Sencha690 Kyusu/Tea Pot (Matte Cream White)

The largest kyusu on the table — warm cream against a spread of cups, ready for everyone.

The Sencha690 is the largest kyusu in the NANKEI POTTERY (南景製陶園) range, made in the Banko-yaki tradition of Yokkaichi, Mie Prefecture. Fill it fully for 600ml, or brew at around 550ml for a better-balanced cup. This is the teapot for a table — a slow afternoon with guests, a large batch of cold-brew sencha, or any time brewing once for everyone makes more sense than brewing again and again. The strainer is a classic shared-clay insert.

Matte Cream White is fired from a revival of hakudei — "white mud" — a Banko-yaki clay formula from the Taisho era, reblended by NANKEI. The pale greyish-cream exterior is quiet and warm on the table; the unglazed interior allows the surface texture to moderate astringency and build depth with every brew. With regular use the cream surface slowly develops a gentle, warm patina.

Shipping

• Japan: ¥800 flat rate — free shipping on orders over ¥15,000.
• Asia: from ¥2,500 — free on orders over ¥25,000.
• EU, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada: from ¥3,500 — free on orders over ¥35,000.

※Shipping rates for apparel and other goods vary by product and destination (shown at checkout). Please see our shipping policy for full details.

South of Nagoya, along the shore of Ise Bay, Yokkaichi in Mie Prefecture has been a centre for Banko-yaki since the eighteenth century. The city's iron-rich clay and long firing tradition gave rise to a distinct stoneware character — dense, unglazed surfaces that age quietly with use. 南景製陶園 (Nankei Pottery) has worked within this tradition for decades, using a proprietary clay formula that has remained unchanged for more than fifty years. High-temperature yakishime firing drives off virtually all porosity, leaving a body that is hard, smooth to the touch, and subtly warm in colour.

The forms Nankei designs are spare and considered — nothing added that does not serve the tea. A kyusu pours cleanly; a yunomi sits without fuss in the hand. That restraint comes not from minimal effort but from sustained attention to proportion and weight. If you want to learn more about the people behind the work, our Behind the Sip article on Nankei Pottery goes further: Nankei Pottery — Banko-yaki in Yokkaichi.