Yunomi

Sipdown 68 – 2024

Really enjoyed this. Drank hot, but would probably be really tasty iced. Tastes like roasted seaweed. Really savory, lots of umami.

The only gyokuro sample I got in this order. I wanted to try a different company’s gyokuro, and an affordable one ($0.30/g) to see how it compares to more expensive versions.

A pretty great option for the price! I think the flavor is super well balanced and that’s the main strength of this gyokuro. The intensity is pretty high, but not extreme. Zero bitterness or astringency. Aftertaste lingers for probably 10 minutes at least, which is WILD. Somewhat energizing, but not a whole lot compared to other gyokuros I’ve tried.

Harvest: May, 2024
Location: Kyotanabe, Kyoto

First time trying a hojicha powder, and only the second hojicha I’ve ever had. At least for now, it is not to my liking. I tried it in an almond milk latte, and I feel the flavor of the powder is too overpowering and a bit off putting honestly. However, I plan to experiment with real milk (didn’t have any at the time) and changing the ratio of milk to powder to see if I can make a latte that I enjoy.

However, I doubt I will be able to come up with something that I love, so I am going to say I prefer whole hojicha to the powdered form for now. I am open to trying other brands in the future to see if my mind is changed.

EDIT: Have now tried it with real milk. Made the latte as such: 3 g of powder stirred in 40 mL of 150 F water (less than the 4 g I tried last time), then added to 250 mL of milk heated to frothing temp and then cooled to 150. This is much less intense and much better. I think this ratio and the whole milk are a better combination. Still not may favorite thing, but it’s not bad! Updating my rating from 40 to 70. And only $0.20/g.

Location: Yabe Village, Yame District, Fukuoka
Elevation: 600 m

A bit disappointed in this sample. Has a bit of an off note that is somewhat bitter, but not just bitter. Hard to describe, but even at 140 F, it did not feel as mellow and soothing as it should have.

Harvest: May 2024
Location: Yabemura Village, Yame, Fukuoka
Elevation: 300-700 m

A very nice sencha from Kurihara. While the website says this leans towards fukamushi, I think it’s actually the opposite. This is so subtle in flavor (at 140 F at least), that it tastes much more like an asamushi. It’s the lightest Kurihara tea I’ve had I think. In fact, it’s so light as to be a detriment; the flavor falls off a cliff after steep 2. I will try a more “typical” brew at 156 next time. This is also, I believe, the first Ooiwase I have tried.

Nice medium sweetness. No bitterness or astringency.

Harvest: May
Region: Yabemura village, Yame, Fukuoka
Elevation: 300-700 m
Notes: Regular steaming (40-50 seconds) used but leaves are young and delicate so the results is close to a deep steaming (fukamushi)

From my second order from Yunomi in 2024. Got a small flight of Kurihara’s other teas. This one is pretty nice! nothing super special about it, but a very solid sencha.

Sweetness is mild. No bitterness or astringency. Lasts 4 infusions.

Harvest: May 2024
Location: Yabemura village, Yame, Fukuoka
Elevation: 300-700 m
Notes: Regular steaming (40-50 seconds) used but leaves are young and delicate so the results is close to a deep steaming (fukamushi)

The first of the free samples that Yunomi sent with my order, though this was some leftover 2023 tea. Still tasted good, but I can’t help but think it was significantly better fresh.

I’m a sucker for asamushi. This one is very nice. Nothing wrong with it, but also nothing that stands out. Just a solid pick. Mouthfeel is mildly thick. No bitterness or astringency. Mild sweetness with strong umami.

Harvest: May 2023
Location: Ashikubo, Shizuoka

Flavors: Umami, sweetness, vegetal

The last of the samples I chose from Yunomi’s extensive catalogue. Not as good as #8, but still a respectable sencha.

Also very little bitterness or astringency, but overall weaker flavor than #8.

Harvest: May 2024
Cultivars: Yabukita-based blend (other cultivars include Saemidori, Okumidori, Okuyutaka)
Location: Upper mountains of Yabe village, Yame District, Fukuoka, Japan
Altitude: 600 m

Flavors: Sweet, umami, vegetal

Another wonderful sencha from Chiyonoen. Their teas along with Kurihara seem to be winners from Yunomi’s catalogue.

No bitterness or astringency. Pure umami sweetness and smoothness.

Harvest: May 1, 2024 (88th day of spring)
Cultivar: Blend of saemidori, yabukita, okumidori, okuyutaka
Location: Upper mountains of Yabe village, Yame District, Fukuoka, Japan
Altitude: 600 m

Flavors: Umami, sweetness, vegetal

Sipdown of the 2023 version. I definitely used too much leaf! I thought I had an awkward amount left and was just using up the last of it. Actually I mis-estimated and had fully enough for two separate brews. Honestly it came out quite good though. What I really wanted was gyokuro, but this was on top in the drawer and I didn’t feel like digging around for the gyokuro. Doubling the leaf on this sencha gave me a pretty gyokuro-like result anyway! The first steep has a thick, smooth, almost syrupy, mouthfeel. The flavor reminds me of miso soup – savory, vegetal, a bit mushroom-y, and a touch marine. The second steep came out even more flavorful with a stronger marine note. By the time I finished the second steep, my heart was racing the way it does when I’ve had too much caffeine too fast. I don’t know whether this is formally a high-caffeine tea but it’s definitely high caffeine for me!

I decided to cold brew the final steep. I’m on the fence about how it came out. I steeped it in the fridge for 24 hours but it still came out much more watery than the first two steeps. As it came closer to room temperature, the flavor opened up a bit more and I got a pleasant vegetal, salty flavor. Even the mouthfeel seemed thicker when it was not as cold. So the cold steep technically worked, but the end result was likely the same as if I had done a hot brew and allowed it to cool to room temp.

Another one from Yunomi. This is probably my least favorite of this batch of samples, though it isn’t bad per say. At $0.56/g, it is also the most expensive of the lot. I have to agree with the only reviewer of this tea on Yunomi’s site that the tea is a bit roasty in flavor, which is very offputting for a fresh green tea. The rest of the flavors are also pretty muted.

No bitterness or astringency and no to minimal sweetness. I guess it’s just not what I’m looking for in a sencha really.

Probably asamushi. Says it was shaded for 10 days.

Harvest: March 18, 2024
Cultivar: Shoju
Location: Tanegashima Island, Kagoshima

Dry leaf: Vegetal, umami
Wet leaf: Same
Flavors: Vegetal, umami, roasty

Pretty good but not amazing. Not as much punch as some of the other gyokuros I’ve had.

Got 4 good steeps. Definitely umami with minimal to no sweetness. No astringency or bitterness. Decent power, but not as energizing as I had hoped.

Harvest: May 2024
Location: Yabemura Village, Yame, Fukuoka

Flavors: Salty, broth, umami, seaweed, spinach, vegetal.

This one is CLEAN. No better way to describe it. So fresh and clear and elegant. Only the second kabusecha I’ve had.

Tomizawa has been making tea in the Kumamoto area as a family-owned business for 85 years now. They have produced an organic tea that was shaded for 2 weeks and processed as a chumushi and a tamaryokucha (or guricha).

No bitterness, and only mild astringency on the fourth and final steep at 190 F. Incredibly clear liquor with almost no defects. High sweetness and umami levels. I do not perceive any floral notes as some of the reviewers on Yunomi’s website mention.

Harvest: Early May, 2024
Cultivar: Okumidori
Location: Mashiki, Kamimashiki-gun, Kumamoto

Dry Leaf: Vegetal, nutty
Wet leaf: Vegetal, umami
Flavor: Seaweed, umami, sweetness, astringency, vegetal

Another one from my recent order. This one is quite nice as well! Holds up to 156 F brewing with 3 g. Not quite as good as some of the others from this batch. Less flavor and sweetness. However, still very nice and comforting!

Not as much info provided on this one, but presumably is a blend and chumushi based on my guess. Is also a mushi-sei tamaryokucha, which is the first I’ve had. I don’t notice any difference in smell or flavor. Less than 3% of Japanese teas are made in this style.

Harvest: Spring, 2024
Location: Imari, Saga Prefecture

Flavors: Grass, umami, vegetal

Next sample from Yunomi and the first I’ve tried from Nishide. The factory was established in 1860 and is currently run by husband-and-wife team Takashi and Atsuko Nishide. They buy aracha from Uji and surrounding areas of Kyoto and process them in their factory. The cultivar used is Osahiri, which is an early-budding cultivar.

This is the BEST sencha I’ve ever tried, hands down. I believe it is an asamushi based on leaf appearance and flavor. That is fitting, as a high-quality asamushi sencha was the tea that pushed me off the ledge into the deep end of this fascinating world of the leaf. Fukamushi and chumushi senchas are great, but something about the yin-yang interplay of a great asamushi like this with simultaneously reserved flavor followed by intense emotional and visceral responses is what captivates me.

No bitterness or astringency. Very delicate and refined front end followed by an intense umami and sweetness with phenomenal mouthfeel as it tracks to the back of your palate. You feel a soft rubbery object lingering in your mouth even after swallowing. The sweetness is medium-high and the huigan is off the charts. Longevity is 4 infusions. Balance is perfect. The value is amazing at $0.53/g; I would’ve expected this to be > $1/g.

So why 99 and not 100? The flavor falls off pretty steeply between steep 2 and 3. Perhaps it needs somewhat hotter temps at that point? It picks back up again in the 190 F final steep. Other than that, it’s perfect.

Harvest: May 10, 2024
Cultivar: Osahiri
Processing: Asamushi?
Location: Uji, Kyoto

Dry leaf: Umami
Wet leaf: Same
Flavor: Umami, sweet, vegetal, smooth, thick, artichoke, chalk

Next sample from Yunomi and this one is also great! I think they must have changed how they label Kurihara’s teas, as I do not recall the numbering system when I last purchased from them. I believe they sold a gyokuro that just went by the name “Kurihara Heritage Gyokuro.” Regardless, this tea is certainly different from that one.

Brewed 6 g in 100 mL for 14 mins at 75 degrees F, then 2:30 at 120 F, then 3:00 at 120 F, then 2:30 at 160 F. This brewing style works wonders. The first brew is still packed with L-theanine energy, though perhaps a bit more tame than the last gyokuro I had from Kurihara. The brew is crystal clear jade dew. The latter brews produce the deepest green liquor I’ve ever seen and no off notes. Packed with umami flavor throughout.

Absolutely no bitterness. A very slight touch of astringency on the last infusion. No sweetness either. Mouthfeel is full and lively. 4 infusions. Great value at $0.62/g.

Harvest: Late May – Early June, 2024
Cultivar: Saemidori
Location: Yabemura Village, Yame, Fukuoka
Altitude: 300-700 m

Dry leaf: Vegetal, umami
Wet leaf: Same
Flavors: Umami, stewed vegetables, broth, salty, energizing, savory

Sample 3 from Yunomi. I think I’ll reserve final judgement on this until I alter my brewing style. They don’t say on their website, but this one also appears to be a chumushi, though the flavor is more intense than #2.

The first two steeps were fairly bitter (more than the other two) but it was tolerable. No sweetness. The third and final steep was actually my favorite, so I will decrease the amount of tea to 3g/100 mL next time and see how it goes.

EDIT: This tea LOVES a cooler brew. Dropping temps from 156 to 140 F and quantity from 4.5 g to 3 g did wonders. Changing rating from 72 to 94. I mean, this thing is so beautiful now! Will make the same change on Chiyo #2 and report back. This is one of the things I love about Japanese Greens – they require finesse. I hope someday to be enough of a tea master as to be able to tell by looking at and smelling dry leaves what brewing parameters they desire.

This is now free of bitterness and LOADED with sweetness. Goes 5 infusions: 140 × 60, 140 × 25, 156 × 60, 190 × 60, 190 × 90 and still had good intensity. About the same price as Kurihara’s #24 at $0.33/g.

Harvest: May 2024
Cultivar: Yabukita
Location: Yabe Village, Yame, Fukuoka
Altitude: 600 m

Second sample from Yunomi. This one is super different from Kurihara’s #24. It is also a chumushi.

The farm is owned by a husband and wife. The husband’s grandfather Chiyokichi, was the founder of the farm and give it his name.

No sweetness. Mild bitterness with no astringency. Umami is present, but nowhere near as intense as the Kurihara. Longevity is 4 infusions.

Certainly not bad, but at the same price as the Kurihara, I would much prefer that one.

Dry leaf: Roasty, nutty
Wet leaf: Same
Flavors: Bitter, steamed vegetables, umami

A free sample with my first Yunomi order of 2024. They sent me this 2023 version in the same order as the 2024 version. This one is definitely not as fresh tasting and noticeably less flavorful than the 2024, but not too bad!

My shincha order from Yunomi is finally here! I pre-ordered it back in April and it took quite some time for all the teas in the order to become available before they could ship it. I am blown away by this first tea, truly! There is almost nothing wrong with it honestly. I liked Kurihara’s gyokuro in the past, so I wanted to start with their sencha this time. Supposedly this family has about 3 hectares of tea plantations.

This tea is a chumushi (40-50 seconds), but they say the flavor leans more towards a fukamushi as the leaves are so young, and I agree. Very deep umami with phenomenal strength and some nice sweetness. Longevity is 5 infusions; quite solid for a sencha. No bitterness or astringency. Mouthfeel is thick and smooth and rich.

At $0.30/g, this value is INSANE. Super excited for the rest of the samples!

Harvest: May, 2024
Cultivar: Saemidori
Location: Yabemura Village, Yame, Fukuoka
Altitude: 300-700 m

Dry leaf: Umami, vegetal
Wet leaf: Same
Flavors: Umami, vegetal, grass, sweet, rich

TTB tea! Here I am drinking smoked teas again! Actually, this isn’t bad. It’s meaty and smoky, but not overly strong. I did get tired of it after a third of the large mug, but that’s just due to my preferences.

I’m not usually a fan of green tea, but this one has been my favorite and I’m glad it has defied my preferences in tea. Yunomi lets you preorder their teas and this was one that I preordered last year. It is unbelievably smooth with plenty of nuttiness from its roasting. It has some nice acidity that lingers, but it is not too overbearing. Reminds me of the taste when you’ve added a splash of lemon to some spinach that you are sauteing.

Sipdown 39 – 2024

Finished this at work a couple days ago and truly cannot remember a thing about it.

I found this tea on a trip to Oshino Hakkai. It is an instant Matcha sweetened with Peach. It is very tasty and refreshing on ice or hot and very easy to prepare. Just add water and stir. The matcha taste is not very strong, but in this case, i think that it a plus. The Peach is so natural tasting and I like it pre-sweetened.
I only have a few packets left, so I am rationing it and hoping to be able to order some more now that I am back in the US.