First impressions? This smells like (roasted) yerba maté. Tastes a little like it too, but also like real tea, which is good. This looks to be a whole different brew from Adagio/Rishi’s Kukicha – both the leaves (what I can see of them in the bag) and the liqueur are a dark brown. This tastes a little like coffee, a little like chocolate, and a little like some imitation-coffee tea blends I’ve had (chicory is probably the flavor I’m getting there, or some sort of barley malt). It’s hard to pin down the flavor, but definitely interesting, and I will probably keep it on hand as a strong but low caffeine bedtime drink.
6 Tasting Notes
FINALLY A JAPANESE TEA I LIKE!!! It doesn’t bother me that it is considered the poor man’s tea.
This tea is nutty smooth and creamy. Awesome!!! It would probably be pretty good cold.
I believe it is low on caffeine because I drank a cup last night with the intent to stay awake a little longer. I was asleep after the last sip.
I first had this tea at Paul & Elizabeth’s, a truly great natural foods restaurant in Northampton, MA. Its naturally creamy, vanilla-y taste made me crave more, but since they don’t sell it there, I had to figure out what it was and track it down. I ended up with some green Kukicha from Tao of Tea, which is good, but I wanted the roasted stuff, and was a bit chagrinned to find this at my local healthfood store, on sale, no less. It’s exactly the tea I remember from the restaurant, and it’s really good, especially considering it comes in a bag. One really good thing about this tea is that it doesn’t get bitter or nasty if it sits in the pot for awhile. Good hot or iced!
Unlike any tea I’ve had before, one of my favorites. It tastes slightly roasted – a little dark but pure and clean. Like you’re drinking a piece of wood that has not been burnt, but delicately browned over hot coals. I’m not really doing the experience of drinking this tea justice. You really must try it to know, and I highly suggest that you do, especially if you have a lot of boring herbal zingers and coconut oolong teas in your arsenal. This one is totally out of the box. It feels healthy and grounding and down-to-business. Down-to-earth. 1 bag in 1 cup boiling water with 1 packet NuStevia. You can steep it forever – it doesn’t get bitter.
This is an odd tasting tea . . . in a great way!
perfect without sweetener.
