This is my first hojicha, so I can’t really compare it to any others. It’s a green tea, but I really like it. It’s nutty and toasty without tasting at all burnt. The aftertaste is sweet. But it’s kind of a light sweetness, more like a pinch of cane sugar than honey. It has none of the bitterness associated with green tea, and it’s not at all grassy or vegetal — a really really great green for someone who doesn’t love most greens. There is really nothing at all unpleasant about this flavor. I don’t want to add anything to it.
I know that hojicha usually has twigs, but the Yunomi site lists only tea leaves as the ingredient. This is the first green tea I’ve ever really really liked.
The only issue is that green tea usually makes me nauseous. I drank this tea with a meal, and I’m feeling slightly off… But I’m not sure whether this is a reverse placebo thing, or if I’m genuinely having negative side effects right now. I will reserve judgment on whether or not this tea will be okay as a regular in my rotation. But I hope that I can drink it because it’s really really good. I’m tempted to buy some more right now — it’s that good.
I have read that Serious Green Tea Drinkers don’t take hojicha seriously, but I don’t care. It’s inexpensive, low in caffeine and really delicious. Perfect with meals. I’ll monitor how I feel for the next few hours after I finish drinking it — hoping the nausea ends quickly.
I also have a sample of Den’s hojicha on hand. I opened them both, and this one smelled a little sweeter and a lot less smoky, so I decided to try it first. The dry leaves smell kind of like roasted almonds. The wet leaves smell a bit like basil, but i tend to notice that about a lot of wet leaves with a lot of different kinds of teas, so I’m not sure it’s really significant here.
I thought that I would mainly think this was preferable to other green teas — I thought I’d think it was just okay, but honestly it’s one of the best new teas I’ve tried recently. I love it — must get more if it doesn’t make me sick.
Flavors: Almond, Coriander Seed, Green Wood, Nutty, Oak, Roast Nuts, Roasted, Roasted Barley, Roasted Nuts, Smooth, Sugarcane, Sweet, Toasted, Wood
Tried this one again this morning with an additional 1/2 tsp. per cup. Taste is totally different. Now I taste mostly roasted nuts but not sweetness. I like it better the other way, but this is good too. I am not feeling nauseous.