Yaroster Send Message

I recently tried Sencha Ariake, a green tea from Palais des Thés. Here’s my detailed review of the experience:

Preparation:

- Temperature: 160°F / 71°C
- Time: 2 min, 0 sec
- Tea Amount: 5 g
- Water Volume: 3 oz / 100 ml

I had some pretty negative apprehensions when I was about to try this tea. Like many others, I find most Japanese teas to be too herbal, even vegetably, with that typical astringency found especially in cheaper ones. For Matchas and Senchas, it’s not uncommon to find herbal notes mixed with a strong and direct bitterness that overshadows other subtleties. But this wasn’t one of those cases. In fact, it is one of the only senchas I was able to drink gong fu style — albeit with some consequences.

There are many reasons why Sencha isn’t really compatible with gong fu style. Its finely cut needle-like leaves are hard to block, and Sencha is usually infused for long periods of time. A kyusu thus being the more logical vessel to be used, and more generally, the tea itself doesn’t benefit much from a tea “cleaning” per se since the leaves are already broken. So I’m going to drink that 1st steep anyways.

With all that in mind, I tried a different method. First, I would infuse for 2 minutes at 71°C, then I would make two more 20s steeps, any more would be too bitter. Here’s how it went:

The herbal notes were prominent in the first steep, with minimal bitterness. However, allowing the tea to cool slightly increased its bitterness.

The bitterness overwhelmed the second steep, rendering it almost undrinkable. The vegetable-like taste remained present but overshadowed.

By the third steep, the herbal notes had disappeared entirely, leaving behind a strong bitterness akin to drinking ear wax.

Alright, although it may seem as if I hated this tea, this is truly one of the most surprising ones I’ve tried so far. The first thing that came to my mind when I drank that first steep was “fresh.” It was just fresh and very vegetably, like cucumber water. Just for that first steep, and the shock that it caused, this tea deserves more recognition.

Flavors: Cucumber, Fresh, Herbal, Vegetables

- Flavor Complexity: 18/30 – Good initial complexity, but quickly fades.
- Brewing Forgiveness: 12/20 – Sensitive to steeping times and temperature, can become overly bitter.
- Consistency Across Infusions: 10/20 – Noticeable decline in flavor quality after the first steep.
- Overall Enjoyment: 15/30 – The initial surprise and freshness make it enjoyable, despite the later bitterness.

- yaro