Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Chado Tea House
Tea Description:
YUZU is a citrus fruit that Japanese people enjoy its aroma. Yuzu is closely resembling that of the grapefruit, with overtones of mandarin orange, however the aroma is different and sorry that it is hard to describe. Yuzu zest is used to garnish some dish and commonly used as seasoning. We found a harmony in Kukicha with Yuzu aroma.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This Yuzu Kukicha Tea Blend from Chado Tea House is ah-maz-ing! The aroma is remarkable. It smells citrus-y … like a sweet citrus. It smells like one of my favorite candies – you know those gummy-like grapefruit wedges? Yeah … this smells like a jar of those! Sweet and sour and yummy!
The flavor is equally as remarkable … it is more sweet than sour and I like that. It’s very juicy tasting. It tastes like a sweeter version of grapefruit with notes of tangerine. I like that it has a very bright, delicious flavor but it also has a mellowness to it – it’s not trying to hit me over the head with Yuzu fruit flavor.
And that’s important because kukicha tends to have a rather mild flavor and I am glad that I can still taste the kukicha here. It tastes fresh, smooth, and light, and marries well with the flavor of the Yuzu. This is delicious hot … but I think I like it even better when it cools. It has a delightfully fresh, mellow taste that is enjoyable to sip with meals … or anytime you want something on the lighter side.
I think this might be the first “flavored” tea that I’ve tried from Chado … they offer Japanese teas of exceptional quality, and I’ve loved everything that I’ve tried from them … and this is no exception. This is something that will be nice to have on hand as the weather gets warmer … a good choice for iced tea!
Japanese Green Tea Powder Stick from Chado Tea House
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Chado Tea House
Tea Description:
Very convenient, individually packed Japanese green tea powder stick 0.24oz(2g) x 20 sticks. One stick for one cup of tea. very convenient and keep in your handbag and enjoy green tea anywhere! Works well for Hot and Cold water! Always fresh individually packed green tea powder! Product from Kagoshima
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I’ve been a fan of Matcha for a long time, but, for whatever reason, I often find myself leery of these “sticks” or pixies filled with powdered tea. I don’t know why, exactly, because I’ve enjoyed other versions of powdered tea – not just Matcha – but also powdered genmaicha and powdered Sencha.
But this is really awesome!
I opened up the stick and carefully poured it into my chawan, fully intending to prepare it as a Matcha using hot water and my whisk. However, somewhere before I finished heating the water, I decided I wanted to see how it would fair if I added cold water to it, so I poured roughly about six ounces of cold water into the chawan, whisked it to stir (it blended almost instantaneously), and started sipping.
The taste is strongly vegetative, sweet and very refreshing. Much more invigorating and much better tasting to me than a typical ready-to-drink bottled tea, which is kind of the customer these types of pixies seem to target … the on-the-move kind of tea drinker, offering them a pure, un-sweetened alternative to those heavily sugared tea drinks that you can pick up at a convenience store.
These are every bit as convenient: just open a bottle of water and pour in the powder, and then shake to incorporate … and I prefer the taste of this over those, because those “teas” seldom actually taste like tea! Oh, sure, I’ve found some exceptions, but, for the most part, they taste more like a soda than a tea, and this – this tastes like tea! This is the good stuff!
Yame Gyokuro Tea B from Chado Tea House
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Chado Tea House
Tea Description:
Nice Gyokuro from Fukuoka, Kyushu island. Yame area in Fukuoka is known for Gyokuro producing center (take about 45 percent of share). Tea farms are located on slope of mountain and the area’s warm and foggy condition provides ideal climate for Gyokuro cultivation. This Yame Gyokuro is bit like supreme Sencha. Aromatic and sweet and smooth mouth feel.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
There is something magical about Gyokuro.
I recently injured my ankle (rolled it, fortunately did not break it, but, still badly sprained) and the evening of my injury, after returning from the hospital and still in quite a bit of pain, I brewed a pot of this Yame Gyokuro, and for a few moments while sipping, my mind was able to escape the pain, escape the reality of what was going on, and just allow me to enjoy the pure beauty of the tea without a thought (or even a feeling) of the pain.
That’s what I mean about the magical quality of Gyokuro.
This Gyokuro from Chado Tea House is sweet and vegetative. It is a very vibrant and crisp flavor. In the background, I notice subtle notes of chestnut and the vaguest hints of flower. And every once in a while, I swear I can taste that freshness of spring … you know that beautiful freshness that you can smell and even taste in the air when spring arrives? Yes, that is what I notice here. It isn’t a strong flavor, but every once in a while, I just get that exhilarating sensation of spring as I sip.
A wonderful tea – one of the nicest Gyokuro teas I’ve tasted in a while. And Chado Tea House has such a lovely selection of other Japanese green teas too – I highly recommend them!
Guricha Kama-Tenka by Chado Tea House
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Chado Tea House
Tea Description:
Premium Guricha-‘Kama-Tenka’. The given name of Tenka in Japanese refers ‘the best’ in English. In general, Guricha stays in casual side, does not show luxury feeling like Gyokuro,or Sencha. This premium Gyokuro ‘Kama-Tenka’ proves Guricha is another sophisticated tea. Sweetness as expected and the richness remain in your mouth.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
When I first opened this pouch, I was surprised with just how fresh it smelled. The aroma reminded me of the smell of freshly cut grass … or … imagine mowing the lawn one early spring afternoon, and then that night, it rains. The next morning, the rain has cleared, and the sun is shining brightly. That fresh, spring morning smell with the fragrance of rain and grass still lingering in the air. That’s the smell. It’s vibrantly “green” smelling. Very fresh and exhilarating.
After it’s been brewed, the aroma softens somewhat, but it still smells amazingly fresh and sweet and grassy. One would expect the flavor to be just as grassy as the scent, but it’s not. Sure, I taste a vegetative note here, but it isn’t an overpoweringly bitter grassy taste. This is a lightly grassy, very sweet taste in a delicate broth.
It reminds me a bit of a very high quality Japanese Sencha … just a bit. It has a vaguely similar flavor, but I find this to be somewhat lighter. Not quite as aggressive. Not that I find Sencha to be aggressive, but this one is more nuanced. It is less broth-y, not quite as thick in consistency as a Sencha, but the broth-y quality is still there. It’s just a little lighter and cleaner on the palate.
I love the sweetness to this, it’s very pleasant and it doesn’t overwhelm the palate. It’s really quite refreshing. It’s one of those quiet teas that you can enjoy while reading a good book or enjoying conversation with friends. It doesn’t require much of you except a thirst and this will quench it with lovely flavor.
Another excellent tea from Chado Tea House! They have really impressed me with their selection of Japanese teas!
Chiran Sencha (White Label) – Kagoshima from Chado Tea House
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Chado Tea House
Product Description:
NEW Product! Chiran is located in Kagoshima pref. in Kyushu island. Chiran area is the biggest Japanese tea producing center of Kagoshima pref. Very Clean aroma and mouth feel. Deep steamed Sencha so rich but bitter less mild mouth feel and clean after taste. This tea can be changed by choosing different setting of temperature and the amount of leaves use.
This is one of our supplier’s signature products so nicely packaged Sencha tea. Recommend for gift item.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Very nice!
When I first opened this pouch of tea and took a whiff of it, my first reaction was “wow! Now THAT’S vegetative!” Yes, it has a very strong, grassy/vegetative fragrance. It reminds me a bit of how my kitchen smells when I’ve steamed broccoli for dinner. It is a very strong, yet deliciously savory kind of aroma.
The leaves look very much the way I’d expect them to, thin – almost slivers! – leaves that are a deep, bright green color. It is a very vivid, beautiful color. The liquor produced is almost what I’d call Chartreuse, with equal amounts of yellow and green, creating a pale, beautiful golden green-ish hue.
And it tastes really wonderful. Yes, that strong vegetative smell does translate into the flavor, but it is certainly not off-putting to me. However, if one is sensitive to that bold, grassy flavor you might want to go a little lighter on the leaves when measuring out this tea to brew.
Along with the vegetative flavor comes a light “brothy” kind of texture, giving this tea a very savory and satisfying quality. Even with the stronger vegetative taste to this tea, I am finding that the sweetness to this tea evens out the flavor, giving it a nice balance for the palate to enjoy, and making the tea neither too savory nor too sweet, instead … I’d say this is just right.
A wonderful Sencha – this would make a fantastic addition to any tea lover’s cupboard.