Genmaicha

Hoorah! Didn’t kill this one. I think I actually got the leaf to water temp to steeping time ratio right for once! Only the barest of astringent aftertaste, but the bulk of it is a nutty, earthy, brothy taste. This used to be one of my all time favourite teas and in light of my love affair with DT, it has been pushed to the back of my cupboard. The last few times I have made this it was bitter despite my attempts to not make it bitter.

I decided on this one because I had a Hemp and Matcha soy latte at Jaga Silk earlier and when I got home and wanted tea, I realized I was out of milk, so that ruled out some (well, most) of the teas I have…so I opted for more of a straight tea of the non-black variety. I have boatloads of this so I figured I ought to have some.

I don’t think it is my favourite genmai cha as I have had some that are very forgiving, and this one is not. It’s not bad…it is kinda hard to screw up this kind of tea, I think, but I think I have had better.

toasty and delicious.
we all know how unique this tea in general is. tastes like comfort food in your cup.

Oh I love Genmaicha. It’s probably my favourite way to drink green tea.

That being said, I haven’t had a really broad sample of varieties. I used to drink a bagged version from the Asian grocery store before I got into loose leaf teas, and this one from David’s has a much fuller flavour than those. The green tea is sweet and the rice is toasty and yum. I’ve also gotten totally lazy with this and completely oversteeped it some days, and it’s not gone bitter on me yet.

I do wonder if there are better versions out there, and I’d be keen to give them a shot once I’m through this tin.

PS – I totally judge the appeal of a Genmaicha by the ratio of popped kernels to unpopped, because I think it’s cuter if there’s more. Is that wrong?

Day 6 of 24 Days of Tea

SUSHI TEA! I will fondly always refer to this as sushi tea, because that is where I was first exposed to Genmaicha. Back then I didn’t know the name of the tea, I just know I loved the toasted taste when I ordered my sushi. I would always ask the servers what kind of tea it was, but only to be answered “green tea.” Then it left me thinking “Well Duh!”

At first sniff: You smell toasted rice. Let’s not try to get deep here, it’s green tea leaves and toasted rice. I’ve always wanted to try Davids variation of it though. I usually buy this stuff at the Asian specialty stores for dirt cheap, but can never seem to brew it the same way I have it in sushi restaurants. I think I’m over thinking it. I think they just keep dumping in hot water (boiling water that is) and continue to serve it. I guess I like it more burnt?

At first steep: Wow, very delicate instructions. 75C at 2-3 mins. I was ballsy and did it for 3 mins. It’s very light/delicate and one thing I always like about green tea is you can usually start drinking it right away, no need to wait. The first sip makes me realize I need to clean out my tea maker this weekend. I can taste what I think is Stormy Night, unless I’m just dreaming and they put coconut in this one too?!?!? This is definitely a go to morning tea for me. It wakes me up without sugar or milk. I usually buy a box of tea bags from the Asian grocer. I notice that there is a lack of tea leaves in the blend, and a lot of rice. Are we extra poor Japanese folks at DavidsTea??

I don’t think I will be buying this from Davids when I’m out. Their price is expensive when I can go to a Japanese market and get it there for far less. None the less, this is my favourite type of green tea.

I had this to-go with the straight tea promo (though I’d argue against it being a straight tea, really!). I don’t think you can go too far wrong with genmaicha, which is why I chose it. It hit the spot, but didn’t taste quite fresh enough. I think I’m spoiled with the Den’s genmaichas which have a really great contrast between sweet sencha and toasty rice. Still, nice, soothing, and smooth.

Here’s the thing. I’m conflicted about this tea as well, so it’s probably a good thing that I don’t actually do any numerical rating (that, and it’s inaccessible with my software anyway, so that’s that haha). When I inhaled the scent of this tea at the store, I was instantly drawn to it: it smelled warm and inviting, and not at all unlike comfort food in a canister. My sister was the one who actually asked for it, and purchased a tin of it write on the spot (she is also now obsessed with tea!).
This tea definitely has presence in your cup—that much is for sure. It isn’t a subtle flavour (unless you steep it for like five seconds), so it’s a tea you’ll likely be able to have an opinion on either way.
Here’s the conversation that took place in my head as I drank my first cup…and yes, I may be unstable!
“Oh wow! It almost has a popcorn taste to it.”
“Popcorn? well yes, if popcorn were a drink.”
“Well, it can be a drink now. It’s like comfort food.”
“Except it isn’t food. It’s a drink. And tea isn’t supposed to taste…salty, or soupy, or…savoury. or something.”
“You obviously don’t understand the intricacies of tea, then, because real tea drinkers know that not all tea need be laden with sugary sweetness in order to taste good. Do you know how amazing this would be paired with some food?”
..and so there you have it. I like it, but some part of me instinctively feels as though the concept of tea somehow precludes warm saltiness/popcornness/butteriness, but the more I drink it, the more I’m resisting that type of shoehorning. It tastes very comforting, not overly earthy, and has a perfectly soothing quality to it when not over-steeped. I will most certainly at least be getting myself a sample pack of this, and will likely be adding more tasting notes as I tinker around with it.

Mmmmmmmm. The best way to drink this one is with sushi. At one point I would buy sushi and a straight green tea whenever I went to work to motivate me during the seasonal times with stressful and rude customers. This tea is great! So nice and toasty. You can definately taste the grains in this one. It cheered me up during those stressful times

this was one of only two tins I bought during my 27 tea spree on Saturday. Tins of tea make me feel rich! Which I am not. Becuase I bought 27 teas on Saturday. And then 2 more tins on Sunday…
Anyway. I love this tea. I drink it at work when I’m starting to get hungry and I’m still a ways from lunch time. Tonight i was trying to resist the munchies (so far, still sucessful but it’s only 1am) and i brewed this. Then I got distracted and let it cool to almost room temperature. The kettle was already on for my next cup so I chugged this. Woah, it’s GOOD. I am going to try making iced fruity teas with genmaicha added. I think that’s the reason I love Sleigh Ride as much as I do…

I wish the scent of the dry leaf was more toastier. As soon as the water hits, POW, toasty blanket of comfort in my face.
Woke up fuzzy from christmas celebrations the night previous, my much loved morning cuppa coffee went cold, my jasmine black pearls over steeped and were bitter, i burned breakfast.
Time to haul out the big guns. GENMAICHA. This tea has yet to disappoint me.

No matter how many tea i taste genmaicha always see me coming back ( in fact i got a cup right now ) can’t say if taht one better than the other i drank since i don’t have all them with me to taste one after another but that one pretty good ( and don’t have to wait 1 week to get if i forgot to buy more before drinking them all yay for having a tea store at less that 20 minute from home )

Genmaicha is probably my most favorite tea right now ( just after genmaicha with matcha ) Not much more to say this tea is yummy and i hope it’s will stay that way