Dan Saultman on thu 16 aug 07
The Teapot infuser is the little insert with drainage holes, that
allows bulk tea to be brewed in a teapot.
It must extend near the bottom of the inside of the teapot so that it
can sit in hot water to brew properly, the teapot lid must then be
designed to accommodate this insert.
Here's a question for teapot engineers & historians:
Some modern teapots have a perforated stainless steel infuser with many
holes on the sides and a screen on the bottom,
while ceramic infusers have only two rows of holes placed on four sides
of the insert, plus holes on the bottom.
Have infusers been part of teapot history for as long as teapots have
been made? or is this a modern innovation.
What is the preferred hole design for proper brewing.
Dan
Dan Saultman
Fine-Art Pottery
Detroit
http://www.saultman.com
Jason Truesdell on thu 16 aug 07
Japanese teapots or kyuusu are smaller than western ones, so they just put
the holes inside the pot where the spout starts, and people generally pour
out the entire liquid contents of the pot at once. If you consider that an
infuser, they've been around for a long time.
Also, in Korea, there's a traditional form of generally bulbous cups that
comes with a lid and a ceramic infuser, for individually brewed tea. I think
these have been around for a fairly long time, but I can't find much on
their history. These mostly have holes only on the bottom of the infuser
piece.
In China the infuser isn't as important... In the office sometimes people
just put a few leaves straight into the cup... maybe their teeth become the
strainer.
-----Original Message-----
From: Clayart [mailto:CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG] On Behalf Of Dan Saultman
Sent: Thursday, August 16, 2007 6:01 AM
To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
Subject: Teapot infuser
The Teapot infuser is the little insert with drainage holes, that
allows bulk tea to be brewed in a teapot.
It must extend near the bottom of the inside of the teapot so that it
can sit in hot water to brew properly, the teapot lid must then be
designed to accommodate this insert.
Here's a question for teapot engineers & historians:
Some modern teapots have a perforated stainless steel infuser with many
holes on the sides and a screen on the bottom,
while ceramic infusers have only two rows of holes placed on four sides
of the insert, plus holes on the bottom.
Have infusers been part of teapot history for as long as teapots have
been made? or is this a modern innovation.
What is the preferred hole design for proper brewing.
Dan
Dan Saultman
Fine-Art Pottery
Detroit
http://www.saultman.com
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Dannon Rhudy on thu 16 aug 07
The metal infusers are handy, and I believe that
they can be bought in bulk by potters. I've made
the ceramic ones, but they are a pain and take too
much time. I put my strainer in the entry to the spout,
usually. I fine the infusers easier to clean, though.
I think that most early tea was made in the pot and
the leaves left there. Some came out into the cups,
and so- we read tea leaves. Or some do. Just look
like tea leaves, to me. I believe the infusers are relatively
modern.
regards
Dannon Rhudy
----- Original Message -----
From: "Dan Saultman"
To:
Sent: Thursday, August 16, 2007 8:01 AM
Subject: Teapot infuser
> The Teapot infuser is the little insert with drainage holes, that
> allows bulk tea to be brewed in a teapot.
> It must extend near the bottom of the inside of the teapot so that it
> can sit in hot water to brew properly, the teapot lid must then be
> designed to accommodate this insert.
>
> Here's a question for teapot engineers & historians:
> Some modern teapots have a perforated stainless steel infuser with many
> holes on the sides and a screen on the bottom,
> while ceramic infusers have only two rows of holes placed on four sides
> of the insert, plus holes on the bottom.
>
> Have infusers been part of teapot history for as long as teapots have
> been made? or is this a modern innovation.
> What is the preferred hole design for proper brewing.
>
> Dan
>
> Dan Saultman
> Fine-Art Pottery
> Detroit
> http://www.saultman.com
>
>
____________________________________________________________________________
__
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
melpots@pclink.com.
>
Lee Love on thu 16 aug 07
On 8/16/07, Dan Saultman wrote:
> Have infusers been part of teapot history for as long as teapots have
> been made? or is this a modern innovation.
> What is the preferred hole design for proper brewing.
I have seen bamboo infusers, so maybe they are pretty old?
In Sung times, the Chinese invented powdered tea. And this was
transmitted from country to country by Zen monks. The tradition of
powdered tea dissapeared for a time everywhere but in Japan.
Tea came from India, but I know very little about the early
tradition there.
Modern infusers in Japan are a thimble shaped stainless
steel screen that inserts into the teapot and have a thin rim, so that
the lid can rest on top. They are pretty inexpensive. You can buy
them at the 100yen store. Makes it easier to get leaves out of the
tea pot.
--
Lee in Minneapolis, Minnesota USA
discussion on Beauty:
http://journals.fotki.com/togeika/beauty/
http://mashikopots.blogspot.com/
"For a democracy of excellence, the goal is not to reduce things to a
common denominator but to raise things to a shared worth."
--Paolo Soleri
May Luk on fri 17 aug 07
Hello Jason and everybody else;
Teeth strainer. That's funny. [and good observation!] Chinese tea leaves are big and the teapots are small. The strainer is really not that useful. Getting bits of tea in the mouth is quite normal. It's also nice to see the leaves expand in the water.
Make Chinese tea with Gaiwan:-
http://jingtea.com/tea-knowledge/infusion-guide/traditional-tea-making/the-gaiwan
Kung Fu Tea:-
http://jingtea.com/tea-knowledge/infusion-guide/traditional-tea-making/the-gaiwan
A BBC radio show on finding world's finest tea in China
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/factual/foodprogramme_20070624.shtml
Regards
May
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
[...]In China the infuser isn't as important... In the office sometimes people just put a few leaves straight into the cup... maybe their teeth become the strainer.
Jason Truesdell
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