It’s been a while since I reviewed a sencha, but thankfully Ippodo sent me their Hosen Sencha.
This sencha blend is of premium quality according to Ippodo, and above it there’s extra-premium and ultra-premium.
The tea leaves come in a 100 gr bag, as you can see in the picture.
Inside, there are fresh green tea leaves that are shiny and tightly rolled into a needle shape. It’s without a doubt a high quality sencha.
I smelled the leaves and felt a fresh, creamy aroma with a little sweetness. So far so good.
With such a tempting tea, I was having a hard time waiting for the water to boil 🙂
Tasting Hosen Sencha
As I do for every sencha, I used 4 grams of tea leaves for 1 minute in 60 ml (2 oz) of water at 80°C (176°F).
The wet leaves smell like seaweed. It’s quite good.
The tea itself still has a creamy aroma to it, while still having the fresh smell of sencha.
Judging by the aroma, I thought that the liquor would have a strong yellow color, but it wasn’t the case. Still, it’s very pleasant to observe.
For the taste, I found quite a bit of umami, a slight sweetness, and some bitterness and astringency. It reminds me of a shincha.
This tea is definitely rich, with a fresh aftertaste.
I also made another infusion, this time the tea had a brighter color and the taste was similar except that it was a little more bitter. Still enjoyable, though.
Conclusion: A refreshing green tea with a rich taste and a wonderful aroma.
January 22, 2015
I find that senchas taste best at between 65 and 70 degrees celsius. Have you tried it at those temperatures? Senchas are very delicate and do not stand up to heat well.
January 22, 2015
Hi Terry
I’ve tried senchas at 70C, and it is good, the better the sencha the lower you can go, but for comparison’s sake I always review sencha at 80C.
As you say, senchas are delicate so more than that isn’t recommended.
This particular one also has 80C suggested in its package.
January 22, 2015
I agree with Terry even though you have explained your reasons for it. At 80C and above tannins are extracted whereas below that temperature theanine extraction is speeded up.
Just yesterday I did a small experiment with our own greens. 80C and 3 minutes and 70C and 5 minutes. The latter tasted sweeter even though it was brewed for a longer time. Not surprising because theanine is extracted over time.
January 22, 2015
ps. I really need to go to Ippodo in Kyoto or even Tokyo. Heard so much about them.
January 23, 2015
They also have a store in New York, I want to go there some day.