163 Tasting Notes
Very nice and easy drinking tea. Not terribly complex, but at this price, I wasn’t expecting that.
Very mild bitterness on steep 2 only. No astringency. Mild sweetness. Lasts 12 infusions.
Price is $0.12/g.
Location: Fa Tang Village, Lincang
Flavors: Apricot, fruity, sweet, bitter.
Flavors: Apricot, Bitter, Fruity, Sweet
SUPER approachable and easygoing puerh. This would be a great introduction sheng for teaheads wanting to try some puerh. Very clean flavor profile with some distinct notes, which can be difficult for puerh sometimes.
Minimal to no bitterness. No astringency. Mild sweetness. Mouthfeel is fairly full and oily. Lasts 10+ infusions. Awesome value at $0.24/g for a cake.
Location: Pa Pai Village, Cang Yuan, Lincang
Dry leaf: Apricot
Wet leaf: Apricot, hay
Flavors: Apricot, fruity, sweet, bitter, cream, oily
Flavors: Apricot, Bitter, Cream, Hay, Oily, Sweet
Another one from Yunomi. This is probably my least favorite of this batch of samples, though it isn’t bad per say. At $0.56/g, it is also the most expensive of the lot. I have to agree with the only reviewer of this tea on Yunomi’s site that the tea is a bit roasty in flavor, which is very offputting for a fresh green tea. The rest of the flavors are also pretty muted.
No bitterness or astringency and no to minimal sweetness. I guess it’s just not what I’m looking for in a sencha really.
Probably asamushi. Says it was shaded for 10 days.
Harvest: March 18, 2024
Cultivar: Shoju
Location: Tanegashima Island, Kagoshima
Dry leaf: Vegetal, umami
Wet leaf: Same
Flavors: Vegetal, umami, roasty
Flavors: Roasty, Umami, Vegetal
Very nice and very expensive (> $1/g) tea from FL. Super subdued for the first 2-3 infusions, then becomes very sweet. Infusions 2 and 3 have some mild bitterness, but it dissipates. Very fruity and overall a delicious tea :).
Super clean and the leaves are HUGE and all intact. Definitely another winner from FL.
Harvest: Spring, 2024
Location: Ba Ka Noy, Menghai
Dry leaf: Apricot, fruity
Wet leaf: Same
Flavors: Apricot, fruity, grapes, sweet, bitter
Flavors: Apricot, Bitter, Bittersweet, Fruity, Grapes
Pretty good but not amazing. Not as much punch as some of the other gyokuros I’ve had.
Got 4 good steeps. Definitely umami with minimal to no sweetness. No astringency or bitterness. Decent power, but not as energizing as I had hoped.
Harvest: May 2024
Location: Yabemura Village, Yame, Fukuoka
Flavors: Salty, broth, umami, seaweed, spinach, vegetal.
Flavors: Broth, Salt, Seaweed, Spinach, Umami, Vegetal
This one is CLEAN. No better way to describe it. So fresh and clear and elegant. Only the second kabusecha I’ve had.
Tomizawa has been making tea in the Kumamoto area as a family-owned business for 85 years now. They have produced an organic tea that was shaded for 2 weeks and processed as a chumushi and a tamaryokucha (or guricha).
No bitterness, and only mild astringency on the fourth and final steep at 190 F. Incredibly clear liquor with almost no defects. High sweetness and umami levels. I do not perceive any floral notes as some of the reviewers on Yunomi’s website mention.
Harvest: Early May, 2024
Cultivar: Okumidori
Location: Mashiki, Kamimashiki-gun, Kumamoto
Dry Leaf: Vegetal, nutty
Wet leaf: Vegetal, umami
Flavor: Seaweed, umami, sweetness, astringency, vegetal
Flavors: Astringent, Nutty, Seaweed, Sweet, Vegetal
Another one from my recent order. This one is quite nice as well! Holds up to 156 F brewing with 3 g. Not quite as good as some of the others from this batch. Less flavor and sweetness. However, still very nice and comforting!
Not as much info provided on this one, but presumably is a blend and chumushi based on my guess. Is also a mushi-sei tamaryokucha, which is the first I’ve had. I don’t notice any difference in smell or flavor. Less than 3% of Japanese teas are made in this style.
Harvest: Spring, 2024
Location: Imari, Saga Prefecture
Flavors: Grass, umami, vegetal
Flavors: Grass, Umami, Vegetal
From a new FL order. This is much better than I remember the Miyun being in 2022. Maybe this year is a better crop? He did write on his website that he was able to get some fairly high quality shengtai for this one.
Anyways, it is very well balanced and a great value at $0.17/g. A bit of sweetness, some mild bitterness and astringency in steeps 2-5, and an incredibly fruity smell to the dry leaves! I really enjoy this one, though it’s not the best puerh I’ve had or anything. Lasts 13-14 steeps. Also got to drink it in my new square glass teacup from FL, which is beautiful :).
Probably will have to buy a cake :).
Harvest: Spring 2024
Location: Liu Dui Garden (FL-owned) + Da Ping Zhang-adjacent garden, Jingmai Mtn
Dry leaf: Apricot, peach
Wet leaf: Grape, sweet
Flavor: Grape, sweet, bitter, astringent, fruity
Flavors: Apricot, Astringent, Bitter, Fruity, Grapes, Peach, Sweet
Preparation
Next sample from Yunomi and the first I’ve tried from Nishide. The factory was established in 1860 and is currently run by husband-and-wife team Takashi and Atsuko Nishide. They buy aracha from Uji and surrounding areas of Kyoto and process them in their factory. The cultivar used is Osahiri, which is an early-budding cultivar.
This is the BEST sencha I’ve ever tried, hands down. I believe it is an asamushi based on leaf appearance and flavor. That is fitting, as a high-quality asamushi sencha was the tea that pushed me off the ledge into the deep end of this fascinating world of the leaf. Fukamushi and chumushi senchas are great, but something about the yin-yang interplay of a great asamushi like this with simultaneously reserved flavor followed by intense emotional and visceral responses is what captivates me.
No bitterness or astringency. Very delicate and refined front end followed by an intense umami and sweetness with phenomenal mouthfeel as it tracks to the back of your palate. You feel a soft rubbery object lingering in your mouth even after swallowing. The sweetness is medium-high and the huigan is off the charts. Longevity is 4 infusions. Balance is perfect. The value is amazing at $0.53/g; I would’ve expected this to be > $1/g.
So why 99 and not 100? The flavor falls off pretty steeply between steep 2 and 3. Perhaps it needs somewhat hotter temps at that point? It picks back up again in the 190 F final steep. Other than that, it’s perfect.
Harvest: May 10, 2024
Cultivar: Osahiri
Processing: Asamushi?
Location: Uji, Kyoto
Dry leaf: Umami
Wet leaf: Same
Flavor: Umami, sweet, vegetal, smooth, thick, artichoke, chalk
Flavors: Artichoke, Chalk, Smooth, Sweet, Thick, Umami, Vegetal
Next sample from Yunomi and this one is also great! I think they must have changed how they label Kurihara’s teas, as I do not recall the numbering system when I last purchased from them. I believe they sold a gyokuro that just went by the name “Kurihara Heritage Gyokuro.” Regardless, this tea is certainly different from that one.
Brewed 6 g in 100 mL for 14 mins at 75 degrees F, then 2:30 at 120 F, then 3:00 at 120 F, then 2:30 at 160 F. This brewing style works wonders. The first brew is still packed with L-theanine energy, though perhaps a bit more tame than the last gyokuro I had from Kurihara. The brew is crystal clear jade dew. The latter brews produce the deepest green liquor I’ve ever seen and no off notes. Packed with umami flavor throughout.
Absolutely no bitterness. A very slight touch of astringency on the last infusion. No sweetness either. Mouthfeel is full and lively. 4 infusions. Great value at $0.62/g.
Harvest: Late May – Early June, 2024
Cultivar: Saemidori
Location: Yabemura Village, Yame, Fukuoka
Altitude: 300-700 m
Dry leaf: Vegetal, umami
Wet leaf: Same
Flavors: Umami, stewed vegetables, broth, salty, energizing, savory
Flavors: Broth, Salt, Savory, Stewed Vegetables, Umami
