Matcha Karigane

[Bill]

I am a regular customer of Hibiki-an, and just received a complimentary gift of tea from them in celebration of their fifth anniversary.

The tea is called "matcha karigane pinnacle". It is not a normal matcha, as it is mostly pieces of stems. It is absolutely delicious, perhaps the nicest green tea I have had.

Hibiki-an sent me a tiny quantity of this tea once before as a gift, maybe a year or two ago, and I thought I would buy some, but I never could find it on their web site. Likewise, I do not now see it on their web site. They infer that this is a highly unusual tea, not even well known in Japan.

Can anybody tell me if there is a good source out there for this wonderful type of tea, or if there is any other type of tea this resembles its flavor?

Bill

[Victoria]

You have to look on the left side of the menu for Pinnacle Grade Teas:

http://www.hibiki-an.com/default.php/cPath/40

[Bill]

Yes, your link shows "matcha pinnacle", which I had previously seen.

What they sent me, however, is "matcha karigane pinnacle". Very different from normal matcha - all stems and no powder, and you prepare it much like a normal sencha.

They do have other teas that use the term "karigane" - sencha, gyokuru, houjicha (search their site on the term karigane). I wonder if these have a similar overall character to the matcha karigane.

Bill

[Sam.]

This one:

http://www.hibiki-an.com/product_info.p ... ucts_id/32
or
http://www.hibiki-an.com/product_info.p ... cts_id/409

Looks like it might be what you're drinking. It's a gyokuro made from only stems and it compares it in the description to matcha.

[Salsero]

Both of those look really interesting ... and unlike the matcha version, they are available. Anyone tried them?

[sriracha]

I'm interested in the 3-karigane set but it annoys me immensely that the price is just below what's needed to get the free shipping

Do tell what you thought of your tea after making some, Bill. =)

[Sam.]

Both of those look really interesting ... and unlike the matcha version, they are available. Anyone tried them?

I'm thinking maybe the are the matcha version he says he has. I could be totall wrong but I thought matcha meant that it was grinded, and he's saying the tea he was sent is actually not in powder form - it's composed of stem pieces like the ones I linked. So maybe they call it "matcha" karigane when they send it to him because it's made from plants treated the same as those that do eventually become powdered matcha?

[Sam.]

On another note, the pictures of the stems/leaves in the links I posted above look an awful lot like the regular kukicha "twig tea" that I have from Den's (http://www.denstea.com/index.php?main_p ... th=112_113). I like it a lot as it's smoother and less astringent than my fukamushi sencha when I don't need a cup of green tea with a kick.

So maybe this tea is like a kukicha but just from the much more prized plants that produce matcha and gyokuro? Den's also claims to sell a tencha-kukicha made from the stems of the matcha plants but I've never tried it.

[Victoria]

Forgive me Bill, in my anxious desire to help you, I missed the word "karigane".
But while on their site, I decided to place an order to get the free sample.
So I'll be finding out shortly how good it is. So thank you!

[Ed]

I had the "Matcha Karigane Pinnacle" last year. They have never sold it on their site, but they give it away as a free gift from time to time. It was tasty... but no better than a good gyokuro karigane. If you like it then you should like gyokuro karigane.

[Bill]

Forgive me Bill, in my anxious desire to help you, I missed the word "karigane".
But while on their site, I decided to place an order to get the free sample.
So I'll be finding out shortly how good it is. So thank you!

You're welcome (I hope), Victoria.

The last order I made from Hibiki-an was about three weeks ago. Then, my matcha karigane just appeared in the mail on Thursday, all by itself, a true surprise.

Now I see from your comment that they offer it as a gift with a normal order, too. Wow. I need to make an order this week. Maybe they'll send me another package of it, maybe I am "disqualified" from further gifts at this point, we'll see... I am going to order the three karigane set this time along with my normal sencha, as the result of the comments of others here about likely similarities. Then I will have four karigane teas to compare, side by side.

Bill

[Salsero]

four karigane teas to compare, side by side.

This sounds like a review is required as a public service!

I know I would love to hear how they compare ... a difficult task perhaps among 4 so similar teas, but ... any effort would be appreciated.

[malmstrom]

Just My opinion!

I've just tried the Gyokuro Karigame Premium of Hibiki-an!
The flavour of the wet leaf is truly STRONG, and also the infusion.

I've tried different brewing method:

50° 2min30sec - 50° 1min - 60° 1min30sec
55° 1min30sec - 55° 1min - 60° 1min30sec
60° 1min30sec - 60° 1min - 60° 1min30sec (with less leaf)

It was always too strong for me, the flavour is too much prominent, like a bush of flower. It'n not my cup of tea. I will try other method of brewing, but I suspect that I'm intollerant to this kind of flavour!!!

Instead the Fukamushi from hibiki-an is SUPERB!!!! With 3,5grams 100cc of water and 75°40sec; 75°C5sec; 78°c15sec I've found one of the most exquisite teas I've ever tried.

Probably I'm a sencha man more than a gyokuro one!!

[Bill]

four karigane teas to compare, side by side.

This sounds like a review is required as a public service!

I know I would love to hear how they compare ... a difficult task perhaps among 4 so similar teas, but ... any effort would be appreciated.

I would like to be of help but, alas, I know little that would be worth passing on. I am a knowledgeable specialty coffee/espresso enthusiast, but my total experience with tea is that I have two infusions of sencha tea, normally from Hibiki-an, every morning before breakfast. By working within this narrow scope, I have learned quite a lot about green tea variables and preparation (somewhat less complex than coffee at the level I am operating at, but still a lot to learn), but you can see that I lack any general perspective on tea tasting that would be of much value to a community of true tea enthusiasts.

I have learned something of interest about myself in reading comments on this thread. To me, the matcha karigane is delicious. It is naturally sweeter than sencha, it hits my palate more broadly, and the flavor is full/bold and pleasant. But it seems like this set of attributes may be overpowering to some tea experts. Perhaps, due to my coffee background, I need bolder input in order to have a response. Coffee is not a subtle beverage.

I got a big hint of this a couple of months ago. I found the Tea Chat board a while back, when I was looking for a source other than Hibiki-an for high quality tea. Mostly I read entries to get names, which I accomplished. I eagerly ordered two well regarded senchas from Den's. I was disappointed. I thought that the flavors were badly faded on both. My neighbor has a good palate, and has a lot of experience with Chinese teas. I invited him over, and had him taste both of these teas. I asked him "No flavor, right?" His response was they they both have a great deal of flavor, that they are very good teas. I was taken back, and realized for the first time that the flavors that experienced tea drinkers value may be much more subtle than what appeals to me. I went back to the Hibiki-an senchas (superior and premium), which are bolder than the Den's teas I ordered.

So, I will get these teas, and if I feel that I can comment with something less than total stupidity, I will be happy to do so, but I don't have high expectations for myself on the topic of tea tasting.

Bill

[Salsero]

I come from drinking coffee also and I feel that I am a lot like you, especially when it comes to the subtle Japanese and Chinese greens. I often find it difficult to put my finger on differences between different kinds of sencha, though I love the stuff. If you mixed up the labels on my sencha, I bet I would never know the difference.

I discovered some less subtle forms of Japanese greens lately, like green bancha, genmaicha, and yanagi and I find that I can related very easily to these rough and tumble greens. Sencha is still my staple among the Japanese greens, but these teas also speak to me and more directly! Excellent gyokuro can also pack a wallop. As much as I love matcha, it's another type where I find the differences difficult to grasp. I suspect we will both get better as time goes on and we consume more tea. Also, side-by-side tasting is a great way to refine your sensibilities.