Flavor changes in old Sencha

[JRS22]

I ordered a Yutori kyusu from Den's Tea (after receiving lots of advice here) and since it arrived I've been practicing brewing various japanese green teas that I have on hand. I just noticed that the Fukamushi Sencha-Maki from Den's expired - the package is stamped "best before Nov 2008". The Sencha Zuiko was transferred to an old Adagio sample tin in Jan 2008 so I'm guessing that's past it's prime also.

Does age explain the predominance of bitter flavor notes, or is that just what I should expect from fukamushi sencha or any sencha? I'm trying to decide if I should start the new year with new tea, or keep practicing on old tea. So what's your advice - keep the old tea or deep six it?

TIA,
Janice

[Chip]

How long has it been open? Generally, high quality sencha should be used up in around 60 days of opening, but I can often sense a downturn in less time. Careful storage can prolong this however.

But past the expiration and open a looooong time is a bad combo for sencha. I am guessing this is 2007 harvest, just guessing. Another bad sign.

You might never make this stuff sing for you.

[JRS22]

I received the Sencha Zuiko in January 2008 and the Fukamushi Sencha-Maki in February 2008. I'm sure I opened both immediately. I moved the Sencha Zuiko to sample tins after opening, but I kept the Fukamushi in the original bag. They're both in a kitchen cabinet. Since my kitchen in not air-conditioned I'm sure it was warm in there for a good part of the time.

So would I have reason to be optimistic that fresh tea wouldn't taste so bitter? I know some people enjoy that, but I don't.

[Chip]

Hard to say about the bitterness. I would say much of the flavor profile is long gone by now, so the astringency (and maybe underlying bitterness?) becomes more noticable due to lack of flavor. Or maybe you are brewing too hot or too long which could make even the best sencha bitter.

But you really need fresher Japanese tea than 2007 harvest that has been open for a year. I doubt if trying to brew this stuff is going to teach you anything except don't let your sencha sit around for a year.

[JRS22]

I tried various time/temperature combinations both from this board and Den's instructions so I don't think thats it.

So OK - out it goes.

Now I get to try something new - maybe that Green Tea Gift Set at O-Cha..... 80 grams of Uji Sencha Miyabi and 80 grams of Kagoshima Sencha Yutaka Midori plus 2 beautiful tea cannisters!

[Chip]

I tried various time/temperature combinations both from this board and Den's instructions so I don't think thats it.

So OK - out it goes.

Now I get to try something new - maybe that Green Tea Gift Set at O-Cha..... 80 grams of Uji Sencha Miyabi and 80 grams of Kagoshima Sencha Yutaka Midori plus 2 beautiful tea cannisters!

Shuuuweet

Yeah the tea and canisters (have them) are awesome. I say go for the YM.
.

[britt]

I received the Sencha Zuiko in January 2008 and the Fukamushi Sencha-Maki in February 2008. I'm sure I opened both immediately. I moved the Sencha Zuiko to sample tins after opening, but I kept the Fukamushi in the original bag. They're both in a kitchen cabinet. Since my kitchen in not air-conditioned I'm sure it was warm in there for a good part of the time.

I ruined some Yutaka Midori from O-Cha during the summer of 2007 because I stored it in a metal cannister in a cabinet in a kitchen that gets very hot and humid during those months. The tea was newly opened but it didn't take long to degrade. Under these conditions I would discard what many others say and I would store it in the refrigerator. Better to be mildly degraded than totally ruined.

This past summer I did find a solution that kept the Yutaka Midori fresh in the same location without air conditioning and without storing in the refrigerator. I purchased a solid cherry bark tea caddy from Artistic Nippon because it is claimed that these naturally remove humidity. This caddy in no way appears to be airtight, which made me doubt the claims, but as the summer progressed and the heat and humidity increased, the tea seemed not to care one bit. This is the solution I'll live with. Don't confuse these caddies with the metal ones wrapped in the cherry bark; the one I recommend and use is 100% cherry bark with no metal.

The Green Tea Set from O-Cha was a big hit when given as a Christmas gift this year for both the two outstanding teas and the very attractive containers. However, I don't think these containers will be suitable under the conditions you described; hot, humid kitchens without air conditioning. If you do use these in the summer, I'd store them in the refrigerator. They are double-lidded so that should help keep out odors.

[Chip]

Interesting, Britt. I see they still offer them, but I am a bit confused about it being just Sakura bark since the bark is rather thin. Looking at the site, they have one that is layered over wood, while the other it is implied is just bark.

So, there is no wood on the inside and the walls are thin and bark only? Regardless, I will need to order one, too bad I just received an order from AN. Bad timing.

JRS22, the alternative would be to move them out of the kitchen of course. I use those tins and store tea in the kitchen, but only 2-4 weeks worth, the rest is in reserve in cold storage in the TeaFridge where it can remain pretty fresh for months if need be.

[britt]

Interesting, Britt. I see they still offer them, but I am a bit confused about it being just Sakura bark since the bark is rather thin. Looking at the site, they have one that is layered over wood, while the other it is implied is just bark.

So, there is no wood on the inside and the walls are thin and bark only? Regardless, I will need to order one, too bad I just received an order from AN. Bad timing.

The octagon shaped one is thin sakura bark over wood. I can't comment on that one as I don't own it, but the description doesn't contain the same claims as the one made from 100% sakura bark.

The other unadorned one that is offered in a large and small version is made only from sakura bark with no metal and no other wood used. Note from the pics that the thin part is only at the top where the lid fits; the main part of the body is quite a bit thicker, more like the thickness of the sakura bark tea scoops offered here and at O-Cha.com. I liked the large one enough that I purchased a small one as well, and I'm quite happy with both. This is the version that includes the humidity claim, which I have found to be true:

"Sakura bark is an ideal material for tea caddies as it has properties which regulate the degree of humidity. It was also used for Inro (small case) in the 17th century and for storing tabacco leaves in the 19th & early 20th century."

However, I purchased one of these caddies as a gift and it looked completely different from my two, so Toru has added a note on variations in appearance. Don't hesitate to ask him for pictures of the specific one you are purchasing. He seems more than happy to do this, as it prevents surprises and a potentially unhappy customer.

[chingwa]

Britt, thanks for the sakura tea caddy link, I've been looking for something exactly like that for a while, but the ones I've come across here are either engineered wood, or exorbitantly expensive for each piece. Just curious... when you store your tea in these do you empty the tea into them or do you still keep them in a bag for extra protection?