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I am a little short on greens this month, help?
Posted: Jun 4th, '13, 02:15
by jbu2
looking for a good relaxing tea but it seems that only sencha got to the store and i am looking for a relaxing tea for job interviews so i am thinking for something in the lines of gyokuro or white tea, but they will come to stores online at least about a month from now, what should i buy in the meantime ?
p.s
how do you know if ippodo is selling the 2013 or the 2012 gyokuro ?
Re: i am a little short on greens this month, help?
Posted: Jun 4th, '13, 08:10
by Chip
You can ask Ippodo ...
However, 2012 Gyokuro is arguably better than an unaged 2013 Gyokuro.
Re: I am a little short on greens this month, help?
Posted: Jun 4th, '13, 08:38
by jbu2
i thought that the fresher the better Gyokuro ?
also i am under the impression that 2012 wasn't one of the best tea years .
Re: I am a little short on greens this month, help?
Posted: Jun 4th, '13, 10:30
by amaranto
Re: I am a little short on greens this month, help?
Posted: Jun 4th, '13, 11:52
by Chip
jbu2 wrote:i thought that the fresher the better Gyokuro ?
also i am under the impression that 2012 wasn't one of the best tea years .
This happens every year, one person says yay, one says nay, regarding how good a crop is in general.
It is usually not so easy as painting with such a broad stroke as there are more likely good and bad each year.
I found 2012 to be a good year in general for the Gyokuro I sampled.
Re: I am a little short on greens this month, help?
Posted: Jun 4th, '13, 16:08
by MIKE_B
Ippodo releases their gyokuro in the fall.
I am drinking their gyokuro ippoen as I type this. Harvested in 1012. I think it's excellent.
Re: I am a little short on greens this month, help?
Posted: Jun 4th, '13, 16:22
by sherubtse
jbu2 wrote:looking for a good relaxing tea but it seems that only sencha got to the store and i am looking for a relaxing tea for job interviews
Any tea that puts a smile on your face should do the trick!
Best wishes,
sherubtse
Re: I am a little short on greens this month, help?
Posted: Jun 5th, '13, 09:16
by Kevangogh
jbu2 wrote:i thought that the fresher the better Gyokuro ?
also i am under the impression that 2012 wasn't one of the best tea years .
Chip is spot on. A 2012 gyokuro right now will be better than a 2013 gyokuro. This also applies to matcha. When you see companies hyping "shincha" gyokuro or matcha, what it really means is there is no more of the preferred, previous year's harvest left. Not that you can't drink 2013 gyokuro, and not that it can't be good, but it will have a "green" taste to it and will improve with aging.
Re: I am a little short on greens this month, help?
Posted: Jun 5th, '13, 11:15
by Chip
MIKE_B wrote:Ippodo releases their gyokuro in the fall.
I am drinking their gyokuro ippoen as I type this. Harvested in 1012. I think it's excellent.
That is some seriously aged Gyokuro!
Biohorn was just drinking some from around 2001
that he had left in the freezer all that time ...
Kevangogh wrote:Chip is spot on. A 2012 gyokuro right now will be better than a 2013 gyokuro. This also applies to matcha. When you see companies hyping "shincha" gyokuro or matcha, what it really means is there is no more of the preferred, previous year's harvest left. Not that you can't drink 2013 gyokuro, and not that it can't be good, but it will have a "green" taste to it and will improve with aging.
I am still curious what the "green taste" would be like? But this time of year, I am too focused on Shincha to explore that route.
Re: I am a little short on greens this month, help?
Posted: Jun 5th, '13, 11:37
by JRS22
Chip wrote:MIKE_B wrote:Ippodo releases their gyokuro in the fall.
I am drinking their gyokuro ippoen as I type this. Harvested in 1012. I think it's excellent.
That is some seriously aged Gyokuro!
And definitely organically grown
Re: I am a little short on greens this month, help?
Posted: Jun 5th, '13, 19:04
by victoria3
Kevangogh wrote:jbu2 wrote:i thought that the fresher the better Gyokuro ?
also i am under the impression that 2012 wasn't one of the best tea years .
Chip is spot on. A 2012 gyokuro right now will be better than a 2013 gyokuro. This also applies to matcha. When you see companies hyping "shincha" gyokuro or matcha, what it really means is there is no more of the preferred, previous year's harvest left. Not that you can't drink 2013 gyokuro, and not that it can't be good, but it will have a "green" taste to it and will improve with aging.
Being curious, I pre-ordered Maiko's Sincha Gyokuro this year to see what it's all about. It is shade grown so the big difference is it has not breathed/is not aged till autumn, so the flavor will not be enhanced in this way. It should have a higher theanine content (sweeter, more umami) than other sinchas from being shaded. Unfortunately I put it in the refrigerator to use later in the year- what was I thinking- a hybrid situation may be produced.
Re: I am a little short on greens this month, help?
Posted: Jun 5th, '13, 19:22
by MIKE_B
Chip wrote:MIKE_B wrote:Ippodo releases their gyokuro in the fall.
I am drinking their gyokuro ippoen as I type this. Harvested in 1012. I think it's excellent.
That is some seriously aged Gyokuro!
Oops.
Add another millenium to that.
Re: I am a little short on greens this month, help?
Posted: Jun 6th, '13, 03:43
by jbu2
so why vendors say stuff like 9 month shelf life ?
had an open two month Gyokuro, all of the deep,full body taste was gone .
Re: I am a little short on greens this month, help?
Posted: Jun 6th, '13, 04:22
by Kevangogh
The shelf life reflects an unopened bag of tea. Once you open it, you're lucky to get 2 months out of it.
Re: I am a little short on greens this month, help?
Posted: Jun 6th, '13, 05:48
by jbu2
so what i'm saying is if the freshness is that delicate, how can an aged one be better ?