Marshmallow Treat Genmaicha

I finally got my 12 Days of X-mas parcel today (not Frank’s fault, Canada Post is always slow this time of year – I should have ordered sooner) so I’ve got a fair bit of catching up to do.

This is wonderful tea to start it on, however. I actually have an unopened pouch of this one that I purchase earlier, but that didn’t make me any less excited about trying this tea when I saw what it was. I was dubious at first about how much marshmallow flavour the tea would actually have – sure it’s got marshmallow root bits, but to anyone who’s ever had plain marshmallow root tea (good for coughs) there’s not really much resemblance between it and the sweet, fluffy, corn syrup-based confections we’re used to in this modern day and age.

All my doubts fled though, when I opened the pouch, I swear if I ddn’t know any better I was smelling freshly-made rice krispie squares. And it carried over nicely to the flavour as well. I’m surprised that there’s no sugar added to this tea because it’s plenty sweet without me adding anything to it (not that I’d sweetened a green tea, but you get the idea). What a wonderful treat.

This smells awfully sugary sweet. It definitely smells like warm marshmallow. Or fondant. Yeah, fondant. I can’t say as I’m too fond of either to be honest. I prefer marshmallows at room temperature and just as they are. And only whipped cream in my hot chocolate, thanks.

So yeah, I’m a bit concerned. All those fruit blends, where did they go?

The flavour is marshmallow spot on all right. There is lots of it too and I can also tell by the nuttiness underneath that we’re dealing with a genmaicha base. But it’s sooooooo sweet. And sticky. And sweet.

And rather too much for me, to be honest, which probably points back to aforementioned reservations about warm marshmallows. You know how sometimes you want to make tea sweeter? So you add sugar. What do I add to make it less frightfully sweet?

No, this is just not one for me. It’s too sweet and too much and too… It’s too much. Even my sweet tooth of considerable proportions can’t keep up with this.

The boyfriend thought it was okay, though. I gave him the rest of my cup.

Today has been a good day. My very jealous dog seems to have finally decided that she was going to get along with my new puppy! After a week of continuous supervision dealing with outbursts of nipping and growling, today, finally, they started playing as if nothing had ever happened. They played and played and I smiled and smiled as my boyfriend giggled with me as if we were kids. So happy!

To celebrate this happy turn on events, I had the 6th of the 12 days of Christmas teas! This particular one I had been curious about for a long time. I am not a fan of Genmaicha , so I was a bit worried that I wouldn’t like it just because it would remind me of it. On the other hand, I really love rice crispy treats… So I was thrilled to get to try it!

As soon as I opened the packet I smelled sweet, not quite marshmallow but yummy and promising. I was expecting to see real marshmallows, not marshmallow root. Sad but not terrible.

The brew was a very light golden green that smell like marshmallow treats with a suspicious hint of cupcake. All in all I was still very excited about it. I sweetened it with generous amounts of brown sugar.

All of my high expectations were sadly not exceeded by the flavor. I sipped and sipped and all I got was sweet genmaicha with a hint of marshmallow. It still smelled amazing, enough so that anyone who walked into the room asked what smelled so great, but the taste just wasn’t as spectacular as the smell.

I really thought that this was going to be one of my favorites, but I guess my disliking genmaicha got in the way. I did enjoy it, but it didn’t live up to what I had prepared myself for. It was enjoyable and a good companion to my happy, warm, fuzzy joy of seeing my two doggy girls get along! : )

I think my expectations for this were too high. I got this from Alphakitty who got the new reblend. I’ve heard people comment that this one is made a little different. Maybe the original is more marshmallow-y. This one is a slightly sweeter and toastier genmai cha. Still good. Wish it were more marshmallow-y.

Thanks for the taste Alphakitty!

Shared a pot of this with a friend tonight! I love how the toasted rice blends so well with the marshmallow. I will be EXTREMELY sad when this one is gone..

I am so happy that I managed to snag a bag of this on Frank’s first reblend this go round. It is the best of the three genmaicha’s people seem to be comparing (I have Smores and Browncoat as well). It tastes exactly like a sweet marshmallow square :) Yum.

52teas 12 Days of Christmas Sampler 2011 – Day 6

YESSS!!!!!! I’m super excited that I get to try this one! It went out of stock before I even discovered 52teas. Just looking at the picture makes my mouth water.

The dominant flavor is buttery sencha. I’m not getting a genmaicha flavor. The toasted rice would have to be a lot stronger, and for that there would have to be a lot more rice.

The sencha does give a sweet, sugary, buttery, baked confection taste. If I try really hard, I can connect the taste to marshmallow Rice Krispie treats. But I’m not sure how much of that is actually in the tea versus what I want to be in the tea.

Regardless, it’s definitely yummy!! A sweet green tea to calm my nerves after a stressful work day. This is so good, I even forgot what bitter tastes like. It’s nowhere to be found here. The more I sip this, the more I love it! I just might have to buy a pouch of this too. :)

I was so excited to try this – and it’s pure genius! Toasty, marshmallowy and sweet, this tea does remind me of a rice krispie treat! I did add Splenda which enhances the sweetness, of course. My first cup doesn’t have any marshmallows in it – they are further down the bag – but I can still taste a hint of it. Absolutely delicious, as per usual, Frank! :)

Thanks jessiwrites for sending me this one :)

This does taste just like genmaicha and marshmallows. It smells much sweeter than it tastes – thank goodness. The tea is bang on for the description, but I’m not sure that it’s for me. I’m only on my first steep so I’ll update as I steep some more.

Well I’m not sure if something went wrong with the resteep but the second steep tasted just like genmaicha. I love genmaicha but there was absolutely no hint of marshmallows.

I was a bit surprised by how much I like this one. I find the toastiness of genmaicha to be on the savory side, so I’ve been hesitant to try it flavored. This blend definitely works for me. The sweetness of the marshmallow pairs nicely with the toasted rice. It’s so nutty and creamy. I just wish there was a tad bit more marshmallow.

Thanks to CrowKettle for this surprise sample!