Oi Ocha

A thoughtful birthday treat from a friend, and a welcome one—it’s unseasonably warm today and a little stuffy in the house, so chilled tea is the order of the day. (Way too early in the year to kick on the AC. We’ll rough it.)

Normally I avoid bottled teas because of the nasty citric acid that hits you first. This one uses ascorbic acid instead, which doesn’t curl my tongue quite so much. Along with preserving the drink, it bombs you with some nice healthy Vitamin C. A healthy shot of anything is appropriate when one … is no longer 21. As to the flavor, it’s a solid workhorse green base that reminded me a little of barley tea—somewhat toasty instead of vegetal.

Gotta text the friend and find out where she got it locally…this is worth a repeat.

Has a stronger green tea flavor than a lot of similar beverages on the market. It isn’t sweet at all which may put some people off. Honestly I’d rather brew some loose leaf than buy a bottle of this, but if that wasn’t an option then this isn’t a bad second choice.

Okay, actually I have this in tea bag form. So prepared hot. I have no idea where I get it, but; looks fresh.

Opened the foil wrapping with my carpet cutter (well, collection, you know :D) and lots of dust went out. A matcha? Anyway, I wanted a green tea today and it is a green tea.
Heated the kettle, the cup, in the cup it goes… Forgot completely make notes about dry leaf! Here is it!
Dry aroma was very strong, I noticed lots of fresh peas, while my brother thought it is rather freshly mowed grass. Both of us are right I guess, then some vergetal notes, and at laste (but not least) buttery and umami.

Added water, about 76°C if my thermometer don´t lie. On bag is just “pour boiled water”. Hehe, 30 seconds steep? Nope here, as I probably used much bigger cup than they mean I used 90 seconds. And tea looks done. A cloudy, lime green liquor. Quite light.

Flavours, taste, whatever you call it. Vegetal, buttery, maybe bit nutty. But tasty green tea. It is 6 pm, and I am drinking probably quite strong green tea? Great, I won´t sleep I guess. So what?

If you get lucky to get it hot, I can recommend it fully! There are better green teas, not so buttery, but up to each one taste.

I’m kind of backlogging indirectly here. I am drinking a bottle of this tea as I type this review, but I have had this before. I used to drink this tea in college. I recall purchasing it when I wanted a green tea on the go. I think I always used to buy it at either CVS or Walgreen’s, but I could be wrong. I used to stock up on this and Arizona Blueberry White Tea so I could have some bottled teas to throw in the fridge and grab on the way to class.

Drinking this now, I can see why I used to buy it so frequently. It has a mildly vegetal nose. In the mouth, there is a nicely pronounced grassiness, as well as hints of hay, straw, and vegetables. The ascorbic acid presence is not particularly noticeable. I also get a slightly peachy, nectar-like sweetness on the back of the throat.

Overall, I think this is a nice bottled green tea. I am really enjoying it iced at the moment. I could see myself purchasing this one more often if it were more available in my immediate area.

World Market pick-up. Great stuff on a hot day. Not a whole lot to offer, but what it packs in the bottle is pure refreshment.

The best bottled tea I’ve had.

Yes! There is one bottled tea that I stand by. Oi Ocha has been my favorite for many many moons, and as far as I get into the tea drinking culture, as far as I advance in the tea industry, as dedicated as I am to the fine nuances of a freshly brewed cup— I LOVE my Oi Ocha. Call it a dirty-pleasure. Call it what you will. Just don’t try and pry it away from me.

LOVE this tea! Actually tried it for the first time in Disney World in the Japan Pavilion in Epcot. It is so crisp tasting. Trying to find it in a local store because I find Amazon a bit pricey for it. My favorite iced tea!