Tamaryokucha Yui Tsuyuhikari (結・ゆい)

‘Yui’ Tsuyuhikari is a fukamushi (deep-steamed) tamaryokucha from a single cultivar: tsuyuhikari. It’s an ichibancha (spring) harvest tea, shaded for about 10-14 days.

This intense, sweet & umami velvety smooth tea won the prestigious Platinum prize in the 2024 Nihoncha Award.
Everything in the cultivation and processing of this tea is in support of bringing out a luxurious umami-rich taste: from using the tsuyuhikari cultivar known for its rich umami character, specially cultivated fertilisers added to the soil, nearly 2 weeks of shading & deep-steamed processing. All of this together makes a rich, broth-like brew with an intense deep green colour.

The aroma of the dry leaf reminds us of buttered spinach & nori seaweed.
The taste of the first brew at lower temperature (we recommend starting with 60ºC) is wonderfully rich, with a round & velvety mouthfeel, with flavours of creamy pea soup & fresh green beans.
Further brews may bring out more green vegetable notes like courgette (zucchini), as well as notes of creamy white cashew butter.

Brewing suggestion:
First brew – 5 gr / 120-200 ml / 60ºC / 50 sec
Second brew – brew slightly hotter ~80ºC, short brew of just a few seconds

Officially we would say that you can infuse the tea at least 3 times from the same tea leaves, but this tea, as with many of our other teas, you can definitely infuse more than 3 times.

Ikeda Chaen is a specialist in the ‘shiage’ (refinement) processing of tea. Ikeda Ryou is currently at the helm of the multi-generational company and is the youngest buyer at auction. Diving deep into learning about tea evaluation and auction bidding techniques straight out of highschool at 18 years old, it’s taken him 10 years to finally be able to know how to unlock the potential of an aracha (crude tea/farmer’s tea). By just weighing the tea in his hand, looking at the tea and tasting, Ikeda knows exactly which farmer in the neighbouring region has produced the tea.

Weight 0.1 kg

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