Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Aiya
Tea Description:
Matcha Infused Genmaicha is a traditional Japanese Sencha blended with toasted brown rice and premium Matcha green tea. The refreshing flavor of Sencha combined with the nutty flavor of toasted brown rice, plus the resilient color and mild sweetness of Matcha make this tea distinctly delightful.
Ingredients:
Japanese Green Tea,
Japanese Genmai (toasted brown rice)
Matcha Green Tea
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
When I got my Matcha Infused Genmaicha Green Tea from Aiya sample in the mail I had to brew it right up! I love Genmaicha but I really love Genmaicha with Matcha! It has been a long time since I had a Genmaicha with Matcha from a new company to try so I was really excited to get a sample of this one, from Aiya, who sources excellent tea.
When I came to the site here to do the review I noticed my sister LiberTeas had just posted her review, which you can see here. I almost decided to wait because generally we don’t do reviews of the same teas back to back, but in this case, I already had my sample steeped up and was happily sipping, so back to back it shall be! It can’t hurt either to see two tasting notes on the same tea one day after another.
This Genmaicha with Matcha is far more vegetal and grassy than others I have tried. Others have had a bit sweeter taste. No one can deny the quality of this tea, although I am rather used to the sweetness I have found in others, this is a really excellent cup.
There is an abundant amount of genmai (rice), and while my sister did not get much loose powder from excess matcha in her cup, I did, especially on the first steep. However, like my sister, I also did not see any cloudiness, and the cup was remarkably clear.
The scent of the tea filled the entire house, not just my kitchen, and my daughter remarked how good it smelled, like puffed rice cereal, which I love.
The notes I detect are of grassiness, nuttiness, and rice. There is a creaminess to the mouthfeel as well.
The sencha, crisp and lively, is one of the better sencha I have tasted.
I found this cup extremely relaxing and soothing.
Matcha Infused Genmaicha Green Tea from Aiya
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Aiya
Tea Description:
Matcha Infused Genmaicha is a traditional Japanese Sencha blended with toasted brown rice and premium Matcha green tea. The refreshing flavor of Sencha combined with the nutty flavor of toasted brown rice, plus the resilient color and mild sweetness of Matcha make this tea distinctly delightful.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Revew:
Having previously tried Aiya’s Organic Matcha Infused Genmaicha, I was happy to have this opportunity to try this: their conventionally grown Matcha Infused Genmaicha Green Tea, not only to compare my tasting notes from the two teas, but also to experience more of Aiya’s exceptionally high quality tea!
The dry leaf smells a lot more vegetative than I expected … I noticed very little of a toasted rice scent and more of a leafy/grassy green scent with notes of warm, nutty toasted rice in the background. Once brewed, however, the toasted rice notes really came forward! My kitchen was filled with the deliciously roasty-toasty scent of genmaicha, and my mouth began to water as I anticipated my first sip.
Similar to the Organic Matcha Infused Genmaicha from Aiya, I noticed that the brewed tea did not have a cloudy appearance, nor was there Matcha sediment at the bottom of the cup or the teapot. I also noticed when I measured the Genmaicha into my teapot, that there wasn’t a lot of loose powder to the dry leaf. Usually, with Genmaicha blends that have been enhanced with Matcha, there is a powdering of green dust as well as a cloudy cup of tea. This is one area where this tea from Aiya is remarkably different from other Genmaicha teas of this sort.
The flavor is so lovely! No wonder this tea won second place in the North American Tea Championship. This is deliciously sweet, nutty, and warm! Genmaicha usually evokes thoughts of autumn for me because of its warm, roasty-toasty taste, and this experience is no different. And because I am hoping for a speedy spring and summer so that I can enjoy autumn once more, my thoughts of autumn this afternoon are definitely welcome!
But there is also a freshness to the taste, courtesy of the Japanese Sencha base. The green tea tastes sweet, grassy, and has just a hint of savory bitterness that sort of perks the palate up and keeps the flavor interesting. I taste the sweet notes of the Matcha as well, and there is the slightest creamy note from the Matcha which is quite a nice complement to the warm, toasty rice flavor.
I found this experience with the conventionally grown Matcha Infused Genmaicha to be similar to that of the Organic variety, but I think that the flavors here might be a little less distinct. The tones of the rice, the savory quality of the Sencha and the sweet, creamy notes of the Matcha are less defined here, providing a more homogenized flavor that is at once sweet, savory, warm, toasty and creamy, with the toasty rice notes standing out as the strongest notes, and the savory notes lingering on the tongue in the aftertaste. And to tell the truth, I enjoyed both teas very much, and this experience was not so unlike the other that I would choose the other over this one based solely on taste alone. However, I probably would choose the organic because it is organic. Both teas are of excellent quality and superior taste!
Organic Sencha Green Tea from Aiya
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green Tea
Where to Buy: Aiya
Tea Description:
Organic Sencha is one of the highest in quality in the Japanese internationally certfied organic Sencha category. This grade of Organic Sencha is rare even in the Japanese market. This tea is grown to meet strict organic regulations while maintaining a light refreshing flavor and aroma with a clear green appearance.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Aiya is one of those companies that I have complete confidence in – one of those companies that I know will always provide top-quality products. Like this Organic Sencha Green Tea! This tea is absolutely wonderful!
It is very much what I’d expect from a Japanese Sencha: light, vegetative, and refreshing. However, one thing that I’m not finding in this Sencha is that hint of bitterness that I find in some Japanese Sencha teas. This one is so smooth and sweet – and I detect not even a hint of bitterness and no astringency either!
The flavor is crisp with a pleasant sweetness. It has a mellow, vegetative taste that teeters the line between sweet-grass and steamed spinach. There is a vague softness to this … almost creamy, but not in a buttery creaminess kind of way. Rather, it’s what I’d describe as a smooth, round flavor. The aftertaste is pleasantly sweet.
I love this Sencha – and I appreciate that it’s certified organic! It tastes great – one of the nicer Sencha teas I’ve encountered recently. That’s what I mean when I say that Aiya is one of those companies I can trust to deliver top-notch products. This Organic Sencha is a perfect example of their quality!
Green of London – Earl Grey Mao Feng Tea from Le Palais des Thes
Tea Type:Green Tea
Where To Buy:
Product Description:
Green of London is a particularly fine and well-balanced blend, consisting of an excellent Chinese green tea, a fresh and delicate bergamot, and flower petals – cornflower and blue mallow. An exceptional Earl Grey, finally available with a green tea base!
Earl Grey has been a great English classic ever since Charles Grey, 2nd Earl of Falloden and Foreign Secretary went on to become Prime Minister in 1830. For saving the life of the Chinese Mandarin, he received in gratitude a specially scented tea flavoured with oil of bergamot.
Tasters Review:
I received a lovely email from Fanja at Le Palais des Thes explaining that Green of London – Earl Grey Mao Feng is now available at their SoHo/NYC Store! Exciting!!! They sent the Sororitea Sisters a batch of their brand new US release and we are VERY excited to try this!
I must say – I cannot remember if I have had an Earl Grey flavored Mao Feng before. I know I have had Senchas, as well as other types of green’s that were EG flavored but I really don’t remember a Mao Feng!
I do really like this! They hit the nail on the head for EG flavor especially with the Green tea base, here! It seems to be the perfect level of EG flavor to be strong and true but you can still taste the Green Tea base which is grassy and sweet. The Bergamot is really nice too! And there is a hint of floral flavor and it increases as I continue to sip!
This is a nice sipping tea as well as a gulping tea. I enjoyed this hot and cold. Pretty brilliant!
I thought this was a pretty neat tea to review on my Birthday! CHEERS!
Sencha Tea Chashi-Meijin Imperial Gold from Chado Tea House
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Chado Tea House
Tea Description:
Gold prize awarded three consecutive years by prestigious Monde Selection of Brussels, Belgium. Japanese Sencha at its finest. Uses only those tea leaves produced by master tea makers. The highly skilled artisans steamed the leaves with exceptional care and then roll them to perfection. This deeply steamed Fukamushi Sencha tea has delightful Shincha like tastes and fragrant aromas that make them highly sought after by tea connoisseurs. Rich full bodied tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Amazing!
This Chasi-Meijin Imperial Gold from Chado Tea House is unlike any other Sencha Tea that I’ve tried … no wonder it has been awarded the Grand Gold Prize. I agree with the description, this tastes a bit more like a Shin-cha … like maybe somewhere between a fresh Shin-cha and a Gyokuro.
Oh, sure, it has some of the characteristics you’d expect from a Sencha, including a sweet, vegetative taste with a hint of bitterness. But this is so much smoother than other Japanese Sencha teas that I’ve tried. And sweeter too. Less of a bitter note. The vegetative note is a cross between kelp, sweet grass, and mild, lightly steamed spinach. There is a buttery note to this, but it isn’t really a creamy buttery texture so much as it is just a hint of the sweet, creamy note that butter would impart if it were melted over a serving of the aforementioned steamed spinach.
The body is very smooth and lush, not so much a creamy body, and it isn’t heavy like that … I am finding this to be a little lighter than a “full-bodied” tea as described above, but then again, I steeped this tea for just 1.5 minutes in 170°F water, and the infusion was so pale that it almost looked like water that had just been barely tinged with a hint of chartreuse. But that was all that was required to create a very delicious cup of tea. It is a pleasantly smooth, easy to drink tea.
Chado Tea House is a company I’d highly recommend for the very best teas that Japan has to offer. The quality of teas offered by Chado is outstanding, and this Award-Winning Sencha is just another example of what I’m talking about!