Matcha Black Soybean Rice Tea

Thanks to Indigobloom for a sample of this interesting-sounding tea!

Yeah, so I probably shouldn’t be drinking this one at night. At least I kept myself from brewing up a couple mates that I have sitting in my “Drink Me!” pile! I was just so determined to try this one, though, that I didn’t care.

Anyhow, this one tastes much like a genmaicha, but I am definitely noticing the soybean. it’s coming in as a familiar flavour, that of roasted soybeans I’ve had as a snack. It adds a bit of additional… thickness/weight to the tea, which would otherwise be fairly light and toasty. It’s also adding a bit of a weird bitter flavour that I can’t say I’m terribly keen on. I can’t really taste the matcha in here (I don’t imagine it’s a terribly strong flavour, as there wouldn’t have been too much of it).

Although this is definitely an interesting tea that I am glad to have tried, I have to say that I prefer standard genmaichas (or genmaimatchas). The soybeans are adding a strange flavour that I just don’t particularly like, although the flavour difference would probably be unnoticeable if this was consumed with a meal (so perhaps I will try that?)

ETA: Bleh, yeah, the soybeans are definitely causing an off-flavour that I don’t care for. Perhaps I’ll try the rest of the tea I have without the soybeans, to make sure that’s the problem. I’m pretty sure it is though; it’s not necessarily an objectionable flavour, but one I don’t really care for.

My first Lupicia tea!!!
A girlfriend of mine went to Japan visiting family and brought back a small tin of this for me. She’s a good friend :)
I received the gift last night and indulged in it this morning… so eager was I to try it out!
Funny thing though, I find I really need to be in the mood to enjoy a Genmaicha, and I simply wasn’t… sadly! Thus, my tea thirst was left unsatisfied. shrugs
As for the flavours, well I most definitely notice the rice, and the soybean. Not much different than your standard Genmaicha.
There is a strong roasted note, that reminds me of barley, which I suppose is the “bean” and toasted combo. Behind that there is a matcha sortof flavour, but I don’t find it very strong.
One of the other notes mentions adding some sugar, so I think I’ll try it that way as well next time.

This is one of the samples I got got indigobloom. I had it the other night, so this is a bit of a backlog. I used the whole sample, but perhaps maybe I shouldn’t have. It was a strong genmai cha roasty toasty flavour, which isn’t a bad thing…I love genmai cha specifically for those flavours. I could detect a little of the soybean. I had a slightly bitter brew, but it might be due to using all the tea, or not being diligent enough to watch the water temp or time too closely.

This was still a nice tea. It is a nice one to try, and I appreciate the thought to blend this all together.

There have been a lot of sick people around me, primarily because it’s that time of the year for midterms. I felt like drinking something healthy aka grassy tasting so I steeped a pot of this. I need something to wake me up that isn’t black tea, but the toasty flavor may put me to sleep.

1.2 tbsp for 375 ml

Nice roasted flavour. Extra savoury and nutty tinge from the soybeans. Oceanic quality of the green is present but possibly milder when compared to other genmaichas. Mild roasted flavour. Clear/smooth/soup-y mouthfeel.

Thanks Indigobloom for sharing!

A very underrated tea in my opinion. Excellent toasty flavor and full body thanks to the matcha. Takes a splash of soy milk very well, which turns the liqueur a beautiful mint-green. You can even eat the beans and rice after brewing (they’re very tasty!)

Love this tea. It delightful with milk and honey.

I’m having a very weird last few weeks because I’ve been really gravitating towards green teas in a way that I so incredibly not typical of me…

This was one I pulled out specifically because I was craving that more umami heavy, unctuous note of a steamed green tea. The toasty nuttiness of the genmai and the more savory soybean were an added bonus. Overall just incredibly smooth with an almost oily/brothy kind of quality to the liquor and this absolutely dreamy combo of nori, roasted grains and nuts, and something almost sesame oil or seed-like in flavour. I wanted to melt in the mug.

Damn it was good!

Super toasty and nutty.There was plenty of matcha powder in this tea. But ultimately the flavor of the soybeans were kind of offputting and I couldn’t finish my cup.

Woof. i remember really liking this tea when I got it eons ago in a Lupicia Fukubukuro bag. It has all the elements I tend to enjoy – matcha, genmaicha, savory elements, beans…. But this is one in my collection that has not stood the test of time. the matcha wasn’t the highest quality when i got this blend, but it was drinkable and arguably very delicious. These days, the color and fun of the matcha has all but faded away. What i’m left with is a marshy green cup of undrinkable swill. It’s a bummer, but there is no saving this tea. I put this down as a “Least Favorite Tea” in Ashmanra’s sipdown challenge, which is true only because this tea is old and gross now hehe. Maybe I’ll order it again and drink it in a timely manner LOL