Yunomius

Aw, this is the very last one from my Yunomi subscription this month! I must say, I’ve been quite impressed with most of them, the quality is definitely there. I’m not so much looking forward to this tea, as the straight karigane had a more delicate flavor and I can just imagine the matcha stomping its grassy little feet all over that. The stems have the same grass-like shape, and I can still slightly see the color differences, but they’re coated in a thin layer of matcha. They still smell quite sweet, but the matcha is adding a strong grass note.

The steeped tea smells sweet and creamy with a touch of grass. I’m actually quite surprised by the subtlety of the matcha in this tea! I’m not getting any bitterness, and I can still taste that wonderful natural sweetness from the karigane itself. The matcha simply adds a surprisingly mellow grassiness along with a small touch of seaweedy umami. Quite good, though I prefer the plain this time as well. :)

Subscription: https://yunomi.us/shop/9337/tea-discoveries-subscription/?ref=12

As much as I want to tear into my long-awaited Lupicia order that just arrived, I’m telling myself that I need to try these Yunomi teas first, just in case the bonus points for reviews ends today or something. So, time for karigane! Karigane is basically just a premium version of kukicha (stem tea), meaning it’s made with either gyokuro or premium sencha stems. Visually, this tea is quite striking. The stems are long and thin like blades of grass, and range in color from very pale yellow-green to dark hunter green. The contrast of the light and dark pieces is very beautiful. The stems smell amazingly sweet and vegetal.

The first thing I notice is that the steeped liquor is much paler than the sencha I’ve been drinking, and it’s completely clear. It smells amazingly creamy and sweet. The flavor is also much less intense than other Japanese greens, but still delicious. There’s a remarkable level of sweetness along with a mild vegetal taste that reminds me of spinach and edamame. This definitely has a thinner mouthfeel, and is more refreshing rather than fortifying like mostly Japanese greens. Delicious!

Subscription: https://yunomi.us/shop/9337/tea-discoveries-subscription/?ref=12

Next in line, the matcha-fied version of their premium sencha. I have to say, I find it very sweet that each of these teas has its own little name (Eisai, Fuji, etc). It makes me feel like they’re special and they’re my little friends… that I’m drinking… okay that just sounded weird. But you know what I mean! Very cute concept. These leaves are identical to the plain version (Eisai) – long and thin like pine needles. But these are coated in a light dusting of matcha, which changes their color a bit. I can absolutely smell the matcha, it’s super grassy and somewhat sweet.

Mm, this cup smells so sweet and creamy… I can definitely taste the difference with this tea as well. The matcha amps up the grassy side of the flavor, and it seems to have added a light umami/seaweed note to this tea. The steamed spinach taste is still there, but it’s much more subdued in comparison. The only thing that remains the same is the thick, filling texture. The aftertaste is now grassy with a hint of cream. I must say, so far I’m preferring the plain versions over the matcha ones.

Subscription: https://yunomi.us/shop/9337/tea-discoveries-subscription/?ref=12

Time to continue on my Yunomi subscription saga! I have decided I will taste the plain (non-matcha) version first, and then the matcha-fied one. The leaves of this tea (and sencha in general) remind me a bit of pine needles because they’re so long and thin, plus the color is somewhat similar. These leaves are a nice medium to dark green with yellow tones. They smell lovely, rich and creamy with vegetal and grassy notes and a little bit of pineapple tartness.

The steeped aroma is rich and creamy as well with deep steamed veggies. Mm, this has a lovely intense vegetal flavor reminiscent of dark greens, like steamed spinach. There’s also a fresh and sweet grassy taste that adds a tiny bite of pleasant bitterness. The overall texture is quite thick and it fills the mouth nicely. I can taste a hint of creamy dairy throughout the sip, but it shines in the aftertaste and makes me think of matcha lattes. There’s also a little hint of melon, specifically honeydew, and edamame.

Subscription: https://yunomi.us/shop/9337/tea-discoveries-subscription/?ref=12

Uhh. Hmm… no.

I was hoping for bright sweet citrus, not pithy bitter citrus.

Anyone interested in trying this? It’s a matcha “latte” mix.

Time to continue on with my Yunomi subscription teas! This month, the theme is matcha-infused teas. They sent two versions of each of three different teas – one with matcha and one without. It’s quite cool! I tried the non-matcha version of this tea yesterday, so I figured I’d taste this version now so I could somewhat compare the two. I plan on trying the other four teas tomorrow, and actually tasting them one after the other so the flavors are fresh in my mind. The sencha leaves in this blend are extremely broken up, just like the non-matcha version. The leaves and rice are coated with a fairly thick layer of matcha powder. I can definitely smell the matcha, it’s sweet and intensely grassy.

Mm, the toasty rice smell is so lovely, and I can also smell the sweetness of the matcha and the grassiness of the tea. Again, I can taste the toasted rice strongly at the beginning, and then the tea (and matcha) take over. I can absolutely tell that the matcha is there, as this tea is far more grassy and intense-tasting than the plain version. There’s a very slight bitter edge, especially if I hold the tea in my mouth. Whether it’s coming from the matcha or the pulverized leaves, I don’t know. Just like in the plain genmaicha, the roasted flavor of the rice comes back to the forefront in the aftertaste and is nicely balanced with the grassiness. Overall, I think I prefer the plain version, as the matcha included in this one kind of covers up the lovely vegetal flavors of the sencha.

Link for the subscription program: https://yunomi.us/shop/9337/tea-discoveries-subscription/?ref=12

Yunomi is currently offering a free 3-month subscription with $50 purchase, until December 15th with code 3teadisc.

This is the last one from the Morita sampler! I was wondering what the difference was between their standard and premium senchas, so after a little poking around on the site I discovered that apparently the standard has smaller leaves. It’ll be interesting to see the difference in taste! Looking in the packet, I wouldn’t necessarily call these leaves larger, but they do have a bit more of a bluish hue than the standard version. Dry scent is also much richer, deeper, and sweeter.

Once steeped, the tea smells richly vegetal with a lot of sweetness. I must say, I am very impressed with the Morita family’s teas! This one is also fantastically delicious. It has amazing rich and silky mouthfeel and flavor. I can taste deep and intense spinach alongside a sweet and creamy flavor that reminds me of matcha. This is absolutely a decadent tea, I’m very surprised that it wasn’t shaded at all as it reminds me of kabusecha or gyokuro. There’s a light kiss of floral in the aftertaste, possibly jasmine. And throughout the sip is a light seaweed flavor in the background, giving it a nice umami character to balance the sweetness. A fantastic tea!

This is another tea from the Morita sampler that Cheri sent me in a swap. It contained a sencha, premium sencha, aracha, and kukicha from the same grower (the Morita family). So cool to try all these different types of Japanese green! This is the standard sencha, and the leaves are long, thin, and needle-like. Color is a lovely and rich dark emerald green. They smell quite sweet and grassy with slight mineral and marine notes.

Once the tea is steeped, the aroma is sweet and creamy with a strong spinach note. I can still smell that slight sparkling mineral aroma as well. Ooh, this is actually quite heavy on the umami and seaweed aspects, which I did not expect. It’s very satisfying and reminds me of drinking a savory vegetable broth with dark greens and mushrooms in it. There is a definite mineral tone here, but it’s pleasant and makes me think of clear water from a mountain stream. I must say, this is the first tea that I’ve tasted a definite mushroom flavor in, and I like it a lot! The sip ends with a sparkling mineral clarity combined with lovely sweetness from the vegetables. Another lovely tea from the Morita family via Yunomi!

Sipdown

I could have sworn that I’ve posted about this tea previously. Nevertheless, I finished of my sample from Yunomi this morning.

I’ll have to say it – I am not a gyokuro person. Steeping is too fussy, and it’s generally meant for smaller portions whereas I like to make whole teapots of tea. I’m sipping this and just finding myself unable to finish off a single cup of this, never mind the rest of the teapot I’ve brewed.

I think I might pour the rest of this down the sink or into a plant…which makes me sad.

Ah well.

Very tasty. I’m often not a fan of roasty teas, but this really works. Rather than being dry nd woody tasting, it’s got a bit of sweetness and a note of burnt sugar that’s quite separate from the sweetness, if that makes any sense. Slightly nutty as well. There’s a touch of floral on the finish.

Hooray, Yunomi finished reorganizing/revamping their subscription program and sent me my first month (I paid for 3 months not knowing it had been suspended so I’m getting them now!). The concept is actually quite cool, it’s a comparison of the same tea with and without matcha. They sent two versions (with and without matcha) of three different teas, for a total of six samples. Tonight I felt like a genmaicha, so I figured I’d break into the samples. The sencha in this tea has very thin and dark leaves, but unfortunately it’s very broken up, which makes me worry about getting a bitter brew. There is also the usual toasted rice and a few pieces of popped rice. Dry scent is rich and buttery.

Thankfully, I can smell the toasted rice more in the steeped aroma. It’s a lovely lime green color. There’s a bit of sediment at the bottom of my cup, so I’ll try to drink this as quickly as possible to avoid any bitterness. I can taste the roasted flavor best in the beginning of the sip, after which the sencha takes over until the end. The sencha here is quite smooth, but has a concentrated vegetal flavor that reminds me of steamed spinach. There’s also a nice touch of sweetness reminiscent of snap peas. I can also taste a nice, brothy umami presence that makes this so satisfying to drink. In the aftertaste, the rice flavor comes back out to play and mingles well with the other notes. Overall, it’s quite nice and I can definitely tell that this was made with a premium sencha.

This is finally all gone, sipped down in a sweet latte.

I have some other matcha to get through first (quite a lot actually), but I will be replacing it. It’s delicious, and such a good value for the money. Even well past the best before date, and in a package that just wouldn’t seal properly, this remained flavourful and delicious. Great for lattes and cooking.

I wouldn’t drink this straight – it’s not as fine a grind as a higher quality matcha, and I think the texture wouldn’t be great, but for mixing, it’s perfect.

So, not drinking this today but baking with it.

I saw this recipe for white chocolate matcha scones on Yunomi and it just sounded so good. My matcha is also getting close to its best before date, so I want to use it up soon. http://yunomi.us/24858/tea-recipe-matcha-scone-pancake-mix/

Since I don’t have pancake mix and I prefer baking from scratch anyway, I adapted this scone recipe: http://www.food.com/recipe/simple-sweet-scones-66409

I added about 2.5tbsp of matcha and half a bag of white chocolate chips. The whole thing was fast and easy to put together and very delicious. The scones are bright green and the matcha flavour is mild but distinct and present.

I will definitely be making these again – maybe soon, because I just ate seven of them in one sitting. Next time, I would add another tablespoon of matcha, just to make the flavour a bit more intense. I had to use more liquid than the recipe called for, probably a combination of the extra dry weight of the matcha, and the fact that it’s so incredibly dry here in winter that the moisture content of my flour is way too low and it always absorbs way more liquid than it would in other climates.

Tasty tasty!

Hmm, tonight’s latte is tasty but not as good as usual. I’m not sure if it’s hotter milk than usual, matcha getting old (best before date is the beginning of Feb), or the fact that I ate a bunch of soan papdi right before drinking this, and this just can’t compare to how sweet and intensely flavoured it was.

Well, this bag will be done soon. I’ll probably see about drinking up some of my other matcha before I reorder, but this is definitely worth keeping around.

Breakfast today is happening in the afternoon and is consisting of cookies, chocolate and matcha lattes. I may regret this later, but right now it’s delicious and soothing me.

I have making a matcha latte down to a science and I could almost do it in my sleep now, which is awesome, because it’s great to have first thing in the morning when I’m still kind of sleepy. Also the milk provides a bit of sustenance on the days that I’m too lazy or exhausted to feed myself actual food.

So a huge eggnog matcha latte for breakfast, and then maybe real food for second breakfast, and then running errands.

Mmmmm another eggnog matcha latte. I love having a delicious, inexpensive kitchen grade matcha for these. I don’t have to feel bad about using my better matcha in lattes.

I’m really glad to have one of those magic bullet blenders, because it makes frothy lattes super easy to make, and I just drink it right out of the blender cup.

This seems to be becoming my daily drink. There’s just something so soothing about a matcha latte, and this is just delicious with eggnog.