198 Tasting Notes
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, Chalky, 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
My first matcha from Kettl and it’s really nice! I have gotten my mom hooked on matcha, which I count as a wonderful success :). She has now fully switched from being a daily coffee drinker to a daily matcha drinker. She likes the flavor and says it doesn’t leave her as wired as coffee or hurt her stomach as much. Anyways, she asked me to get her a matcha and knowing the quality of Kettl’s sencha, I figured I’d send her some of this and she loves it! Had to get some for myself at that point of course.
This one is very toasty and nutty. Super smooth texture and very long aftertaste (minutes). Very mild bitterness.
This was the first matcha with which I used my new natsume, which I feel helps elevate the experience a lot. It is a beautiful piece of art and I will treasure and use it for many years to come :).
Dry powder: Toasty, vegetal
Flavors: Toasty, walnut, nutty, vegetal, umami, bitter, smooth
Flavors: Bitter, Nutty, Smooth, Toasty, Umami, Vegetal, Walnut
Sounds really good! I will have to look into Kettl’s matcha when I’m ready to replenish. Did you also purchase the natsume from them?
It was! Yea would def recommend. So the natsume was used from ebay. Got it for a good price at $50 and it is gorgeous! Kettl doesn’t sell lacquered natsume from what I’ve seen. And anyways the new ones are usually 100s of dollars haha
Sample 3 from Yunomi. I think I’ll reserve final judgement on this until I alter my brewing style. They don’t say on their website, but this one also appears to be a chumushi, though the flavor is more intense than #2.
The first two steeps were fairly bitter (more than the other two) but it was tolerable. No sweetness. The third and final steep was actually my favorite, so I will decrease the amount of tea to 3g/100 mL next time and see how it goes.
EDIT: This tea LOVES a cooler brew. Dropping temps from 156 to 140 F and quantity from 4.5 g to 3 g did wonders. Changing rating from 72 to 94. I mean, this thing is so beautiful now! Will make the same change on Chiyo #2 and report back. This is one of the things I love about Japanese Greens – they require finesse. I hope someday to be enough of a tea master as to be able to tell by looking at and smelling dry leaves what brewing parameters they desire.
This is now free of bitterness and LOADED with sweetness. Goes 5 infusions: 140 × 60, 140 × 25, 156 × 60, 190 × 60, 190 × 90 and still had good intensity. About the same price as Kurihara’s #24 at $0.33/g.
Harvest: May 2024
Cultivar: Yabukita
Location: Yabe Village, Yame, Fukuoka
Altitude: 600 m
Flavors: Artichoke, Asparagus, Chalky, Seaweed, Sweet, Umami, Vegetables
Second sample from Yunomi. This one is super different from Kurihara’s #24. It is also a chumushi.
The farm is owned by a husband and wife. The husband’s grandfather Chiyokichi, was the founder of the farm and give it his name.
No sweetness. Mild bitterness with no astringency. Umami is present, but nowhere near as intense as the Kurihara. Longevity is 4 infusions.
Certainly not bad, but at the same price as the Kurihara, I would much prefer that one.
Dry leaf: Roasty, nutty
Wet leaf: Same
Flavors: Bitter, steamed vegetables, umami
Flavors: Bitter, Nutty, Roasty, Umami, Vegetables
My shincha order from Yunomi is finally here! I pre-ordered it back in April and it took quite some time for all the teas in the order to become available before they could ship it. I am blown away by this first tea, truly! There is almost nothing wrong with it honestly. I liked Kurihara’s gyokuro in the past, so I wanted to start with their sencha this time. Supposedly this family has about 3 hectares of tea plantations.
This tea is a chumushi (40-50 seconds), but they say the flavor leans more towards a fukamushi as the leaves are so young, and I agree. Very deep umami with phenomenal strength and some nice sweetness. Longevity is 5 infusions; quite solid for a sencha. No bitterness or astringency. Mouthfeel is thick and smooth and rich.
At $0.30/g, this value is INSANE. Super excited for the rest of the samples!
Harvest: May, 2024
Cultivar: Saemidori
Location: Yabemura Village, Yame, Fukuoka
Altitude: 300-700 m
Dry leaf: Umami, vegetal
Wet leaf: Same
Flavors: Umami, vegetal, grass, sweet, rich
Flavors: Grass, Rich, Smooth, Sweet, Umami, Vegetal
Preparation
Free sample from my last order from WFT. This is a nice tea! I’m not usually one for roasted oolongs, but this one is quite good.
Very bold flavor. The roast is done with expert care. Supposedly was roasted three times. No bitterness. Mild-medium sweetness. Lasts 8-9 infusions.
Harvest: Spring, 2024
Location: Bagua Shan
Cultivar: Taicha No. 20/Ying Xiang
Elevation: 400 mg
Roast: Medium
Dry leaf: Coffee, charcoal, roasty
Wet leaf: Same
Flavors: Coffee, brown sugar, sweet, charcoal, smooth
Flavors: Brown Sugar, Charcoal, Coffee, Roasty, Smooth, Sweet
They advertise their roasts, and deliver on their own hype. They’re light roasts are also good, and the darker ones are always balanced and buttery.
I love all the info they provide on their teas! I find their descriptions are usually spot on. Might have to try more of their roasted teas in the future.
