Karigane #22

I wanted to love this tea, but I just can’t get past the fishy taste. I think green teas may be an acquired taste.

Yay grassy!! I love grassy teas and this one is very grassy. Also taste the nori as described but I feel it smells more like nori then it tastes. I’m not getting a hazelnut finish. More like a marine flavor. Overall a good tea.

Received this from a swap, forgot who it was from ._.

Brewed in my shudei kyusu. Steeping times: 30, 60, 15 (at boiling).

The dry leaf purely smells of dried seaweed, while the wet leaf smells like boiled vegetables, mostly zucchini,and some asparagus. The liquor is bright green, full-bodied and thick with buttery and vegetal notes, finishing with a almond/hazelnut flavor. No astringency, no bitterness. Kind of sweet.

Man, this tea is so rich that I felt full only after drinking the first infusion, and I had eaten breakfast nearly an hour before. I’ve never had that sensation from drinking a Japanese green before.

This is only the first karigane I’ve had. This tea brews up a BEAUTIFUL greenish yellow color. The tea almost looks like it glows. I am getting the nori, grassy, and nutty notes.

I’m not going to give this a rating until I’ve had another chance to try it. I LIKE it. I just need another shot to enjoy the subtle flavors before I give it a score!

I had this one before heading out today. I should preface this with the fact tha ti’m not overly a fan of straight greens….i’d rather get my veggies by eating them. :) I was also a little skeptical of this one because the package indicates hazelnut notes… i was right. never did find those.. But on the whole, this was a relatively pleasant green tea that i got a few steepings out of. Nice to try….next!!

Rounding out my first box of steepster select, this tea is incredible. I spend a lot of time drinking and trying various greens, and this one was truly unique for me. It is quite grassy with buttery notes and a smooth, nutty finish. Really good.

It’s a good thing they offered this Dec box for free, because I wouldn’t have signed up otherwise. Now I’m hooked.

Beautiful green tea. Perfectly balanced roasted notes and fresh, green flavors, mild enough to definitely be green but bold enough that I would be comfortable pairing it with a sushi dinner as well as enjoying it on its own. Zero bitterness, just fresh, comfortable flavors. 9/10, would recommend and drink again.

I’ve already reviewed this tea, but I really didn’t give it the review that it deserved. The first few times that I steeped this tea, I was brewing it at 175 F and while still good, I felt like I really just was not getting as much flavor as I wanted. And since this is considered as an alternative to pricier gyokuro (tea wing’s description) thought I would brew it in a similar fashion as I would with gyokuro. I used 2 teaspoons, and started at 145 F (increasing by 10 degrees each steep). Once I did this, all I can say is WOW! The first cup especially, was stunningly good. “Deep and savory” like Tea Wing’s description. Please but this tea, you’ll be glad you did.

Backlog:

The third tea that I tried from the December Steepster Select box. A really nice green. The flavor is evocative of sweet grass and lightly buttered vegetables. It has a strong vegetative taste so if you’re one who tends to shy away from green teas because they don’t like that overly vegetal taste, then this is not the tea for you.

I enjoyed it though. A pleasantly invigorating tea. Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2014/01/02/karigane-22-tea-wing/

This is a great japanese green tea. I found that it reminded me most of a cup of matcha…probably because of the small, fine leaves. Very grassy and flavorful.