Sencha Fuka-midori

This tea on the first infusion was completely unexpected. The flavor I tasted was initially just smooth and mouthing fillingly viscous, almost a buttery texture and . But what happened next was completely unexpected, sweetness came in and then a distinct flavor of dried pineapple. And the empty cup smells of sweet clover honey. A second shorter infusion was less than stellar and had a bitter and astringent quality to it, though the sweetness and pineapple flavor came back, but not as intensely. The mouth feel now is similar to the mouth coating quality of artichokes. Third infusion still has some of the fine white hairs from the leaves floating at the top of the cup. Third infusion was also less bitter and a almost as good as the first.

I made this tea almost immediately after getting my order in the mail this afternoon.

It is the perfect tea for getting me into homework mode due to its light flavor and smooth drink. The tea leaves themselves do not give off a particular noteworthy smell, but that does not mean in any way that it is not still amazing.

If you are thinking of drinking some tea to set yourself to the “getting things done” mode, then this is the tea for you.

Not for me.

A very nice medium quality sencha. Affordable and delicious.

This is one of my favorite green teas because it is so easy. I brew it at ~160 for about a minute (less for additional steeps) and it is always delicious. It is pretty sweet in flavor, and has a very grassy, vegetal aroma. I thought I disliked sencha for awhile, before I tried this tea. I think there were two issues- not brewing correctly (too hot and ending up with a bitter brew) and using low-quality sencha. This is good stuff, and very well priced from Den’s.

For a long time I wasn’t a fan of sencha. Now I realize that my first few attempts were with relatively low quality tea. Den’s has always seemed to be THE source for green tea so I ordered their green tea sampler and this tea was included. The leaves were a dark emerald color and smelled fresh but not quite the freshly mowed lawn smell I was expecting. I brewed this tea in a cast iron tea pot called a testubin with 170 degree water for two and a half minutes. This was longer than Den’s directions but my testubin is fairly large and I was worried about ending up with a weak brew.

The brewed tea had a slight roasted aroma but also retained the fresh smell of the dry leaves. This tea was naturally sweet and had a taste that lingered long after taking a sip. It was not bitter in the least. I compared a cooled cup and a still hot cup and they were both equally delicious. I think I would be hard pressed to find a green tea that was a refreshing as this selection. It was perfect for a warm northeastern day like today.

2021 Sipdown 34/365!

Second (and final) selection for National Virtual Vacation Day – a (very old but still very good) Japanese tea! I visited Japan back in high school and it’s very high on my list of places to return to.

You would never know that this tea is literally about 10 years old. My sampler order from Den’s was one of my very very first tea orders. However, they packaged their samples in foil envelopes and the flavour retention is incredible. This tea is a very umami, seaweedy, mildly sweet green and just addictive to drink. I’m sad it’s gone, but maybe one day I’ll order more.

This sample is ancient at this point, but I’m about to receive a shipment of fresh senchas, so I’m really in the mood.
Bitter on the first contact with the tongue, but in a way that amplifies the sweetness later. It feels very creamy for a green tea, but not so far as oily or thick. The sweetness is familiar, like that of dragonwell aftertaste, almost a sugar snap pea cotton candy. Delicious. This tea is only vaguely seaweedish on the mid sip, I hardly even notice it. Definitely not a marine green and very little in the savory department. It is worth buying again, and has kept very well for being probably over a year old at this point!

I really enjoyed this one. Did two sessions with it – one with the parameters I normally use for sencha (4g in 150mL with 160 degree water, sometimes going up to 165 a couple steeps in) and one with Den’s Tea’s recommended parameters, which seemed a little weird to me (1st steep, 180 degrees for 60s, second steep boiling water for 15s). I liked it both ways, but I think my normal method was a bit better. These leaves smelled nice. Had the classic roasted nutty grass smell of sencha.

1st Session: 60s, 30s, 45s, 90s
The first steep was the best to me, with just a touch of bitterness, good sweetness with vegetal, grass, and roasty notes and a smooth, almost buttery feel. Next steep had a more pronounced vegetal taste, like spinach, with a bitter finish and sweet aftertaste. After this steep, I pushed the temp up to 170 degrees. The next steep was vegetal with a bitter finish and was noticeably more watery. The final steep was just a light and subtle vegetal sweetnes.

Session 2: 180 degree water for 60s followed by boiling water for 15s.
First steep was a bit more pungent in its flavor with an almost sour bitterness – I think that was the grassy flavor, at the front followed by a very deep roasty vegetal flavor. The next steep had some bitterness with a thick, creamy feel and nice grassy flavor. The taste of the cup got better as it cooled down.

Of all the teas I’ve tried from Den’s, this is my favorite. It has a nutty flavor with just enough grassiness to make a pleasant compliment to the nuttiness rather than overpower it. This tea is easy on the stomach and palate. It gets a bit bitter if steeped too long, but it has never gotten to the point of being distasteful.