Umami

[trent]

Lately, I've become interested in Umami (the 5th taste), so I'm creating this topic as a place to discuss Umami in Green Tea.

If you don't know what Umami is, you can learn here http://www.umamiinfo.com/

Today, it was really hot in Santa Cruz, so I tried cold brewing some Sencha and noticed that it heightened the umami flavor.

Has anyone else noticed that cold brewing heightens the umami flavor?
I elaborated on this topic at http://trentea.wordpress.com/2008/06/10 ... ed-sencha/

[Pentox]

Yes, the umami flavor is actually why I enjoy cold brewing as much as I do. The first infusion normally has a very mild tea taste, but the umami is amazing. If you try it with a good gyokuro you will definitely be pleased.

[Salsero]

I am not that straight on what umami is, but I know when I brew gyo way too strong, I get a lot of something that I think may be umami. I got that same something when I threw in what I decided was way too much sencha leaf on the ice.

Otherwise, I think of umami as the charcter that makes my warm sencha taste like broth. I like that one. Some sencha does it much more than others.

[joelbct]

I'm not entirely sure whether umami is a flavor description (such as "sweet, sour, savory, etc) or an actual specific chemical compound, but I have heard that high-umami content gives matcha its particular taste, and probably gyokuro as well.

Ippodo states that theirWakamatsu Matcha is high in Umami. It is a very distinctive and delicious blend of Matcha, I will say that much....

[chamekke]

I have to admit, I'm still having trouble getting a handle on what umami actually is. I think it's a vaguely rich/savoury flavour that gives depth to the other flavours present, but to identify it for itself is a bit challenging.

Here's the list of foods on the Umami website that are said to contain umami:

Konbu, Seaweed, Parmesan Cheese, Dried bonito flakes, Sardines, Bonito, Mackerel, Sea bream, Tuna, Cod, Prawns, Squid, Oyster, Clams, Beef, Pork, Chicken, Tomatoes, Shiitake mushrooms, Enokitake mushrooms, Truffles, Soy beans, Potatoes, Sweet potatoes, Chinese cabbage, Carrots, Green tea.

[trent]

I haven't done it yet, but I think trying Konbu tea would help everyone get a better feel for the taste of unami. Supposedly, it has a really high concentration of unami.

They sell it at Maiko

[Pentox]

Ah to taste it is easy, to know what you're tasting is hard.

[Mary R]

I haven't done it yet, but I think trying Konbu tea would help everyone get a better feel for the taste of unami. Supposedly, it has a really high concentration of unami.

It should. Your konbu tea isn't proper tea...it's made from konbu kelp, and that is the exact organism from which Kikunae Ikeda extracted glutamate and promptly 'discovered' and named the umami taste.

[chamekke]

So if I knock back a spoonful of glutamate, that will tell me what the umami taste is?

[britt]

I have to admit, I'm still having trouble getting a handle on what umami actually is. I think it's a vaguely rich/savoury flavour that gives depth to the other flavours present, but to identify it for itself is a bit challenging.

Here's the list of foods on the Umami website that are said to contain umami:

Konbu, Seaweed, Parmesan Cheese, Dried bonito flakes, Sardines, Bonito, Mackerel, Sea bream, Tuna, Cod, Prawns, Squid, Oyster, Clams, Beef, Pork, Chicken, Tomatoes, Shiitake mushrooms, Enokitake mushrooms, Truffles, Soy beans, Potatoes, Sweet potatoes, Chinese cabbage, Carrots, Green tea.

I have no idea what Umami is but if it's in everything you listed, then I know I like it. I think I'll contemplate this some more over a sushi deluxe and some green tea (isn't there any Umami in sake?).

[Salsero]

It sure makes me feel better about being confused in the first place. I had no idea what total semiotic chaos surrounds this word ... most of it in Japanese! Thanks so much for the lesson.

[Chip]

I'm not entirely sure whether umami is a flavor description (such as "sweet, sour, savory, etc) or an actual specific chemical compound

That is a very good point. This throwing around of the word umami (旨味;甘味) is a bit confusing, because it is BOTH; but the word doesn't really distinguish between these two qualities.

Quite simply, umami means "good taste," it does not have to carry any of the associations of chemical compounds or definitions provided by umamiinfo.com It would help to distinguish between the umami that is "deliciousness" and the umami which could be seen as a new school devoted to the "5th taste." Japanese tea men have certainly used "umami" to describe the complex taste of a gyokuro, for example, long before the 1900s when the word got tacked on to glutamates and this new meaning.

It can be all the more confusing, as you will also hear umami in conjunction with amami (甘味) which more specifically and concretely means the taste of "sweetness." It doesn't help that the kanji for amami can also be read umami, making the two even more abiguous.

NOT to say that umami is simply the same as sweetness; but it helps to understand that a Japanese tea man MAY mean simply that when he describes a tea. And, if you consider gyokuro with its characteristic sweetness (which absolutely is known to be well pronounced in a nice cold infusion!) doesn't it make sense?

I hope this thinking helps somewhat =)

OK, I thought I was starting to get it with the Yutaka Midori I have been enjoying. As I was drinking it, I was thinking, I bet that is the umami, but now after reading here, am I thinking amami?

Maybe it is both. Very interesting! Thanx for sharing, tjfry!

[hop_goblin]

I thought Umami was a term used when a hot senorita passes by.

[Ed]