Official what GREEN are you currently drinking?

[Streak]

So, I'm drinking tea I've recently re-discovered after it somehow ended up in storage for a few years. What's left of the label says "Premium Mao Feng" green tea. It's from Yunnan Sourcing, spring 2012.

This is my quick-and-dirty improvised setup tonight, brewing 4.5 year old Chinese green tea in a Japanese kyusu and drinking it out of a Mason jar. (Not that I have a lot of dedicated teaware to begin with, so all of my setups are pretty simple) I'm sure this would be cringeworthy to tea purists and connoisseurs, but having a less sophisticated palate, I really love how it turned out.

[JRS22]

I find that tokoname Kyushu do very well for Chinese greens and my favorite pot for Yancha is a Japanese red shudei pot. The key question is how did the tea turn out?

I don't know where you live but mason jars are very fashionable drinking glasses in some pockets of NYC.

[victoria3]

​Totally blown away by the quality of Ippodo's Tokusen Gyokuro (Premium Gyokuro only sold at Kyoto Main Store). It is a grade above what they sell online, at once refined and rich and yet light and subtle. A rich umami like dashi palate with a light liquor. The packaging is also tasteful. This may be the most exceptional gyokuro I've ever had, it exudes elegance in every way.

Ippodo Steep Guidelines
1st: 10gr/2.7oz (80ml )/140f (60c)/90sec.
2&3rd: no steeping time necessary as leaves are already open

Parameters I settled on:
1st: 10gr/ 2.7oz (80ml )/ 60c (140f)/90sec.
2nd: 80ml/140f/50sec.
3rd: 80ml/140f/1.5min.
4th: 80ml/143f/3min.
5th: 80ml/145f/6min.
6th: 80ml/148f/steep overnight in refrigerator

[Streak]

I find that tokoname Kyushu do very well for Chinese greens and my favorite pot for Yancha is a Japanese red shudei pot. The key question is how did the tea turn out?

I don't know where you live but mason jars are very fashionable drinking glasses in some pockets of NYC.

I'm so amused to hear that, as utterly un-hip as I am. I'm not far from NYC geographically, but culturally, my semi-rural town might as well be a different planet.

Earlier tonight I had "gyokuro kin" from Den's Tea. Unlike most of what I've been drinking lately, this is from a very recent order that just arrived today. I've had mixed experience with Gyo and sencha in the past, and this time started off a bit rocky. The first few sips were bitter enough to be slightly unpleasant.

The tea is described thusly on Den's website:

Great harmony of natural sweetness and slight bitterness.

(And, if anyone is interested:

Origin: Asahina, Shizuoka
Harvest: First Flush 2016
Species: Yabukita )

I think I might have actually gotten the brewing temp/time/leaf-to-water ratio correct and what I was finding initially distasteful was the natural bitterness. I'm pretty sensitive to bitterness, so what he calls "slight" is probably more intense to me.

In spite of the initial impression, by the end, I was surprised at how much I was enjoying it. It's not that I was getting acclimated to the bitterness (although that might be true), but that the other qualities and flavors became more noticeable. It does have a very pleasant, mild sweetness and a mild to moderate vegetal taste, both of which really made up for any perceived failings.

Incidentally, the tea liquor is distinctly green. Much more so than the Chinese greens I usually drink, which often look virtually indistinguishable from white/yellow tea.

Bitterness aside, this was very enjoyable. I'm looking forward to trying it again, perhaps with slightly cooler water temp or using slightly less leaf.

[chingwa]

I don't know where you live but mason jars are very fashionable drinking glasses in some pockets of NYC.

In 2014 we started to see this in restaurants in my decidedly un-fashionable neighborhood and that's when I knew we'd hit peak-mason-jar. I think the trend is dying out now... mason jars being too passe for 2016... I'm not sure what affectation has replaced it though

[chingwa]

Bitterness aside, this was very enjoyable. I'm looking forward to trying it again, perhaps with slightly cooler water temp or using slightly less leaf.

Did you follow the instructions from Den's website? Gyokuro can be very tricky, and the 160F water they list is quite a bit hotter than what I normally do. I almost always ignore the recommended instructions, especially for Gyokuro. My initial parameters for gyokuro are as follows:

4-5g leaf
3-4oz water
130-135F
120 seconds

Essentially, more leaf than you think, and much cooler than you think. This tends to maximize the 'sweet' factor of gyokuro and minimizes the bitterness, despite the amount of leaf you use. I usually do the above first and then alter either the amount of leaf I add, or the length of steep between 90-120. I never go hotter than 135 on the first steep though.

[victoria3]

Bitterness aside, this was very enjoyable. I'm looking forward to trying it again, perhaps with slightly cooler water temp or using slightly less leaf.

Did you follow the instructions from Den's website? Gyokuro can be very tricky, and the 160F water they list is quite a bit hotter than what I normally do. I almost always ignore the recommended instructions, especially for Gyokuro. My initial parameters for gyokuro are as follows:

4-5g leaf
3-4oz water
130-135F
120 seconds

Essentially, more leaf than you think, and much cooler than you think. This tends to maximize the 'sweet' factor of gyokuro and minimizes the bitterness, despite the amount of leaf you use. I usually do the above first and then alter either the amount of leaf I add, or the length of steep between 90-120. I never go hotter than 135 on the first steep though.

I second chingwa's recommendations re gyokuro steeping. Although, I tend to first try a vendor's recommendation and refine steeps from there - unless I've tried that vendors other teas and find their steeping parameters are too weak or too bitter for my taste. I just had Ippodo's Premium Gyokuro and followed their recommended parameters; they were perfect at 10gr/ 2.7oz (80ml)/140f (60c)/90sec. = 3.7:1 ratio which is quite high but was perfect for their gyokuro.

From my notes on Den's Suimei Gyokuro; following their recommendation my steeps also came out slightly bitter at 1:1/160f , so I upped the leaf to water ratio, and cooled the water way down to 2:1/120F. It was flavorful, yet still ‘slightly’ brassy and didn't blow me away. You might try Ippodo's Tenka-ichi Gyokuro for a rich umami, smooth, sweet and elegant profile.

[victoria3]

I started the day with my older stash of O-Cha's 2013 Yutaka Midori. After being open for over 4months, the tea still delivers, although into the second and third steeps the flavor profile is not as wonderfuly sweet and rich as when first opened.

Followed up with cold brewed Ippodo's Premium Tokusen Gyokuro. Wow, blew me away. By far the best cold brew I've ever had, rich, creamy, sweet full of umami. After 5 amazing steeps, I put the leaves into the refrigerator with room temp. water for 24hrs. I wish I had a friend in Kyoto, I could mainline this stuff.

[chingwa]

...that's when I knew we'd hit peak-mason-jar. I think the trend is dying out now... mason jars being too passe for 2016...

OK I'm going to have to revise the above, just had a $15 margarita tonight and it showed up in a mason jar, in the middle of Manhattan no less. The mason-jar craze is still going strong

I just had Ippodo's Premium Gyokuro and followed their recommended parameters; they were perfect at 10gr

For whatever reason I often find that tea from Ippodo takes more leaf to water ratio than usual. Not really sure why that is, but I usually add an extra gram or two in order to get expected flavor. Love Ippodo though, have been to their Kyoto store on a couple occasions. I wonder if their NY store has this 'Tokusen' offering... I'll have to check in their soon.

[victoria3]

I just had Ippodo's Premium Gyokuro and followed their recommended parameters; they were perfect at 10gr

For whatever reason I often find that tea from Ippodo takes more leaf to water ratio than usual. Not really sure why that is, but I usually add an extra gram or two in order to get expected flavor. Love Ippodo though, have been to their Kyoto store on a couple occasions. I wonder if their NY store has this 'Tokusen' offering... I'll have to check in their soon.

I emailed the NYC store and unfortunately, Ippodo's Premium Tokusen Gyokuro is only available in their main Kyoto store.

[debunix]

...that's when I knew we'd hit peak-mason-jar. I think the trend is dying out now... mason jars being too passe for 2016...

I hope we're at peak mason jar: I have a house full of them, because I use them for canning and storage, but, I'm done with drinking out of them. Today, though, I saw the weirdest mason-jar item: a pet-waterer--one of those with a water bottle upside down on a bowl, and the water bottle was not an actual mason jar, but decorated to look like one!

[victoria3]

Today another good session with O-Cha's Yutaka Midori with my favorite diamond cut Banko kyusu (similar to Iroku Mori III but signature different so still researching)

[Teaarch]

Haven't posted in a while. Drank a lot of tea since then though (probably close to a kilo by now ). Here's some that stood out.

Two sencha's from Ôkawa-Ôma by way of Thes-du-japon, the Yamakai and the Yabukita. I got these two because I wanted to see how much the cultivar made a difference to the taste and aroma of the tea, as these two were apparently grown side by side, at the same altitude, and maybe the same age even (I forget). It was definitely an interesting -- and tasty -- experiment.

I kept going back and forth between which one I liked better. Some days it would be the yabukita, some the yamakai. Overall, I'd say the Yamakai won out for being a bit cheaper and a little less astringent (no real astringency though until the third steep) and a bit more flavorful of the two (fruity and sweet with a bit of umami and a long finish). I recommend brewing both hotter, starting at 185f (85c) and working upwards, to get the full flavor.

There was definitely a difference in taste, and though there was a lot of similarities, the yabukita still tasted like a lot of the yabukitas I've had from Uji or elsewhere (never had yamakai before).

I also had the oku-midori from Miyakonojo by way of Thes that I'd heard a lot of good about on here. This is another one were the cultivar made a big difference, as I had just finished a oku-midori fukamushi from Kirishima before digging into this, and my first impression was that it tasted almost exactly the same. There's like a bitter or maybe sour grassyness in the taste that can be a bit overwhelming. Thankfully, following the recommended temps here (brew even lower to get rid of it almost entirely) controlled that to where I finally found my self really enjoying this tea, much more at least than the fukamushi one. It's certainly a welcome change of pace, especially if you're bored of drinking yabukita in every shape and form.

Last of all, if anyone is looking for a good fustumushi to try I highly recommend the Ryôfû cultivar from Mimasaka by way of Thes-du-japon. For 1,080円 / 100g, it single handedly destroyed every tea I'd ever had in that price range, and many above it (it was my favorite of the bunch from Thes). Pleasantly surprised by this one, to say the least.

[victoria3]

After reading your post Teaarch, and checking them out on Thes du Japón site, I definitely want to try the Yamakai out "rich, buttery, evoking juicy fruit like melons." as well as the Futsumushi Oku-midori from Miyazaki, "a liquor that is extraordinarily clear, with vanilla notes and something of roasted hazelnuts. The flavour is very mellow and sweet, but subtle. There is absolutely no astringency, no extraneous flavours to confuse the palate. This tea runs down the throat in a most pleasant way, leaving deep flavours behind. It is very long in the mouth."
Wow, both descriptions are mouth watering, plus the long needles are beautiful.

Today I had Maiko's Asamushi Shincha Sencha Kinari from 2013. Its flavor profile has evolved nicely since I first opened the packet May 25th (after refrigeration). The liquor has maintained its lightness, with sweet umami rich flavors and has gone from a 'seaside woods seashore sincha', to a 'mellowed out smooth & sweet sincha'. Interesting how some senchas do better than others overtime in open packets.

Edit: I just revisited my May 2013 & June 2016 tastings of Maiko's Shincha Sencha Kinari and it seems the 2nd & 3rd steeps degrade faster and become more bitter as the packet is left open, even after lowering temperature; http://www.teachat.com/viewtopic.php?f= ... ri#p245316

[debunix]

Tsuen Aoi sencha from O-Cha. Somehow a package of this slipped into my recent order of the Kamairi Tamaryokucha that has been so good cool-brewed (and is quite tasty hot too). I had a lovely first infusion this morning, then put more hot water over it in the pot but was called away before pouring this second infusion. I returned more than an hour later, poured about half out and diluted it with more hot water, and the result is smooth and sublime--not what I expect from an overdone 2nd infusion. Love this tea.