O-Cha.com

Mild, grassy, delicate. A great tea for sipping while relaxing in a quiet moment.

A delicious sencha, that, when brewed at a lower temperature than recommended, offers up a lovely vegetal infusion (“cooked greens”) first time ’round, followed by pleasingly-astringent infusions with a mild “bite” subsequenely. A very pleasant tea.

First infusion – 5 g. per 8 oz. water, 65 deg., 45 sec.

Second infusion – 5 g. per 8 oz. water, 65 deg., 75 sec.

Third infusion – 5 g. per 8 oz. water, 65 deg., 10 min.

yum.
two bowls. two teaspoons total. poor whisking :’( my arm is tired.
but good tea none-the less.

made a bowl today.
1 tsp as usual.
whisked it 3 maybe for times. just to take some matcha pictures. was cold by the time i drank it. very….. weird tasting. not pleasant. wont be doing that again.

Wow…. It’s been like…. a whole month since i last drank this… unless i am missing something.
had two bowls today.
first- 1 tsp matcha, 4oz 160* f water, and whisked for about 20-30 seconds. i had trouble getting the whisking motion down today. Kept telling my self “think violin, think violin, think VIOLIN 16th notes at 180, think violin 16th NOTES at 180…” so i over whisked this one. some how i had a few lumps in it and it was slightly unpleasantly bitter. not the usual faint bitterness, it was just matcha, umami, sweetness, and POW BiTtEr. after tastes was actually a little better than the tea it’s self.
second- got the whisk motion down, whisked about 10-15 seconds. the usual 1 tsp and 4oz water though i didn’t measure the temp but it felt warmer than the last bowl. much sweeter, back to the usual faint bitterness that isn’t really bitterness that also isn’t really there but it is there. this tea confuses me. It’s very sweet (when i get lumps they taste like tea and powdered sugar), a nice umami taste (that rivals my theanine and sugar chewables i have), and only a pleasant hint of bitterness (thats not really bitter…), and as far as i can tell no astringency! It has a rich almost “sweet tea” flavor with a brothy soup aspect. and then that wonderful wonderful velvet texture. ahhhhhhhhh. i wish i had been brave and tried this tea years ago. I thought i would hate it but it turns out i just love it! it’s been 20 minutes and it still have a faint aftertaste. I don’t want to eat anything. i just want this flavor to last a little longer.

1 tsp super. ah. so good. i wonder how many servings i will get out of this 30 gram container. i think if i just keep track on here i can check and order the right amount to last me for a while.
my poor chasen has two broken tines. :’( poor thing. ah, well its still usable. when they all break and it looks like crap i will purchase a new one. maybe by then i will have a real chawan that wont wear down my whisk.
3/4 tsp in ~60ml. yuck. not enough liquid in my bowl to whisk this so it came out pretty bad and super lumpy. it would have been fine if i had a real chawan that was the right size. meh.

made this afternoon before work.
1 tsp. in 4oz water. ah, i could really taste the creamyness today. no lumps in the bottom of the bowl when i was done. :D i must be getting really good at this whisking thing. had a very pleasant and long after taste today (5-10 minutes). it’s been a half hour and i can still feel it in my mouth. rich. creamy. yum. perfect way to start my afternoon.
oh, and i used hot water straight out of the dispenser. i think whisking cools it down.

Had two bowls tonight.
1tsp each one at 142 *f and the other was hot water straight out of the dispenser.
First bowl was sweet, then I ate a piece of chocolate, and had a second hotter bowl that actually foamed!!! But was a little more bitter ( it may have been from the chocolate I ate just before). But it was still very very good. I usually can’t stand anything even remotely bitter but these matcha teas have such a nice balance that it usually makes up for it ( unlike English black tea) .

Has a spoonful of honey. You are supposed to eat something sweet before matcha.
Used 4oz of hot water straight out of the hot side of my water cooler and 1 teaspoon matcha powder.
I need to log everytime I drink this so i know how many servings i am getting out of it.
I was very good. the aftertaste from the honey didn’t go especially well with the tea. a bit meh. but the tea tasted fantastic this way. I could feel the silkyness.
So… next time i will have something sweet but that is neutral flavored. It’s really good this way. Today I made it in a soup bowl and for the very first time I have a nice foam! wow was the flavor and texture different!!!!!!

tried to day with water straight out of the cooler (~165*f) and 1/2 teaspoon (4oz water). very yummy. Might try 1/2 teaspoon with water temp ~150 to see if that does better. I had more foam today, a light…. “bitterness” that wasn’t really bitterness (i think the water was too hot), and a lovely silk beverage despite the lumps I missed >.<.
Much richer taste than yesterday. I might try using a whole teaspoon one day when i find the perfect temperature.

Dried my Chawan, scooped more matcha (1/4 teaspoon), 140*f water, made sure i was only using 4 oz of water, whisked for 15-30 seconds, no foam showed up.
Flavor was richer but still a bit weak for my tastes, flavor was nice i would just like a bit more. Next time I will use 1/2 teaspoon I think. I really think a whole teaspoon is over kill though (might try it just to see).
I will continue to try different amounts of tea to water. and adjust my score accordingly.

on a weird note… I am really enjoying the after taste. It has left behind a very creamy mouth feel. hmmm.

1/4 teaspoon to 8 oz 140*f water.
very weak but pleasant flavor. the whole 8oz was a mistake, i have meant to grab the measuring cup with 4oz water and not the second full one. sigh. the full one was used to preheat the chawan and i accidentally tossed it in with my matcha.
I think I spent about 15-30 seconds whisking it. My Chasen worked well for me. the result was palatable but very watery. meh.

Soft and warm, nutty and toasty.

A little nutty, a warm flavor. I drink this in the evenings when I am working but don’t want the caffeine to keep me awake.

I seem to be stuck in a rut, drinking this every morning. But it’s quite nice to wake up with. :)

Third steep.
Starting to get a little thin, but still a decent amount of flavor and body.

Drinking this again. Currently it’s my morning tea. More tea is coming in the mail, which will add variety. But in the meantime, this tea is really nice in the morning.

Not as “thick” as other deeply-steamed senchas I have tried. Very pleasant and clean-tasting.

A softer flavor this time, rounder. Warm-grassy, compared to a sharp-grassy. Still very good.

Trying a full cup now. Again, the temperature is a little lower than what the vendor recommends. The is a soft roundness to the flavor, followed by a slightly sharp grassy finish. A deeper aroma, rather than “bright” of a light-steamed sencha. I definitely think this would be better with savory foods or a meal, compared to sweets or desserts with a light-steamed sencha.

I brewed this tea a little cooler than what is recommended by the vendor. My first impression is that the tea has a deeper, richer flavor than other senchas I have tried. I think it would be really good with heavier foods, rather than a light sweet.