Flights of Fancy: A Green Tea Tasting

 

Imagine a day where you get to drink green teas all afternoon, chat with some of your favorite people, and munch on perfectly paired sweets. I won't deny it, being a tea blogger has its advantages. It's always an adventure when tea people get together, and our last tasting is no exception. I had the privilege of joining some of my favorite tea friends for an extremely memorable afternoon, and thought it would be fun to share it with all of you.

To begin the day we started with a tasting of the new Matcha Gyokuro selection at La Colombe, expertly prepared by Alexis of Teaspoons and Petals, the resident tea consultant. She brewed the tea to perfection using a Silverton pour-over brewer, which was also fun to watch. I arrived late to our first tasting, so sadly I didn't get any good images. Needless to say, after a few sips of this well-balanced tea and exchanging hugs with some friends, I was ready for the adventure yet to come. 

We made our way to the International Culinary Center (ICC) and up to library, the perfect venue for our Rishi Tea tasting. The ICC library is a special place. The walls are made of glass and lined with shelves upon shelves of culinary books. I think this is what the library looks like in foodie heaven! We were greeted by the always elegant Keiko from Rishi Tea, and were sat at a long table decorated with flowers and adorned with plates of decadent French macarons and mochi. Like I said earlier, being a tea blogger has its advantages. 

Keiko chose the sweets well. The macaron flavors paired perfectly with each green tea, highlighting savory and vegetal notes. We had the chance to try Rishi green teas of various cultivars, something I've never done before. I don't know as much about Japanese green teas as I should (except that they are delicious), and I was grateful to learn and taste so many high-quality teas. This was a unique opportunity.

The teas were broken down into 'flights', small groups of tastings where we could compare and contrast (many of you have had either tea, beer, or wine flights before, I'm sure). I won't go too deep into specifics so be sure to check out Nicole's post for a look at the entire tea flight menu, as well as more photos from the day. I was focused on the experience and not as much on notes and photography.

The first flight had Sincha Machiko and Matcha Okumidori. The Shizu (aka machiko) cultivar is known for its cherry blossom floral flavor, and the tea certainly kept its promise. It was like tasting a fresh blossom. The okumidori cultivar made a chocolatey thick matcha, which reminded me of a roasted tea. After these two teas, I was eager for more. A great way to start.

The second flight was dedicated to teas of the Sae Midori cultivar.  We had a hand-picked shincha which surprised me with its delicate flavor. It wasn't grassy or the slightest bit bitter. We then had an extremely savory and light gyokuro, and a matcha that was a touch more bitter than the first, but still chocolatey with an interesting buckwheat note. I usually stick with fairly cool water for teas such as these, but I was surprised to learn that Keiko slightly warmer water for the gyokuro, at 170°. It's a good reminder to keep an open mind about water temperature- experimenting a little bit can help enhance the flavor of the tea, or at least change the flavor to something your palate prefers. 

We then moved to the Yabukita flight, a cultivar that is more common than the others. But these teas were anything but standard. This flight started with a super sweet shincha without a hint of bitterness. We then moved to an even sweeter 'Nishi family Shincha' that was a bit deeper, with a little hint of bitterness. Oh and in case you were wondering, all the sips were interspersed with mochi and macaron goodness. Tough day, right? Unfortunately I had to leave the festivities early because responsibilities were calling. I didn't have a chance to try a few of the teas, but Keiko made sure I tasted one more before I left.

I finished the afternoon on a perfectly sweet note. Keiko whipped up Matcha Hekisui for me, and it tasted like vibrant sweet peas. It was my favorite of the various matchas we had. It wasn't easy to leave such a cheerful room of fabulous women, but obligations were calling.

Needless to say I was flying high on tea happiness by the end of our tasting, feeling grateful to have so many amazing women in my life. Thank you to La Colombe, Rishi, Keiko, and the ICC for such a dreamy afternoon. Being a tea blogger is, to quote Larry David, pretty, pretty, pretty... pretty good.

Review: Mizuba Tea Company Daily Matcha

I recently had the good fortune of attending an online tandem tasting via google hangouts with other lovely tea folk. The tea discussed was Mizuba's daily matcha. The tea friends in attendance were: Geoffrey Norman, Rachana Rachel Carter, Jo Johnson, and Nicole Martin. Now let me explain first that this tasting was taking place at 9pm, and I suffer from frequent battles with insomnia where I spend way too much time contemplating every creaky, creepy sound at 3am. I was worried the matcha would aggravate the insomnia, so I decided to just enjoy everyone's company and sample it on a morning when I had time to savor it. It was torturous to hear everyone's rave review without a bowl of my own, but I've since had my turn to give it a try.

Now I have to admit I enjoy matcha but I don't make it at home as much as I should. My matcha whisking skills are adequate, but require more practice. On the morning I decided to finally taste this acclaimed tea, I was focused on my matcha setup when I felt a presence sniffing about. I looked next to me and the Littlest Tea Critic had grabbed the sample bag and stuck her nose in it. I asked her what she smelled, and she said 'green tea, vegetables'. This kid knows what she's doing.  The first thing that came to my mind when I put my nose to the dry powder was 'matcha cotton candy'. Seriously, if you could create matcha spun sugar, this is how I think it would smell. Sweet, fresh and creamy like white chocolate studded with spring freshly picked sweet peas.

I started whisking and the Littlest Tea Critic was delighted. She asked if she could try her hand at it. I have to say, the kid's got promise...

The Littlest Tea Critic tried her hand at whisking #matcha! A nice first attempt! Delicious matcha from @mizubateaco. Finally trying it after our group tasting with @lazyliteratus @iheartteas @teaformeplease @agiftoftea. The LTC said she could 'drink this all day'. Needless to say she only had a few small sips 😜More pics and review to follow! 🍵

A video posted by sara shacket (@tea_happiness) on May 14, 2016 at 6:34am PDT

After whisking, we both gave it a taste. I have to agree with my fellow bloggers, it's an insanely smooth, velvety matcha. Visions of cream and steamed green beans came to mind. The tea only has a whisper of that sweetness from the dry powder, but it's so fresh, so green. The Littlest Tea Critic also had a few sips and her feedback came as contented sighs.

This Mizbuba daily matcha is affordable and a perfect choice for anyone looking for a matcha fix.I'll definitely purchase some of this once my sample is gone. The Littlest Tea Critic wouldn't have it any other way!

Thank you to Geoffrey Norman for the delicious sample and to Rachana Rachel Carter for organizing!

An Evening Of Matcha And Meditation

At any given moment I have thoughts zipping through my brain, crisscrossing like train lines on a subway map. I use tea-focused moments to pause the commotion and mindfully taste the brew I've prepared. Tea and meditation pair up in a matcha meditation event at The Shinnyo Center I recently had the pleasure of attending. The event consisted of a Japanese tea ceremony, guided meditation, and a tasting of matcha with a sweet biscuit.

The tea ceremony was presented by members of the Urasenke Chanoyu Center (a place I've wanted to visit for years). Every movement had grace and intent, sending a wave of fluidity through the room. Watching each gesture I felt a flutter in my tummy. Respect, intention, mindfulness, gratitude. There is so much skill and knowledge needed in order to conduct a tea ceremony, it would take a lengthy article to discuss it all. This link gives a good overview. The matcha was whisked effortlessly yet with precision. I was hoping we'd learn more about the matcha served, but we were just told matcha from Kyoto was used. I wonder if it's from Ippodo?

After the ceremony we had a guided meditation with Qalvy Grainzvolt who led us through a 20 minute session where we started off with 'staircase breathing'. We took a breath for each count to 10, and down back to 1. After a few rounds I was very relaxed, and when it was time to visualize a pleasant place with warm sun, I felt my body getting warm, and even started sweating! Afterwards I felt lightness of mind but with a heavy relaxed body. Similar to how I feel after a yoga class but far more intense.

After our meditation we were given a Japanese sweet, also from Kyoto. It was thin and crispy with a nutty, bean-like flavor. It had a design that looked like a ginko leaf. We were instructed to eat the biscuit carefully, making sure any crumbs we created were wrapped in a small white paper (you can see it in the above picture). After the sweet, we all received an artful chawan with matcha. We were instructed to turn the chawan twice before observing and enjoying the tea. To learn more about the etiquette of the Japanese tea ceremony, please see this link. The matcha was light, smooth and subtle, with a wonderful frothy texture. As part of the etiquette, we were told to slurp the very last bits of tea in the bowl. This helped me get every last drop!

Qalvy explained that tasting the tea and the biscuit should be done as a walking meditation, which is basically meditation in action. We brought our awareness to every flavor and movement as we tasted. We examined how the tea interacted with our body. Bringing mindfulness to tea is something I try to do whenever I have a tasting session. It's hard to carve out time to do this, but even 5 minutes to observe, taste, and reflect brings more awareness to the day.

The Shinnyo center is offering two more matcha meditation sessions, March 17th and 31st at 7pm. The cost for the event is $20. You can find out more information and purchase tickets here.

Thank you so much to The Shinnyo center for inviting me to such a memorable evening. I look forward to deepening my meditation practice.

Harney & Sons SoHo

If you live in the NYC area, a great way to kick off National Hot Tea Month is to check out the enormous selection of teas from the Harney & Sons SoHo location. I once visited their beautifully rustic shop in upstate NY, and have been eager to visit the new store ever since it opened. The SoHo store is quite large and airy, with a floor to ceiling shelving unit for their loose teas, very different from the cozy upstate shop.  This is not a bad thing, they fit in well with the other stores in the area.



There are two parts to the store. The first is the large retail space, that has the huge tea selection, and a 'tasting bar' where you can sample the tea of the week, as well as any other tea you would like to try.  They also have tasting flights, which is a fun way to try new teas. There are also shelves and tables holding teaware and bagged teas.  After taking in the scene, I headed straight to the back of the store to the small cafe area, which is separated from the main space with a couple of bookcases. 



view of the store from the tea lounge



The cafe has 5 tables, and a nice little bar area for a quick cup, or to order a cup to go. Cups are $3, a small pot is $6, and large $8.  If you prefer to drink one of their specialty teas, you can add $1 to your order.  I thought the prices were reasonable given the quality of their tea.  If you are looking for a bite to eat, there are also sweet and savory food options. I took the last available seat and had a look at the menu. 

After sitting and studying the large menu, I decided on a white tea.  It was late in the day, so I wanted something light and refreshing. I had a few questions, so one of the experts was called over to explain the differences in the white teas they had available.  I chose one that sounded light but still flavorful, the Mutan white.  After a few minutes I heard a timer go off, and my pot was brought over.  The liquid was bright yellow, similar to other white teas that I've tried. The aroma was faintly floral and nutty. The taste had the same nuttiness, and was also a bit buttery.  It had a nice smoothness, with a soft texture on the tongue. Suitable for my late afternoon tea break, but not something I'd want to drink earlier in the day. The nutty flavor lingered for awhile, which made me smile as I relaxed and read my book. The noise from the retail area drifts into the cafe, but it was pleasant to sit there on a cold day, reading a book and sipping tea.  I will definitely be back to try more. They even had a small section of 'Yellow' tea, which I know nothing about. I am looking forward to trying them!



Mutan White tea from the cafe

After my tea break, I browsed around the shop a bit.  I noticed they were selling thick and thin matcha, and realized I needed to have some matcha to try at home.  So I picked up a small canister of thick matcha.  As I was standing by the tasting bar, one of the employees asked if I wanted to try the matcha.  She brought out a chawan, whisk, and scoop, and prepared the tea for me.  She even showed me the proper way to whisk it.  Realizing that I didn't have a proper chawan, or the accouterments to prepare matcha correctly, I ended up purchasing the things I needed to make matcha at home. I have been drooling over handmade chawans on etsy.com, but realized that for my fledgling efforts I just needed a basic one.  My new tea bowl is quite lovely to look at! But that is for a future matcha post...

I was very impressed with the staff throughout the store.  They were all extremely friendly, helpful, and very knowledgeable.  I wish I lived or worked close by! But it's just a short train ride away, so I will definitely be back at Harney & Sons soon to try something new.

Fun with matcha

There is so much to learn about green tea,  and now it is time to focus on matcha.  Matcha is a powdered green tea traditionally used in the Japanese tea ceremony.  Matcha is made from leaves grown only in Japan.  It may actually be even healthier than brewing loose leaves, because you are drinking the actual ground up tea leaves!  I imagine that means there is more caffiene, too. There are many grades of matcha, from food grade up to the ceremonial grades. There are two main differences in matcha, 'thick' and 'thin'. Thin matcha is called usucha.  Thin matcha is more common than the thick version, and actually has a stronger, astringent flavor. Thick matcha, koicha, is grown from tea plants that are at least thirty five years old! It has a milder taste, so more of the powder is used, giving it a thicker consistency.  Koicha is usually more expensive.

photo from greenteagourmet.com

I am trying to learn more about how to prepare matcha the authentic way. I don't yet have a chawan (tea bowl), whisk, or the other necessary accoutrements.  They are easy enough to find, but I thought I should learn a little more about the methods before jumping in and buying lots of things.  In my research I came across a bunch of YouTube videos that are easy to follow, and very helpful.  My favorite videos are with two young men, Griff and Matt.  Based solely on appearance, they are the most unlikeliest of tea drinkers. On first glance I thought that they were going to do some sort of SNL skit.  But they really know their stuff!! I feel guilty for misjudging them.  See for yourself, they have a whole channel dedicated to green tea! Their channel is:
http://www.youtube.com/user/TheArtOfGreenTea.

My matcha research has also led me to lots of beautiful chawan (chawans?), on etsy.com.  I cannot choose one! They are all so lovely!!

Tea and shopping. What could be better!! Once I have the proper tools, I will share my matcha experience.