Gyokuro Suimei

I decided to treat myself this morning. It’s been a tough week and why not splurge on some nice gyokuro?

I steeped this with a mesh insert inside a glass – maybe not the most eloquent thing but it did the job. I followed Den’s steeping recommendations and did 150 seconds at 140 F. I got a very sweet, almost glowing green and vegetal cup.The second steep was at 2 minutes at 150 F and I think I liked that one even a little bit better. The only other gyokuro I’ve had was the one from Arbor teas and now I wish I could compare the two side by side.

Anyway this is great if you’re looking for a sencha like product but without the bitterness or astringency that can sometimes go with those. I did like this one a lot and the caffeine buzz is certainly nothing to scoff at! It wasn’t cheap but I will mostly certainly savor and appreciate it.

Mmmm…wow…yum. This is so good.

It seemed like such a small amount of tea, but it delivers a strong flavor! And the color! So intense. This is rich and sweet with a smooth milky mouthfeel. My husband tried this and said, “it tastes like seawater.” He made a disgusted face as he said this, but I agree with him and I think it’s awesome. :D It does remind me of the ocean, though it’s not seaweed like some Japanese greens. It does have a savory quality and a flavor like late summer grass drying in the sun.
This is such a feel good tea. It’s totally refreshing and peace inducing. I know I shouldn’t be drinking this so late, but it’s too good to stop.

At some point today, I got kind of disgusted with all the flavored teas I had been drinking and I really started craving something refreshing and just plain tea. This was the best choice I ever made. Ok, I’m exaggerating, but this was a pretty darn good choice regardless.

Thank you so much for the sample silvermage2000! Now I know why everyone is always recommending Den’s Tea. :)

Backlogging …

Enjoyed this earlier this evening. A lovely Gyokuro. VERY sweet! And yet, savory … and warm and comforting. One of the sweetest Gyokuro teas I’ve ever tasted. Absolutely wonderful.

First: I have not tried hundreds of Gyokuros, but from a general perspective on tea, this is an excellent one. The flavor is sweet, vegetal, like fresh cut alfalfa, but also unexpectedly with strong notes of hazelnut, and a soothing creaminess that balances out the edge that some Japanese green teas have.

Yet the most interesting part of this tea was in the mouthfeel and the aftertaste. There is an interesting numbing sensation to drinking this tea slowly. As you keep drinking, the sensation builds, and the result is the perception of a more honey-like sweetness. The aftertaste moves towards roasted hazelnut.

About brewing. I tried brewing exactly as directed, and like other people say, it makes a really strong tea. I like the experience, but I would not drink this more than once every few weeks at that intensity. I tried brewing it up like they do in Northern China, where green tea is poured back and forth between two glass pitchers for no more than 10 seconds, but with hotter water, and I got good results. It also steeps up perfectly nicely in a large pot for 1-2 minutes with 160 degree water.

Thank you Den’s for showing me what Japanese tea has to offer.

A wonderful veggie-sweet! Hearty and true! Quite SAVORY and almost brothy. I really like this! VERY tasty!

More vegetal and a little less sweet than the “Kotobuki no Tsuyu” Gyokuro by Bird Pick Tea. I enjoyed it more than the Bird Pick, but I need to try both a few more times before rating.

This was yummy though, especially after I increased the amount of water to 3oz (the 1st steep was good, but a little intense for me at 2g for 2oz water).

With the exception of the Award Winning Gyokuro that Den’s Tea had earlier this year, I’m actually having to learn to taste Gyokuro. I like it, but it hasn’t been the same eye-opening taste that my first Sencha and Shincha were. However, I’m still new to it, so I’m going to wait until I’ve experimented a bit more. I look forward to doing a real comparison between this and the Bird Pick one.

I am just getting started exploring green teas, and found this one to have umami that overwhelms the honey-sweet that I crave, especially when infused as long and as low as Den’s recommends. I think it will is a great tea for those who are seeking that deeper vegetal flavor. It never gets remotely close to bitterness. It’s just not the tea for me, yet.

My rating reflects my preferred shorter hotter infusion time; because the longer steep is so much less to my preference, I would have to give it a lower rating under those conditions; but people who really crave that deep green vegetal umami, I think the rating would be much higher.

I infused it 5g per 5 oz at 140 for 140 seconds, as recommended, but prefer it 160 degrees for 30 seconds, 4 grams per 5 oz. I have trouble getting a pleasing second infusion because the umami takes over.