Official what GREEN are you currently drinking?

[davidglass]

wow sincha is giving me a rush, a caffeine high rush. Those baby leaves sure pack a punch after another round with Maiko's 2013 seasidy and elegant Sincha Sencha Kinari.

How did you keep the 2013 shincha fresh? Magic?

Odor proof ziplock bags 'Loksak's Opsak' and refrigeration. I recommend after opening tea bag finishing the tea within a few months though as it degrades more quickly. I posted about it here;
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=21540


Locksak-Odor-Proof-Bags_sm.jpg

Thanks for the info. I wonder how long a really great aged gyokuro can last. Anything like a great Bordeaux wine? (I had an 1893 Chateau d'Yquem Sauternes in the 1970's, and I still remember the incredible aroma and taste.)

[victoria3]

wow sincha is giving me a rush, a caffeine high rush. Those baby leaves sure pack a punch after another round with Maiko's 2013 seasidy and elegant Sincha Sencha Kinari.

How did you keep the 2013 shincha fresh? Magic?

Odor proof ziplock bags 'Loksak's Opsak' and refrigeration. I recommend after opening tea bag finishing the tea within a few months though as it degrades more quickly. I posted about it here;
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=21540
Locksak-Odor-Proof-Bags_sm.jpg

Thanks for the info. I wonder how long a really great aged gyokuro can last. Anything like a great Bordeaux wine? (I had an 1893 Chateau d'Yquem Sauternes in the 1970's, and I still remember the incredible aroma and taste.)

Omg, that wine must have been something to savor. When I was a grad student I was gifted a 100year old Martinique rhum that I very very slowly sipped with special friends over several years. I also still remember the taste; very smooth with much of the sweetness replaced by a rich cognac like liquor. We sipped this rhum while I was living on a 22nd floor apartment with a view of the Hudson River and all of Manhattan below. Perfect moments to relish. Our segue into tea makes sense, savoring each moment.

[davidglass]

wow sincha is giving me a rush, a caffeine high rush. Those baby leaves sure pack a punch after another round with Maiko's 2013 seasidy and elegant Sincha Sencha Kinari.

How did you keep the 2013 shincha fresh? Magic?

Odor proof ziplock bags 'Loksak's Opsak' and refrigeration. I recommend after opening tea bag finishing the tea within a few months though as it degrades more quickly. I posted about it here;
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=21540
Locksak-Odor-Proof-Bags_sm.jpg

Thanks for the info. I wonder how long a really great aged gyokuro can last. Anything like a great Bordeaux wine? (I had an 1893 Chateau d'Yquem Sauternes in the 1970's, and I still remember the incredible aroma and taste.)

Omg, that wine must have been something to savor. When I was a grad student I was gifted a 100year old Martinique rhum that I very very slowly sipped with special friends over several years. I also still remember the taste; very smooth with much of the sweetness replaced by a rich cognac like liquor. We sipped this rhum while I was living on a 22nd floor apartment with a view of the Hudson River and all of Manhattan below. Perfect moments to relish. Our segue into tea makes sense, savoring each moment.

What a great description- and experience- you had, in a perfect spot in a perfect city!! I had my Chateau d'Yquem in my apartment in Paris with foie gras. I locked my door and took the phone off the hook so that no one could bother me. Actually, I am working on a book about working in French restaurants and other restaurants around the world. To bring this back to Japanese green tea, one of my favorite restaurants I worked at was in Tokyo where I learned how to make sashimi. I was introduced to Japanese green tea when I went to a tasting on the ground floor of Takashimaya department store. I remember my first sip of gyokuro. What a revelation!!

[chingwa]

(I had an 1893 Chateau d'Yquem Sauternes in the 1970's, and I still remember the incredible aroma and taste.)

I was gifted a 100year old Martinique rhum that I very very slowly sipped with special friends over several years

I had a 12 year old port which I had further aged in the bottle for 12 years before enjoying... so 24/25 years old?
(then I read that most port doesn't properly age once it's in the bottle anyway)

That's about as close as I can get to your experiences... they must have been magnificent.

[William]

Woke up early today, so I am enjoying my morning tea earlier than usual. Sipping right now some random gyokuro I took from the stash .. it's good!

[Ferg]

Woke up early today, so I am enjoying my morning tea earlier than usual. Sipping right now some random gyokuro I took from the stash .. it's good!

William, do you drink a Japanese green every morning? Just curious. I typically still start my day with coffee, but am slowly shifting to morning sencha. Oh, and do you drink on an empty stomach? I don't eat breakfast, for quite some time now, and am attempting to not if much if any lunch, mainly to lose weight. However, an empty stomach with coffee and/or tea doesn't make for a happy stomach always.

[William]

William, do you drink a Japanese green every morning? Just curious. I typically still start my day with coffee, but am slowly shifting to morning sencha. Oh, and do you drink on an empty stomach? I don't eat breakfast, for quite some time now, and am attempting to not if much if any lunch, mainly to lose weight. However, an empty stomach with coffee and/or tea doesn't make for a happy stomach always.

Hi Ferg, I have breakfast every morning. Along with it, I typically drink tea. I generally sip gyokuro or Chinese greens, Gaoshan, red teas, or gentle sheng puer.
I don't dare drinking tea on an empty stomach .. not brave enough!

[davidglass]

(I had an 1893 Chateau d'Yquem Sauternes in the 1970's, and I still remember the incredible aroma and taste.)

I was gifted a 100year old Martinique rhum that I very very slowly sipped with special friends over several years

I had a 12 year old port which I had further aged in the bottle for 12 years before enjoying... so 24/25 years old?
(then I read that most port doesn't properly age once it's in the bottle anyway)

That's about as close as I can get to your experiences... they must have been magnificent.

Very magnificent. But a 12 year old Port is pretty nice too!!!

[janet11]

Recently, I drink a kind of chinese green tea, which is called Silver nano peony green tea. This green tea has a mellow taste and special flavour.

[victoria3]

(I had an 1893 Chateau d'Yquem Sauternes in the 1970's, and I still remember the incredible aroma and taste.)

I was gifted a 100year old Martinique rhum that I very very slowly sipped with special friends over several years

I had a 12 year old port which I had further aged in the bottle for 12 years before enjoying... so 24/25 years old?
(then I read that most port doesn't properly age once it's in the bottle anyway)

That's about as close as I can get to your experiences... they must have been magnificent.

Very magnificent. But a 12 year old Port is pretty nice too!!!

OK, I confess I've had +90 year old Port and it was smoooothhh very smooth...
Finished off Gyokuro from Koshi Hagimura just now. Very smooth too with a refreshingly elegant umami through many steeps.

[davidglass]

(I had an 1893 Chateau d'Yquem Sauternes in the 1970's, and I still remember the incredible aroma and taste.)

I was gifted a 100year old Martinique rhum that I very very slowly sipped with special friends over several years

I had a 12 year old port which I had further aged in the bottle for 12 years before enjoying... so 24/25 years old?
(then I read that most port doesn't properly age once it's in the bottle anyway)

That's about as close as I can get to your experiences... they must have been magnificent.

Very magnificent. But a 12 year old Port is pretty nice too!!!

OK, I confess I've had +90 year old Port and it was smoooothhh very smooth...
Finished off Gyokuro from Koshi Hagimura just now. Very smooth too with a refreshingly elegant umami through many steeps.

90 years old!!! Sacre bleu!! Shincha Kinari is on its way RIGHT NOW. Thanks for the recommendation (a while ago). And- is the Gyokuro you mentioned worth ordering? If so, I can't find the company online.

[victoria3]

OK, I confess I've had +90 year old Port and it was smoooothhh very smooth...
Finished off Gyokuro from Koshi Hagimura just now. Very smooth too with a refreshingly elegant umami through many steeps.

90 years old!!! Sacre bleu!! Shincha Kinari is on its way RIGHT NOW. Thanks for the recommendation (a while ago). And- is the Gyokuro you mentioned worth ordering? If so, I can't find the company online.

I was gifted this so don't know how to purchase it. I meet the owner Mr Koshi Hagimura at the LA tea festival a few months ago. His company is Hagimura Seicha. He doesn't speak English though. I think it is very high quality Gyokuro but I can't find a buy it now link. It is possible he only sells to the industry. Here is his Facebook page;
https://www.facebook.com/koshi.hagimura?fref=nf
Company site; http://eng.hagimura.jp/commodity.php

I like Ippodo's & Maiko's higher end Gyokuro also.

[Teaarch]

Not yet, but I will soon (hopefully) be drinking Kirameki by way of O-cha. This has become one of my favorite teas throughout the years, so I'm really looking forward to it arriving. Should be a great way to start off shincha season and herald in the new tea year. Shame they only sell it as shincha; I'd love to taste a matured version of it. I thought the last two years' versions were pretty good but they each suffered the same curse that's been afflicting some Uji teas in the recent years. Basically, they're just a bit too light tasting, like how some organics get compared to a non organic tea. It just tastes like somethings missing -- and it's a pretty finicky tea too.

Well, apparently last year was a particularly bad year for teas in Japan overall (in some areas at least). Almost no winter, so the teas couldn't hibernate and soak up the proper nutrition from the soil, and there was a lot of rain near harvest. Guess that messed with a lot of the tea. I definitely noticed that a few of the teas I had from Thes, for instance, weren't as good as the previous year's version. Well, I saw a post by Florent that left me a bit more optimistic about this year's crop. Hopefully it was good all over Japan. I do notice that shincha is coming noticeably later this year. Maybe it means it had a better winter. We'll see.

By the way, are we allowed to do shincha threads around here? I notice previous years have them. If I don't see one by the time I get the kirameki, I might just create one -- if it's allowed.

[Lion]

A friend of mine brought back some fresh Longjing from her trip to China, just harvested a few weeks ago. SO excited here! I haven't had fresh green tea in a couple of years. It's a real treat.

[davidglass]

OK, I confess I've had +90 year old Port and it was smoooothhh very smooth...
Finished off Gyokuro from Koshi Hagimura just now. Very smooth too with a refreshingly elegant umami through many steeps.

90 years old!!! Sacre bleu!! Shincha Kinari is on its way RIGHT NOW. Thanks for the recommendation (a while ago). And- is the Gyokuro you mentioned worth ordering? If so, I can't find the company online.

I was gifted this so don't know how to purchase it. I meet the owner Mr Koshi Hagimura at the LA tea festival a few months ago. His company is Hagimura Seicha. He doesn't speak English though. I think it is very high quality Gyokuro but I can't find a buy it now link. It is possible he only sells to the industry. Here is his Facebook page;
https://www.facebook.com/koshi.hagimura?fref=nf
Company site; http://eng.hagimura.jp/commodity.php

I like Ippodo's & Maiko's higher end Gyokuro also.

Thanks for the info. I'll have Shincha Kinari any day- it's in New York City according to tracking.