Houji-cha (Premium Tea Bag)

Dangerously Toasty! Recieved this sample with the Shin-Cha that I won from the Steepster contest! Thanks for shipping to Canada Maeda-En! Why did I choose this one to try first? Because Houji-cha seemed fun to say at the time. So the tea smelled very roastey toastey a bit like coffee. It seemed very thin and seemed to seep out of the tea bag a little bit. The taste was as toasty as the pungent smell, a tad bitter and at times grassy. Very good for coffee and tea lovers a like because it has a bit of both in terms of flavoring. For a tea bag pretty impressed with the variety of flavors makes me intrigued to try the other samples sent to me!
Funny Dialogue I had with my mom after enjoying this tea:
Me: "Houji-Cha is fun to say! Houji-Cha Houji-Cha Houji-Cha!!! :) "
Mom: Well that’s nice just put your cup in the dishwash-Cha!
LOL I love my mom

Nice! I wasn’t expecting much from this Houji-cha since it was a bagged Houji-cha, but, it is very flavorful. Roasty, toasty, and honey-caramel-y sweet!

YUM!

This is more of a standard houjicha than a premium to my taste buds. The pro: pure houjicha with no added flavorings.

Yes, it comes in a pyramid shaped bag. But I’ve never been convinced that makes much of a difference. The tea leaves themselves were minced into such tiny pieces, it was like dust. That’s a turn off for me. I think more whole leaves would create a richer flavor in the brewed tea.

If you’ve never had houjicha before, then this is definitely one I would recommend. It’s subtle in flavor and aroma and won’t overwhelm you. It’s nothing like other green teas.

Because the green tea leaves are roasted in houjichas, they have a completely different color and flavor from senchas. So, if you’ve had sencha and despise it (like me), don’t give up on all green teas!

Full disclosure: this tea was sent to me as a free sample by the vendor. However, there was no expectation that I would provide a review.

Still at work, so let’s keep drinking tea. I’ve had enough caffeine today, so I’ll start to mellow out with something without. I must say I have mixed emotions about houji-cha as a style of tea in the first place. The concept of taking poor quality green tea and roasting it to produce something light, caffeine-free and easy to brew is, in my mind, not something to get all worked up about. On the other hand, it has a nice roasted flavor that’s rare in the tea world outside of a handful of oolongs.

At 200F and 90 seconds this brew comes through a little lighter and littered with dust (again). The flavors are bit coarse and charred. Faint bits of espresso, some tannic, dried autumn leaves and a touch of dark caramel. The body of this tea seems surprisingly thin and really parches out the tongue. I believe I’ve had deeper and fuller examples of the style, so I’ll go ahead and say this isn’t particularly exemplary in my mind.

after lunch tea :)