Tencha-Kuki Houjicha

This is my first Den’s Tea and I’m REALLY excited. I’ve been wanting to try Den’s for a while! Dry loose smells like gently toasted nuts or oats, even. The liquid post infusion is even more gentle in scent. It’s very light in color. It a bit on the mellower-side than I assumed…which isn’t a bad thing…just an observation, really. It’s a toasty, semi-sweet, honey-like flavor with woodsy aftertastes to it. This is a pretty solid Houjicha! I have had some ‘iffy’ ones but this makes me want to voluntarily try more and start even liking them more than before. Well Done.

Sigh. I am going to fail in my quest tonight. But 4/8 isn’t too bad. (I realized after that there are two teas I haven’t tried from Amanda, so that one didn’t count. Sigh.) I guess I’ll get to the other four tomorrow.

Anyhow, this one’s from Mercuryhime, and I did a bad thing and brewed it up prior to my run, so didn’t drink it until probably 2 hours post-brewing, all total. The re-steeps of a couple other teas I drank didn’t handle that two hours of sitting so well, but this one actually did! It was sweet, nutty, and roasty, reminding me of genmaicha. Also, there was a lovely green tea-ish aftertaste. I actually really enjoyed it! I am going to enjoy a re-steep of it shortly, as I push through my exercise-fuelled exhaustion to package up at least some of the swap samples I have yet to do. I am such a swap delinquent!

ETA: I forgot to note that the second infusion of this one was pretty delicious too, and I drank it cold (room temp). Third infusion suffers only from the leaves having sat too long; I think they could go a lot farther than this if fresh! This tea is delicious.

Took the puppies out for a walk. Marveled at the budding greens of spring. Nibbled on a bit of wild garlic growing on my lawn. Came home with pups bounding before me only to notice a package by the door. Holy cow! It’s my Den’s Tea package! That was quick! And I was just getting thirsty.

I can smell the toasty cereal. There’s a hint of rice crackers. The brew is a brown and not beautiful to look at but comforting and familiar.

The taste? Hm… definitely roasty and honey sweet and a little grainy. It reminds me of a darker oolong and medicinal tea. It is also, very warming and soothing. Smoother than other houjichas I’ve had but not necessarily better. Unique and interesting, but not really that delicious. I may need time to adjust to this one. Hmmm…

THis time, I followed directions to used boiling water, but I think I might prefer it at green parameters. I’ll try that next time.

I’ve been drinking Den’s Tencha-Kuki Houjicha before bed (or whenever I need to unwind) for the last couple weeks now, and I’ve grown incredibly fond of its subtle brew. Unlike Den’s traditional Kuki Houjicha — which has a darker, more robust roast — the Tencha Kuki Houjicha is lightly roasted and produces a more delicate, golden liquor.

Other reviewers on Steepster have mentioned the natural honey-like sweetness of these stems, and I have to agree. It still has that vegetal, “fresh green beans” taste that I remember from the green kukicha, but it’s much more “woodsy” thanks to the light roasting these stems undergo. Out of all the “green” teas I’ve tasted, this is probably the most “white.”

On the package for this tea, it comes with a single suggestion: “Brew casually.” After trying various states of boiling water and different leaf ratios, I have to agree. Throw a couple scoops of tea in your pot and add some boiling water — I’ve yet to mess this one up. It might not knock you off your feet at first, but there’s something immediately soothing about the Tencha-Kuki Houjicha

Sweet. The instructions say boiled water for two minutes, but I just poured boiling water into a room temp gaiwan, which dropped the temperature down to about 180F. Then I tossed in a large pinch of the tea.

I love how the dry leaves smell like cocoa.

I was going to go for a second round, but there are magic elves in my house that whisk away used cups and dishes as soon as you leave them somewhere for more than two minutes. (Hi, Mom!) I’m kidding. Off to get a new cup to compare whether I like it better with boiling water, or cooler water.

EDIT: Def better with hotter water. Also: not that tasty when chilled. Because I made some extra and popped it in the fridge overnight and the next morning I poured it out and it was, uh. Hm. Sticking to this one taken hot. :P

I got this tea on a whim, and also after reading the reviews. I have had all kinds of kukicha. Some I either hate or like. This is one I will love. When I opened the bag, I didn’t think it smelled like anything special. I thought it would just taste like another houjicha. Well it sure surprised me.

It has such an distinctive taste I never had in a tea. Savory, earthy, unami. I like the idea another one had to make potato chip flavored with this! I might have to grind some in my spice grinder mixed with salt and sprinkle on steak. I could see this tea as a spice, it’s that original and good!

I will update when I cook with it….but I am still going to drink this stuff. YUM!

One of my favorite things about this tea is how easy it is to brew. As it says on the back of my pouch, it can be “brewed casually”, which means that I don’t have to worry about water temperatures and exact steeping times. That’s nice for the morning, when I’m too groggy to worry about stuff like that.

I have nothing to add to the description of the taste. The other reviews have already covered it well! It’s just delicious.

This is very good. I don’t have anything new to add to what others have said. After trying once, I recommend it.

I steeped it 3 times, always boiling, but a little longer each time, and a little less water. It barely lost any flavor, so it seems like a good deal; sometimes it’s disappointing or feels wasteful if a (loose leaf) tea only stands up to one good steeping.

Finally opened this tea up, which I ordered as part of my first order from Den’s Tea. I was shy of bitterness in green teas, hadn’t yet figured out how to steep them, so ordered a little of this, a little of a gyokuro, and a green tea sampler. I figured out how to enjoy the senchas and the gyokuro, and now am drinking one of them nearly every morning, and then this tea got left in the back of the cupboard. But tonight I opened it up, am enjoying the toastiness, and am going to send a thank you to the tea-friend who suggested it as an entry to Japanese tea. It is a little more one-note than my favorite darker oolongs, with the toasted note over a mild herbaceousness, but still entirely pleasant, easy, mellow. I will doubtless pick up a little of this from time to time.

I was really excited to try this tea. It sounded really good! So I made sure to order some when I made my real, non-sampler order from Den’s. :)

This tea smells delightfully sweet-roasty-earthy. Not too much of any of those things. It just smells downright good!

It has a light, sweet, honey-like taste. I’m definitely a fan! :D

This tea has a very unique flavor- kind of toasty & sweet. Definitely unlike any other tea I’ve tried. I love it- drink it almost daily.