Nishimoto Trading Co., LTD

The sky today is cornflower blue, instead of bright azure. When you live in the desert, you start making distinctions between one sunny, cloudless day, and another. I dislike the hot, bright weather, so sometimes I can’t resist making cold tea.

This inexpensive, but better grade bancha makes for a great everyday cold-brew. The countless flat, torn, but large leaves (high surface area) make for a very quick cold infusion: under a minute with a good swirl, definitely less than 5 minutes even when left alone. I also get multiple infusions from the same leaves, refilling the water halfway.

It’s mildly sweet, slightly roasty, and spinachy in flavor, not bitter, grassy, marine, or astringent at all. It’s not quite as thin or brisk as a black tea, but its lingering aftertaste is cooling, almost like a soft version of mint.

My favorite method for quick cold-brew is to pour the dry leaf straight into the glass before covering the leaves with layers of ice cubes, allowing the ice cubes to fuse together for a few minutes. When water is poured, the ice barrier keeps the leaves from the surface sip, but the leaves can still freely roam and expand underneath. By the time the ice melts, the leaves have already sunk to the bottom, where they’ll stay.

*Reached 4 cold steeps over 12 hours, from the same leaves, with the last steep still retaining a fair amount of flavor and coolness.

A review of Roasted Barley Tea by Nishimoto Trading Co, Ltd.

Company: Nishimoto Trading Co, Ltd.

Tea Name: Roasted Barley
Tea Type/Varietal: barley
Region: Japan
Steeping Vessel/Amt Leaf: cup/ tea bag
Liquor Color: dark amber
Leaf Characteristic:

1. Steeping:

1st Steeping:
Water Temp: 200
Time: 5 minutes
I have not had this tea for a long while. I actually thought I had finished the box. I was pleasantly surprised when cleaning out my tea storage to find the box of tea with several tea pouches remaining and I have been enjoying ever since.

Anyhow, this morning I fixed a large cup of this barley tea for myself and it is very hot and smelling strongly of the barley twigs like being outdoors with the burning of twigs nearby. It is a very strong roasted cup of tea.

2nd Steeping:
Water Temp: 200
Time: 10 minutes
This next steep is left for longer and the teas aroma is that much more powerful. You know the saying: ‘smokes gets in my eye’ well it is similarly so. The tea’s aroma is as pungent and strongly in taste; they equal each other. The tea is not bitter but woodsy and grainy in texture and taste. It is a full bodied aroma to make one think of having a cup of coffee when it is tea.

Overall tasting notes: This roasted barley makes for wonderful cup of fine barley tea with a robust kick in the taste. The tea’s aroma smell strongly of burn wood, that open pit fire in the deepest forest; like the smell of smoke from afar and somehow making one feel warmth and coziness.

Classification: Year, and region of production; Product of Japan

Cup’s characteristic: barley tea is very strong and woodsy (of burnt wood)

Liquor color: golden amber at times very dark cup of tea.

Taste: grainy in texture and very robust, and woodsy taste. It is an acquired tasteful cup of tea.

No notes yet.

No notes yet.

A review of Roasted Barley Tea by Meiji

Date: 09/05/2012
Company: Meiji
Tea Name: Roasted Barley Tea
Tea Type/Varietal: Black
Region: Japan
Steeping Vessel/Amt. Leaf: Cup/ tea pouch
Plucking Season:
Liquor Color: Golden amber
Leaf Characteristics: tea pouch smells very strongly of burnt wood, making one think of smoke prior to even immersing tea pouch in water for steeping. Once tea pouch is infused in the water the twigs do seem to appear more and the scent of smoke is still very potent. It is a roasted brew.

1. Steepings

1st Steeping:
Water temperature: 200 Fahrenheit
Time: 10:00 AM

Note: Today, I decided to fix myself a jug of this Roasted Barley Tea that I had purchased at the Miso International Market when last there.

Tea’s aroma is of a roasted flavoring; like when out in the woods with open pit fire or the burning of woods. Tea is malty in taste and is full in body. Tea’s color is dark amber and one tea pouch can be reused for up to eight steeps.

Right now, I have one tea bag in my tumbler and continue to add (boiled) water that has been let to cool and I continue to refill my tumbler. Hopefully this will be my drink of choice for the rest of day.

This tea would be well accompanied with some of those rice snacks treats, unfortunately I have none and I am too far away from an Asian market to obtain some. Oh well, here is to wistfulness a bliss!

2nd Steeping:
Water temperature: 150 Fahrenheit
Time: 11:00 AM

Note: Water is cooler since I will continue to refill my tumbler throughout the day. I like to think of this way in having this tea as flavored water smelling very strongly of roasted pines perhaps. The flavoring of tea when cool is very formidable; similarly when hot. It is strong tea, nothing weakens it seem to stand each infusions with one tea pouch.

A review of Roasted Barley Tea by Nishimoto Trading Co., LTD

I woke up today wanting a cup of something strong, and with caffeine perhaps even though I do not like caffeine. My frame of mind, wanted something similarly to coffee and this tea seems fitting.

I took out one tea pouch and put some water to boil. Once fully boil, I place the tea pouch in my mug and pour the boiling water to it. The smell is always headily of smoke; wood burning or an ashtray with cigarettes in it. I don’t mean to be mean. But it does make me think of these things.

I wait a few minutes for tea to cool since it was very hot. The tea’s color is black, very dark with a smoky and woodsy aroma which fills my nostrils. When I finally take a sip it is always the kukicha tea that is meeting my palette, tasting like roasted chestnut but more burnt and crunchy like.

I am reminded once again to make the tea as a full pot and leave to cool for room temperature and then having it chilled with ice. This is much nicer and sedately milder for this taste bud.

I am saying this tea is good for serving as iced tea. Nicely chilled and the drying effect as one swallows the tea is very noticeable.

A review of Roasted Barley Tea by Nishimoto Trading Co., LTD

I began my day with wanting to fix myself a hot cup of this barley tea. I opened the box to find several packs of plastic with individual tea pouch-like bags, there are four per plastic pack. I took one of the packs and opened it and removed one tea bag. The bag is bigger, it is shaped like a pillow or a sac (like those rice sacs, but much smaller) and I placed it in my mug and poured the hot boiling water into my cup living it to steep for five minutes.

I must note that I did not submit to having an 8 ounce cup of water with the tea pouch in it and letting it steep for an hour. I wanted to try this as tea shortly infused. The tea smells very roasted, like charcoal after being burnt on an open pit fire. Or that of an ashtray filled with left over cigarettes. I am surprised to this smell since I had experienced this with the Kukicha tea (twig tea) I have had in the past. I did not realize that Barley Tea would taste the same or similarly.

I take a sip and I am met with the roasted flavoring of the Barley and it is malty as well. Tea is full bodied and hot, it is good if I don’t think of the smell too much. I think this tea is a smoker’s tea and coffee drinkers who may want to switch to tea. The heady, roasted smell of the Barley with its malt taste would please their palate.

I did make this tea later on during the day, and I used 8-16 ounces of water in a pitcher and left it in the fridge for more than an hour steeping. And after a long walk I find the tea to be very welcoming, the roasted flavoring is much more subdued and tasting still of malt. It is a pleasantly nice iced tea not needing anything else for this palate.

Overall, this tea is one to be experienced over and over again in order to discover the many aromas that Barley Tea or twig-tea can bring about. Also this tea is similar to the Haiku tea I had enjoyed earlier on.