Hello all! In case anyone has noticed, I’ve been a bit MIA for a couple of weeks-ish. I’ve been in Hawaii! I got back earlier today and am finally all unpacked, including the massive amounts of tea I purchased while there. After all, there is a Lupicia in the Ala Moana mall. And Shirokiya, the Japanese department store also in Ala Moana Center, had a long row of tea. Oh yeah, and Don Quijote (the Japanese discount store) had some tea – including Maeda-en stuff. So yeah, I got 10 different teas in Hawaii, most of them sencha. And when I got home I had a delightful package from Chicago Tea Garden waiting for me with 4 more teas and my new yunomi that I ordered before I left. (I got this one – http://www.chicagoteagarden.com/buy/yunomi/yunomi-cup-03 – it’s awesome!)
Anyway, lots of Steepstering (and real-life things) to catch up on and that always goes better with tea. I cracked this one open before my trip for a swap but didn’t get a chance to try it. So I’m passing on my hordes of new tea to try a new-to-me tea (though it’s been sealed in my pantry for a while).
Tossing the dry leaf into a pre-heated pot smells sooooo tasty. Not buttery like some of my favorite senchas, but still sweet, vegetal and surprisingly fresh.
The taste is also fresh and very crisp and clean, also a bit thin? As it cools though, the taste thickens and it begins to taste like honeydew melon and a little fresh grass with some sort of not-quite-salty-but-somehow-oceanic lower note that’s really attractive. It still has this remarkable crisp/lightness to it even though it feels a little fuzzy/comforting. It’s not as thick and heavy of mouthfeel as my normal senchas but it is very nice. Oddly, the final sip gave me some white grape flavor, which I’ve honestly never gotten from any sencha before so maybe it was just a short circuit in my tastebud/brain connection.
Second steep, instant pour: This makes me think of apples even though, yeah, it doesn’t actually taste like apples. Perhaps my taste buds are jetlagged? Or, upon more consideration, perhaps it is because this steep has a crisp sweetness coupled with a little bit of texture which gives me apple-like feelings? Or both. Or something. I don’t know, it’s good.
5g/10oz/pour started at 40s
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So jeolous, when I was in Hawaii this past March I had a lot of my In-laws with me and that meant no time to hunt or buy tea it was so sad. I plan on going back in 2012 and it will be just my hubby and daughter, lots of tea then.
welcome back! it sounds like you had a great time! I can’t wait to hear your reviews of the new teas :)
Oh wow, this stuff sounds amazing drool
Interesting that you found it to be a bit on the thinner side and I found it to be a wee bit strong. I suspect I’m more heavy handed on leaf amount than you are. Now that I’m reading this again while drinking it, I completely agree about the melon note. I hadn’t thought of that.
You are adorable and I miss you.
RachanaC – If you like Japanese greens, seriously hit up Shirokiya when you are there. They have tons of food stuff on their second floor, including a nice long row of loose tea. I got about 5 teas there but there were still more I was eying. One of them I’m not even 100% sure exactly what it is – I couldn’t recognize too many of the kanji (because my Japanese sucks) but with what I could grasp, I thought it looked good. Ironically, the brewing directions are translated into English. Nothing else though.
oOTeaOo – Thanks! I can’t wait to try them all! I’m going to try to be good and only open one at a time so they all stay fresh(er). We’ll see how that goes.
Brian – It is! This and O-cha’s Yutaka Midori are must-orders for me for next year’s shincha.
Angrboda – I tend to go for pretty thick and pungent sencha so this might be on the pungent side in general but compared to my favorites, it’s a little lighter, if that makes sense. Plus, sencha does tend to be really heavy – I think my 5g was maybe an even teaspoon? Perhaps less? I imagine it is easy to be heavy handed on the leaf for that. But good sencha like this should do nicely even heavy on the leaf – and it looks like you liked it so yay!
Teaplz – !!! You live! SQUEE! Hello!!!! So nice to see you again!
Yes, I used two even-ish teaspoons for my 400ml pot. It’s my standard leaf amount unless we’re talking really big leafed stuff like oolongs or whites (in which case the leaf amount used is ‘some’). I’m not deeply experienced with sencha yet either, so that might be another factor. I’m only scratching the surface. :)
No worries – good sencha can be played around with (heavy leaf, short steep time, etc) to match your own desired pungency/strength likes and still turn out tasty!
Don Quijote was my favorite supermarket while I was in Hawaii. Its really fascinating how much they have.
I had been to the store when it was a Daiei years and years ago but only vaguely remember it so I was amazed and kind of in awe at the amount of stuff Don Quijote had. And honestly, anywhere with that much Japanese food, I’m going to love.
So jeolous, when I was in Hawaii this past March I had a lot of my In-laws with me and that meant no time to hunt or buy tea it was so sad. I plan on going back in 2012 and it will be just my hubby and daughter, lots of tea then.
welcome back! it sounds like you had a great time! I can’t wait to hear your reviews of the new teas :)
Oh wow, this stuff sounds amazing drool
Interesting that you found it to be a bit on the thinner side and I found it to be a wee bit strong. I suspect I’m more heavy handed on leaf amount than you are. Now that I’m reading this again while drinking it, I completely agree about the melon note. I hadn’t thought of that.
You are adorable and I miss you.
RachanaC – If you like Japanese greens, seriously hit up Shirokiya when you are there. They have tons of food stuff on their second floor, including a nice long row of loose tea. I got about 5 teas there but there were still more I was eying. One of them I’m not even 100% sure exactly what it is – I couldn’t recognize too many of the kanji (because my Japanese sucks) but with what I could grasp, I thought it looked good. Ironically, the brewing directions are translated into English. Nothing else though.
oOTeaOo – Thanks! I can’t wait to try them all! I’m going to try to be good and only open one at a time so they all stay fresh(er). We’ll see how that goes.
Brian – It is! This and O-cha’s Yutaka Midori are must-orders for me for next year’s shincha.
Angrboda – I tend to go for pretty thick and pungent sencha so this might be on the pungent side in general but compared to my favorites, it’s a little lighter, if that makes sense. Plus, sencha does tend to be really heavy – I think my 5g was maybe an even teaspoon? Perhaps less? I imagine it is easy to be heavy handed on the leaf for that. But good sencha like this should do nicely even heavy on the leaf – and it looks like you liked it so yay!
Teaplz – !!! You live! SQUEE! Hello!!!! So nice to see you again!
Yes, I used two even-ish teaspoons for my 400ml pot. It’s my standard leaf amount unless we’re talking really big leafed stuff like oolongs or whites (in which case the leaf amount used is ‘some’). I’m not deeply experienced with sencha yet either, so that might be another factor. I’m only scratching the surface. :)
No worries – good sencha can be played around with (heavy leaf, short steep time, etc) to match your own desired pungency/strength likes and still turn out tasty!
Don Quijote was my favorite supermarket while I was in Hawaii. Its really fascinating how much they have.
I had been to the store when it was a Daiei years and years ago but only vaguely remember it so I was amazed and kind of in awe at the amount of stuff Don Quijote had. And honestly, anywhere with that much Japanese food, I’m going to love.