beautiful color. The thickness of the glaze is changed between the top and bottom of the teapot, and the overall balance of the glaze is adjusted. Also, the glaze does not settle on the surface of the vessel in one go, but is repeatedly applied and dried. The piece is glazed six times in total, three times on the inside and three times on the outside.

The colour of the glaze on ceramics is influenced by the weather during the firing season. This teapot was fired in the warm autumn and is a pale greyish celadon. To produce beautiful blue-and-white porcelain, it needs to be fired at a high temperature. It was fired at the top of the first chamber, which is the hottest part of the climbing kiln.

Porcelain fired in a wood-fired kiln has a soft atmosphere. In wood-fired kilns, the flow of the flame is irregular and the temperature is high. This creates subtle changes on the glaze surface, and the light is diffusely reflected, giving it a soft luster.

Firing celadon or white porcelain in a wood-fired kiln requires a lot of experience and high technique, so these days it is common to fire them with electricity or gas. However, there is a rich expression of ceramics that can only be produced in a wood-fired kiln. This teapot also has the soft atmosphere of the old vessels seen in museums.

Wood-fired kilns have exhaust and heat problems, making them virtually impossible in residential areas such as Kyoto City. For this reason, Sawamura Tosai built a kiln in Shiga Prefecture, where he burns red pine and fires his vessels. Mr. Shibata's teapots are also fired in the same kiln.

This teapot is semi-porcelain, made by mixing porcelain and earthenware clay. By mixing both clays, it combines the warmth unique to earthenware with the durability of porcelain. The inside is also glazed, so it is less likely to absorb the aroma of tea leaves.

This teapot is ideal for brewing a variety of teas with different aromas, such as oolong tea, rock tea, flower tea, and black tea.

Potter: Shibata kiln (Kyoto)

https://shibatagama.jimdofree.com/

Firing: Wood-fired kiln

Type: Semi-porcelain (ceramics made from a mixture of porcelain and earthenware)

Size: Total length 11.5cm (including handle and spout), body diameter 7cm, height 7.5cm

Capacity: Full150ml Practical 100ml

Weight: Approximately 150g

Packaging: Paulownia box with silk cord

Notes: Since this is handmade, each piece is slightly different.

The body and lid of the teapot are made to fit together with almost no gaps. The water flows smoothly. When pouring water, pour slowly without tilting the teapot vertically to prevent water leakage.

Kyoto ware is ceramics made in Kyoto City. Since the Edo period (around 1800), many tea utensils for matcha and sencha were made against the backdrop of the popularity of the tea ceremony. It developed with the support of temples, shrines, nobles, and merchants against the backdrop of Kyoto's high culture.

They specialize in ceramics with vivid colors such as blue and white, red paint, and gold paint, as well as intricately crafted ceramics. They incorporate a variety of techniques and styles, and their ceramics have a high level of aesthetic sense and modeling technique.

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FAQ

Which type of of tea can I brew with the teapot?

It can be used for any type of tea. However, unglazed pottery is more likely to absorb the flavor of the tea leaves. By using different tea utensils for each type of tea, you can enjoy the flavor of the tea to the fullest.

For example, in the case of Japanese tea, sencha, fukamushicha, genmaicha, and gyokuro are all in the same family, but since hojicha has a strong roasted aroma, we recommend using a different tea utensil.

However, glazed pottery or porcelain tea utensils do not absorb the flavor of the tea leaves, so they are suitable for brewing various types of tea.

How do you wash a teapot?

Please wash the teapot with water, without using detergent. Ceramic teapots easily absorb detergent ingredients, which can affect the flavor of the tea.

Tea leaves remaining in the teapot are the main cause of tea stains. After brewing tea, we recommend removing the tea leaves once they have cooled and rinsing them with water.

Moisture remaining in the teapot can cause mold. Turning the teapot upside down will help it dry faster.

We do not recommend washing it in the dishwasher. Please wash by hand.

Can I remove tea stains from a teapot?

Here's how to remove tea stains.

1. In a bowl or pot, mix 24g of baking soda with 1 liter of water at 30-40°C.

*Do not use aluminum or Teflon-coated pots as they will react with baking soda.

2. Leave the teapot in the water mentioned in step 1 for 30-60 minutes.

3. Wipe off the tea stains with a soft sponge or cotton swab. Do not use hard sponges or brushes.

4. Rinse the teapot with water.

5. Thoroughly dry the teapot.

*Baking soda water may irritate your hands, so wear rubber gloves.

Can I return the product?

We do not accept returns unless the product is damaged when the package arrives.

Each tea utensil is slightly different and may have slight distortions or scratches. Please check the images posted on our online shop in advance.

If you have any questions about the detailed condition of the product, please feel free to contact us. We can send you additional images and videos of the product.

Do you ship internationally?

We can ship to the following countries:

China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines

Are the goods antiques or second-hand goods?

All the products in the shop are new. We sell products produced by potters and kilns in Japan.

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Kyoware blue white teapot