Tea Review: Organic Japanese Oolong Minamisayaka 2020 (The Tea Crane)

Organic Japanese Oolong Minamisayaka 2020

The Tea Crane
Type: Oolong
Origin: Japan, Miyazaki Prefecture, Gokase
Product Description:

Once diligently withered and allowed to ferment only minimally, the leaves of this cultivar species take on a fresh fragrance.

This tea carries in its aroma a trace of citrus, followed by a lingering flowery aftertaste.

Its flavour has some bitterness, but the sweetness of an Oolong produced from green tea leaves cultivated in Japan can be almost overwhelming.

Temperature: 195° F

Amount: 3 grams
Steeping Time: 2 minutes

The dry leaf aroma is rich, buttery, and floral.

The golden yellow infusion has rich, buttery, and floral notes in aroma and flavor with a smooth mouth feel and long finish.

The fullest flavor was in the first infusion and I had good results from lengthening the steeping time with each subsequent infusion.  Both the aroma and flavor reminded me of a milk oolong.

This tea was received as a backer reward for The Tea Crane's flagship tea shop Kickstarter campaign.

Tea Review: Organic First Flush Seed-grown Wakocha (The Tea Crane)

Organic First Flush Seed-grown Wakocha
The Tea Crane
Type: Black
Origin: Japan, Nara Prefecture, Tsukigase
Product Description:

This tea is a high-quality wa-kocha black tea produced on organic farms, and is therefore both safe and unsullied: free of anything known to be unhealthy, and uncontaminated as to flavor. In addition, it is cultivated and treated by means of orthodox manufacturing methods.

Temperature: 208° F
Amount: 3 grams
Steeping Time: 3 minutes

The dry leaves have a sweet floral aroma with dark bread notes.

The bright orange infusion has a thick, rich, and nutty aroma with notes of baked fruit and squash.  The taste is rich and mildly astringent with floral notes followed by a sweet floral finish.

This wakocha was delicious throughout three infusions with the fullest flavor was in the first.

This tea was received as a backer reward for The Tea Crane's flagship tea shop Kickstarter campaign.

Tea Review: Uji-tawara Organic Gyokuro (The Tea Crane)

Uji-tawara Organic Gyokuro
The Tea Crane
Type: Green
Origin: Japan, Kyoto Prefecture, Ujitawara
Product Description: 

A well-balanced organic gyokuro from the Uji-tawara region in Kyoto.  Predominantly herbal notes, making it a light and refreshing gyokuro, yet maintaining a good body.  A refreshing gyokuro with distinct herbal notes, balancing well between a not too heavy nor too light character. Organic Gyokuro from Kirishima infuses to a golden-green hue, and is a smooth tea with good mouthfeel, nice amami (sweetness), a slight ocean air taste, and low astringency.

Temperature: 140-175° F
Amount: 3 grams
Steeping Time: .5-2 minutes

The dry leaves have an aroma of nuts and nut shells.

The pale jade green liquor is clear with an aroma that is savory, butter, nutty, and marine green.  The taste is sweet and savory, nutty, and spring green with a long sweet green finish.

The first infusion of this gyokuro had mild astringency which balanced nicely with the savory and sweet notes.  The second infusion was thicker and sweeter with a deep, rich aroma, and a bright green liquor.  While I most enjoyed the slightly more nuanced results from steeping for 2 minutes at 140° F, a shorter steeping of 45 seconds to 1 minute at 175° F is also very pleasant.

This tea was received as a backer reward for The Tea Crane's flagship tea shop Kickstarter campaign.

Tea Review: Organic Mountain-Grown Nara Native Sencha (The Tea Crane)

Organic Mountain-Grown Nara Native Sencha
The Tea Crane
Type: Green
Origin: Japan, Nara Prefecture, Tsukigase
Product Description:

This tea is a high-quality sencha produced on organic farms, and is therefore both safe and unsullied: free of anything known to be unhealthy, and uncontaminated as to flavor. Consequently, it tastes as sencha really should.

Temperature: 175° F
Amount: 3 grams
Steeping Time: 1.5-2 minutes

The dry leaves have a buttery and nutty aroma with light grassy and marine notes.

The clear green liquor has buttery, spring green, and light salty marine notes.  The taste is savory, nutty, and green with a long, sweet green finish.

I found the best results to my preferences by steeping this sencha for 1.5 minutes for the first infusion, 1 minute for the second infusion, and 2 minutes for a third infusion in which the taste had developed a pleasant sweetness. A longer initial steeping time of 2 minutes also produced nice results with moderate astringency and a slightly cloudier liquor.  The finish is delightfully refreshing and goes on a long, long while.  

This tea was received as a backer reward for The Tea Crane's flagship tea shop Kickstarter campaign.

Tea Review: Miyazaki Native Kamairicha (The Tea Crane)

Miyazaki Native Kamairicha
The Tea Crane

Type: Green
Origin: Japan, Miyazaki Prefecture, Gokase
Product Description: 

Organic seed-grown native cultivar kamairicha from Miyazaki, Gokase, Spring 2020.  Although green tea, in comparison to sencha it presents a much stronger fragrance due to it being parched instead of steamed during the first stage of manufacturing.

Temperature: 175° F-208° F
Amount: 3 grams
Steeping Time: 30 seconds-2 minutes

The dry leaves have a savory, toasty, and green aroma.

The liquor is pale green and clear and the aroma is savory with buttery, nutty, and sweet green notes.  The taste is savory, nutty and green with light astringency and a long, refreshing green finish.

This had the pleasant toasty and savory notes I look for in kamairicha, while the flavor had a more bold sencha-like greenness than in other examples I've encountered, providing a unique tasting experience.  Steeping for 2 minutes at 175° F had full-flavored results with the beginnings of astringency and a slightly shorter steeping time of 1.5 minutes maintains the flavor while reducing the astringency.  I especially enjoyed the results when steeping at 208° F for 20-30 seconds which produced full flavor, increased the toastiness, and almost no astringency.

This tea was received as a backer reward for The Tea Crane's flagship tea shop Kickstarter campaign.