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“Decided to break this open for some leisurely weekend sipping. I knew this was expensive when I bought it, but I didn’t realize that one packet only makes three pots (each resteepable). From aroma...” Read full tasting note
Every year, the top tea farmers in Japan enter the best of their harvest into tea competitions, hoping to earn prestige and recognition for their efforts. Our Premium Select series features our exclusive blend of these farmers’ competition-level teas. Hand-selected by our president from farms only in the Kyoto region.
The highest quality gyokuro fields receive constant hands-on care and attention. Farmers precisely monitor and fertilize the soil to keep it lofty and nutritious. They adjust the shades that cover the field so that the new leaves sprout in almost complete darkness. They tend the field in person, every day, to ensure the harvest comes out perfectly. Finally, with a team headed by our president and master blender, we blend these rare and precious harvests to achieve an unparalleled gyokuro with harmony and depth.
Unlike our other teas available year-round, which are blended for constant consistency, our Premium Select Gyokuro’s character depending on the harvests each year.
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Decided to break this open for some leisurely weekend sipping. I knew this was expensive when I bought it, but I didn’t realize that one packet only makes three pots (each resteepable). From aroma to mouthfeel to flavor, though, I can see why. The moment I opened it, the most wonderfully intense grassy smell wafted out of the bag. It brews up a deceptively light color, but I got three steeps out of the same leaves in a kyusu and each time the flavor was so robustly grassy and umami that I actually had to go get a piece of cheese to pair it with to help balance it out. I went with a slice of gouda, in case you’re wondering. The mouthfeel was so thick, it was incredible. Between that and the intense umami, it was downright brothy.
I made a salad with the spent leaves. I only had plain sesame oil, not toasted, and didn’t have any sesame seeds to garnish with, but it still came out really tasty! I found it most enjoyable mixed in with the rice, so that the dressing and leaves were well-distributed within the rice. The leaves still had a fair amount of savoriness in them, and the texture was like tiny pieces of cooked spinach, so I’d call this recipe one of the few times I somehow didn’t screw up cooking!
https://www.saveur.com/japanese-green-tea-leaf-salad-recipe/
Flavors: Grass, Umami
Even though I know it’s coming, it’s a surprise every time when I first take a sip of gyokuro, because it has such intensity of flavor for such a light-colored tea! Not something I drink often, but love that thick, viscous sweet-umami character.
Exactly! I’m always second-guessing whether I brewed it correctly right up until I take that first sip.