Japanese Sencha Loose Leaf

First, I steeped the leaves in the smallest amount of water possible, using cold water. After five minutes, I drank that tasty, smooth infusion and then started it steeping hot, as normal.

Not a bad tea but it’s sort of thin-tasting. I don’t get the sense of there being a lot of substance or body to the tea, I guess. Not to say that it’s tasteless, it’s just a bit…ephemeral.

I’ll give it a try with a longer steeping time the next time I drink this tea, and see if that makes a difference.

Steep Information:
Amount: 2 heaping tsp
Water: 500ml at 175°F
Tool: Breville One-Touch Tea Maker BTM800XL
Steep Time: 2 minutes
Served: Hot

Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: vegetal
Steeped Tea Smell: sweet, vegetal
Flavor: vegetal, a little bitter
Body: Light
Aftertaste: grassy, bitter
Liquor: pale translucent yellow-green

I added 1 minute, the same result really.

MilitiaJim insisted it reminded him of genmaichai (toasty, rice)

I don’t have a strong love of green tea, and this one is not amazing enough, at least the way I prepared it, to warrant me getting it again.

I am greatful to LENA for sharing this tea with me, and her amazingly detailed notes and adorable little tupperware packaging.

Images: http://amazonv.blogspot.com/2010/08/zhenas-gypsy-tea-loose-leaf-green-tea.html

I like the nice little acidic bite—almost lemony.

Tried this earlier, treating it like I’d usually treat a sencha – lukewarm water around 70-75 degrees C, 4g per 150ml with a steep less than 45 seconds. Really didn’t have much flavor to convey other than dustiness and an off-taste like old bruised lettuce that’s been sitting out too long. Pushing the concentration seems to work better than the time and temp is working best around 85ish degrees C. Should prolly tweak around some more, but this tea really doesn’t inspire me to try too much… May have been okay at one time, but this is stale.
I thank AmazonV for this, as it’s interesting to taste the tea and then see what the company says about it. Had myself a good laugh when I saw they consider this to have “perfectly balanced flavor.”

2g per 60ml in a glazed ceramic gaiwan. 1 minute steep with 85 degree C water. Got a slackened second infusion out of it using a 2 minute steep and 84 degree C water.

Dry leaves are composed of 6 parts leaves (old cut grass-green with white reflection), 4 parts twig (pale yellow-green), 1 part stem (reddish brown). Dry fragrance is similar to a handful of dry hay. Slight off-ripe note like old wilted lettuce or rotten apricot in a plastic bag that you can’t quite smell but leaves an odd tint to the air in the room. Wet leaves slightly yellowish green and mashed together like most senchas… Not very much aroma at all. Wet leaf aroma is like the smell of sea foam, but very light. Liquor aroma kinda musty, like wet dust and a faint aroma of hedge trimmings. Liquor is clear and medium yellow. Hansa + Cadmium yellow with a little tiny bit of Zinc white mixed 1:1 with linseed and mineral spirits using oil paints. To those who don’t paint or feel this is too far a stretch at euphemism, I’m pretty sure this will come out looking exactly how it did going in.

Flavor? Couple bits of well-rinsed seaweed floating in the water I’m drinking. Body is sort of broth-like; thicker than I expected. Flat. When slurped, I can get more flavor, but it’s like slurping water from a stream with a lot of algae in it. Musty non-fruit “ripeness” through to aftertaste. I get the same sort of quality in the aftertaste of 7up that has sat out for a few days (well, remembered taste – I don’t drink that junk any more). Afteraroma similar to the exhalation after breathing in around washed up, withering brown kelp – sort of an oily sweet-sour impression in the nose.

Can’t call this okay or even unremarkable… won’t be buying it. Still, interesting to fiddle with for a spell to try to make something out of it. I get the distinct impression that this is the sort of “premium” tea companies oftentimes use to flavor/scent.