Herald Tea

Another freebie, this time from my Tea Thoughts order! Thanks, Nazanin! :)

I haven’t had much experience with kamairicha, in fact I can’t recall whether I’ve tried it before… It’s a Japanese green tea, but it’s processed more like a Chinese tea, with pan frying instead of the usual steaming.

It’s quite delicious. I can see the similarities to Chinese pan-fried teas, it has the same comforting soba-like nutty notes that I would expect from a long jing, for instance. But underneath I can still taste that savory umami richness that is a hallmark of sencha, and Japanese greens in general. This tea has quite a bit of intensity to it as well, similar to a kabusecha or, to a greater extent, gyokuro. There’s also a very noticeable floral note to my palate, which makes for an interesting combination with the more savory flavors.

Very tasty tea, and I would definitely be interested in trying more kamairicha in the future. I’ll have to keep it in mind the next time I order from Yunomi…

I didn’t know about this company before, but I have two of their teas from past Tea Thoughts countdown boxes and figured it was time to dive in. I also didn’t know that unsmoked lapsang souchong is a thing, probably because I don’t generally drink black teas and especially not typical lapsangs because I don’t generally like the heavy smokiness. So I’m really glad that this was in the countdown box, because I never would have tried it on my own!
This tea smells absolutely amazing. It’s malty, bready, and almost chocolatey. The taste is malty, bready, and sweet, with a slightly dry mouthfeel. It goes really great with spicy Chinese food – the natural sweetness balances out the spiciness.