Starbucks teams up with the oldest of Japan’s Six Ancient Kilns to create a Bizen ware coffee mug

Ancient Japanese pottery techniques create a sublime coffee-drinking experience.

Back in 2015, Starbucks started a new series in Japan called Jimoto Made, which translates as “Locally Made“. As the name suggests, the new project aimed to shine a light on local craftsmanship with a series of collaborative goods, and now, almost a decade later, it’s still going strong with a brand new addition to the range that’s one of the best we’ve seen.

The new Jimoto Made product is a Bizen ware mug, which is big news for fans of Japanese pottery. Bizen ware has a long history that stretches back almost 2,000 years, making it the oldest of Japan’s Six Ancient Kilns, which consists of Bizen, Echizen, Seto, Tokoname, Shigaraki, and Tamba. Made in Bizen, in Okayama Prefecture, this style of pottery is known for its unglazed, rustic appearance, which has fascinated people throughout history, including famous tea ceremony master Sen no Rikyu (1522-1591), who admired its simple wabi sabi aesthetics.

▼ This style of pottery is the closest you’ll get to holding earth, fire and water in your hand.

Bizen ware isn’t only esteemed in tea ceremony circles, but coffee-drinking circles as well, due to the fact that the fine pores in its uneven surface make it breathable, which helps to make the taste of coffee more mellow and well-rounded.

It’s a sublime coffee-drinking experience that Starbucks wants more people to enjoy, and to do that they’ve created the Jimoto Made Sangiri Bizen Ware Mug, in collaboration Shibaoka Tosendo, a pottery producer in Bizen that was founded in 1912.

▼ Shibaoka Tosendo

Within the world of Bizen ware are various firing techniques that give the pottery different colour tones. This particular mug is a beautiful example of Sangiri, the most traditional colouration, which displays hues of dark grey, blue and gunmetal grey.

▼ The Jimoto Made Sangiri Bizen Ware Mug.

The process behind the finished product is a painstaking one that starts with locally sourced soil, which goes through various stages of drying and storing that takes over six months to complete.

▼ Once the clay is ready, each piece of pottery is carefully produced by hand.

The pottery is then fired in a kiln for five-and-a-half days and nights at extremely high temperatures, with wood ash helping to give each piece a unique, one-of-a-kind pattern.

▼ The resulting mug is a beautiful piece of Japanese craftsmanship with over a thousand years of history behind it.

Earthy, unglazed Bizen ware captures the natural beauty of the soil in a way that no other pottery can. Not only is it beautiful to look at, it’s a delight to hold, with a textured surface that feels wonderful to touch, and a sturdy yet airy quality that creates a lovely sound when you lay it down on a table.

At 7,200 yen (US$51.41), the Jimoto Made Sangiri Bizen Ware Mug has a high price tag but it’s in line with what you’d normally spend for Bizen pottery, which can go for very high prices. It’s an investment that’ll enhance your coffee-drinking experience and make every sip worth it, though, and it’ll be available at the following Starbucks stores in Okayama Prefecture from 17 September: Okayama University Hospital, Okayama Cinema Town Okanan, Okayama Daianji, Okayama Keyaki-dori, Aeon Mall Okayama 5th Floor, Okayama Ichibanchi, Okayama Nakasendo, Sun Station Terrace Okayama, Okayama Aoe, Aeon Mall Okayama 1st Floor, Okayama Hirai, Okayama Tenmaya, Okayama Saidaiji.

Source, images: Press release 
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