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I was so busy trying to make sure that I got through the bigger packages of green teas I had open that I haven’t had a chance to try some of the Yunomi samples I got. Went for this one since it calls for 240 ml of water, so I’d be able to sip it for a while.

The dry leaves are a blend of dark leafy matter, light colored stems and dust, with some brown bits here and there. It floats atop the water while steeping and puts up a fight as I try to strain it. Until now, I’ve been preparing my Japanese greens in a gaiwan and using the lid to strain, but this yields too large an amount for that and it quickly clogged up my strainer.

The resulting liquor is a light, cloudy yellow green that has a very light taste. It’s very smooth with a bit of a creamy texture and a beany, vegetal taste similar to edamame, and the faintest hint of chestnut in there and some umami trying to push through. The fact that this is aracha becomes increasingly apparent the longer I drink, as the flavor profile is less defined and bold than what one would experience in a fully processed tea.

I think that is what ends up making aracha unique. Since the leaves don’t go through sorting and further processing, there is less input from the human element to guide the experience of the drinker at the other end of the process. The end result is an affordable easy drinker that can be enjoyed by anyone who can appreciate its subtle complexities.

I see that someone has actually prepped this gongfu style, so perhaps I’ll try that with what remains of my sample.

The aromas of smoke, wood and just a hint of smoke greet me as I begin preparing the last of my Farmerleaf samples. Nice, clear gold liquor, and the first steep has a lingering throat feel and soft woody taste with a hint of sweetness.

It was getting a bit late in the day by the time I was drinking this, so I continued with these leaves into the next day, and they kept on giving with a steady, pleasant flavor. I would definitely agree with the description of this tea’s middle age being clear, and it is definitely a friendly tea that I will be spending some more time with soon!

Third sample from Farmerleaf that we’re trying. Nice gold liquor, and I sipped a bit of the wash of this one and it tasted quite sweet. I notice a distinct richness from the first steep with nice huigan. Nice, oily mouthfeel that becomes increasingly more apparent as the tea cools. A nice, honey-like sweetness up front emerges over a few steeps.

Simply put, very enjoyable!

Second of the Farmerleaf teas I’m trying. The leaves have a nice sweet and slightly smoky smell, and the section of the cake I received wasn’t too compressed.

Light gold liquor and very light taste in the first flash steep. It has sweetness and almost a creaminess, and a very comforting effect. The texture is very smooth. Even more sweetness comes out in later steeps. Overall, this is very easy to drink and very relaxing. Several steeps and definitely good as a daily drinker.

Finally getting to try these teas! I’ve let them rest for two weeks since they’re arrival. The dry leaves have a very fresh, vegetal smell.

5 grams go into the gaiwan for a quick wash to let the leaves sit for a minute. The smell of the leaves is stronger, and the liquor is a very light gold. Flash steeped to start, and the first sip tastes quite strong, and quickly mellows out. Definitely getting some florals. Light bitterness and astringency are also present.

Sweetness starts to emerge in the second steep. I feel like, in addition to the florals, there’s another familiar flavor here that I’m not quite able to place at the moment, so maybe it’ll come to me later on in the session. rhinkle has, apparnetly, been feeling the qi from the first steep. It hasn’t hit me yet. The huigan emerges with this steep, for me.

The liquor thickens up in the third steep and remains so throughout most of the session. The flavor remains pretty consistent throughout the session. All in all, this was an enjoyable one that I will need to spend some more time with.

2016 Harvest, which Stone Leaf says “stands out as truly exceptional.”

I have to say, I cannot disagree. This is very good. Steeped my usual way. Did about 7 grams in 100ml gaiwan with 70C water for just over a minute to start. Comes out a nice, transparent green.

Very nice umami flavor balanced with a pleasant vegetal sourness with sweet, creamy chestnut swirled in. Smooth texture

Second steep, 80C for about 20 seconds. Not as much flavor as I’ve had come out in some other shaded greens on the seconds steep. I can taste the umami, but I can also clearly taste the water. That leads me to conclude that I could either use even more leaf or steep this one a bit harder than my others.

Overall, this is a very good, well-balanced kabusecha that is a bit on the gentler side, making it great for not being in the mood for an umami bomb, or introducing someone to shaded Japanese greens. I can definitely see myself getting more of this!

Drank this with some macarons yesterday after dropping Zeus off at the vet. Glad I’ve got more on the way!

Been looking forward to trying this one! Trying to look up more information about amacha keeps turning up results for matcha…but finally got some guidelines, and threw a few leaves of this into the steeper. Smell is quite sweet, which is what is to be expected.

Aaaaaand it’s sweet. It tastes almost like…what I would imagine nectar to taste like. rhinkle thinks it tastes like stevia, which I don’t quite agree with, but I can see how one would find it to be similar. I could see myself blending this with something that I wanted to sweeten, especially something that I would drink while sick, like a homemade ginger tisane.

This would also be perfect for having first thing in the morning for me when I’m just cold and want something to warm up before moving on to the sessions that carry me throughout the day.

It’s very interesting when you’re not getting a scent off of dry leaves. You really can go into a session having no idea what to expect, or ending up with something unexpected.

As soon as I poured water over these leaves to wash, I was hit with the smell of something like wet vegetation or musty, damp room. So THIS is what humid storage smells like. Pretty much knew from that moment rhinkle wouldn’t like it.

There was a good bit of dust in this sample, so I rinsed out as much as I could and did the first steep as quick as possible. Liquor is a deep amber and it tastes woody and mossy and kind of ash-y.

Second steep is better, probably thanks to finally getting more of the dust out. if I ever get the chance to drink this again, I’ll know to rinse twice. A bit of a cooling sensation in this steep, and rhinkle enjoys this one better more, as well.

The storage taste gives way to other flavors over subsequent steeps. taste really starts to even out over the next few steeps and more rich notes start to shine through. The texture gradually starts to smooth out and thicken up. I get a hint of sweetness and there is some drying effect, as well, but it doesn’t seem overwhelming to me.

This carries me throughout the rest of the afternoon, and I may revisit the leaves tomorrow. Overall, I’ve enjoyed it. Bit sad knowing that I won’t probably get the chance to drink it again!