Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Tencha - Round 2

So to further my adventures with Tencha, I decided to try steeping it as a sencha (against my better judgment)

Brewing Parameters: 5g Leaf, 5oz water, 185F, 3 pulls 1 minute separation from each.

1st Infusion, 1 minute: This infusion had a light pale yellow color to it with a light murkiness. The aroma is the same very sweet enjoyable one that accompanied the previous attempts. The flavor has the same thickness as the colder steeped tencha. The flavor though had a sharper feel to it. This flavor was still paired with the rich and thick flavor, but also had a long lingering aftertaste to it. There was a definite grassiness to the flavor.

1st Infusion, 2 minute: This infusion was more yellow in color and had the same initial strengh of flavor, but not the same on the back end. The flavor was strong to the point of bordering on bitter in the mid section of the flavor. The hints of bitter linger on the tongue on the back. At the same time though there is still a strong gyokuro like flavor in the middle section of the flavor.

1st Infusion, 3 minute: This infusion had a much more definite yellow hue to it. The flavor is strong and more lingering. It had a sharp tangy bitterness to it, but this tang was more noticeable than anything else, It felt like the tang was masking everything else of the flavor.

After the first infusion I didn't think it was worth it to continue for a second. The flavor seemed far enough off of the typical flavor reservation that it seemed a bit odd to continue further.

3 comments:

Salsero said...

So I guess this counts as a no for sencha-cizing Tencha. Good stuff, and lots of fun to play with anyway. I oversteeped a top quality Long Jing tonight and got a dose of that thick umami taste/feel that I found in the Tencha.

Thanks for posting.

Anonymous said...

I'd never even heard of this tea and I think that your review basically explains why.

Unknown said...

thanks for the review.