Hon yama

Tea Information:

Leaf Type: Green

Tea Description:

A futsumushi sencha from Hon.yama, in the mountains north of Shizuoka, grown under difficult conditions at an altitude of 740 meters (2400 feet). Yet, the difficult conditions are also the secret to a very high-quality natural tea: abundant rain, the slope of the garden, morning mists, significant temperature differences. In order to bring out the qualities of these leaves, the producer, Nakamura Toshiaki, is careful to steam them as little as possible and to keep their shape. The tea obtained in this way rewards us with a beautiful clear golden liquor that releases a deep fragrance of sugar and peat. The liquor is very airy while at the same time very sweet, rich and somehow voluptuous, and it is especially long in the mouth. This special sweetness is carried through several infusions, and there is almost no astringency.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

A really lovely Japanese Sencha! It’s been a while since I’ve had my last Japanese Sencha, in fact, as I sit here, contemplating this tea, I try to recall the last time I’ve had a Japanese Sencha, and I can’t do it. I’ve had a lot of Matcha lately, and even flavored Sencha, but, not so many pure Japanese Sencha. It’s very refreshing to have this cup now.

The aroma of the dry leaf initially reminded me of kelp, but after the package had breathed for a moment or two, it smelled more like freshly cut grass. Very clean and spring-like! A very nice fragrance to experience during these cold, wet, autumn-y days! Once brewed, the tea smells more like vegetables than of grass, somewhere between steamed spinach and steamed broccoli.

The flavor is sweet, crisp and has a fresh, invigorating quality to the flavor. The flavor is very clean and smooth from beginning to finish, with very little astringency toward the finish – just a hint of a tangy note – and a gently sweet aftertaste that is reminiscent of dew drops.

Overall, I find this to be a remarkable Japanese Sencha – sweeter and milder than most I’ve tried. Very pleasant to sip!

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Green Tea