Cameron B. select Send Message

350 Followers / 246 Following

Cameron B. drank Obukucha by Kyoto Obubu Tea Farms

4330 tasting notes

Sipdown! (1 | 1)

First sipdown of the year with a New Year tea! Happy New Year, tea friends!

This is Obubu’s version of obukucha, or good fortune tea. It’s a tea traditionally drunk around the new year to bring good luck. I’ve had a few different versions before, some having genmaicha or other bases, and usually with some form of gold flake to symbolize prosperity. This one is a sencha base – their Sencha of the Wind to be exact – and then it comes with little packets of dried ume and konbu knots to add into your cup, and then gold leaf to sprinkle on top.

It’s tasty! Sencha of the Wind is a shaded (or kabuse) sencha, so it has a slightly intense deep umami flavor with a good bit of sweetness. Not quite to the gyokuro level of intensity, but halfway there. Very deep and rich spinach notes that make you feel like you’re drinking a healthy smoothie, in a good way. And then the ume adds a nice tart fruity note to it, and the konbu adds salinity and a slightly different umami note. There’s also a nice, almost slippery silkiness that’s probably coming from the konbu as well.

Obubu sends this one out every year in their December box, and I’m actually still a year behind, so I’m drinking the obukucha I received at the end of 2020. I’ll try to remember to sip down my new 2021 packet this year so I’ll be caught up next January, ha ha! :P

https://www.instagram.com/p/CYNFEC8uOng/

Flavors: Grass, Mineral, Plum, Salt, Seaweed, Silky, Spinach, Sweet, Tart, Thick, Umami, Vegetal

Preparation

170 °F / 76 °C 0 min, 45 sec 5 g 7 OZ / 200 ML

I Like This

19 likes

3 comments

ashmanra
Delete

Oh man, I wish I had thought to do a sipdown today! Maybe it isn’t too late…

derk
Delete

I really like the idea of this! Is it available only through subscription?

Cameron B.
Delete

Hmm I guess so, I don’t see it on their website. I’ll send you my other package!

People who liked this

Comments

ashmanra
Delete

Oh man, I wish I had thought to do a sipdown today! Maybe it isn’t too late…

derk
Delete

I really like the idea of this! Is it available only through subscription?

Cameron B.
Delete

Hmm I guess so, I don’t see it on their website. I’ll send you my other package!

Profile

Bio

Hi, I’m Cameron!

I’m a 30-something software engineer currently living in Austin, Texas with my husband and our two pugs, Gobo and Ume. I tend to cycle between my different hobbies, and they include piano, knitting, video games, board games, miniature painting, planners, bento, Korean skincare, and – of course – TEA! But really, what I’m best at is “collecting” hobby-related things… ;)

~ 2025 SIPDOWN CHALLENGE! ~
- February sipdowns: 5
- Total 2025 sipdowns: 39

I prefer my tea lukewarm or at room temperature and without milk or sugar. I steep Western style, and fluctuate between using big mugs or small teapots depending on the season.

I am always up for a swap! Just let me know if you’d like to try something in my cupboard.

Tea Preferences:
I enjoy both flavored and unflavored teas in many forms. These days, I drink mostly flavored teas, and I tend to gravitate most toward black, green, oolong, and herbal varieties. I do have a special fondness for straight Japanese green teas, however.

I do not sweeten my teas, and pre-sweetened teas are usually too sweet for me. I also do not enjoy stevia (or monkfruit, etc.).

I tend to reach for fruitier flavors rather than desserty ones these days, but I do have favorites from both categories. Willing to try anything once! There are a few ingredients/flavors that aren’t generally my jam, such as coconut, rose, lavender, and chocolate flavoring. But I also have teas that I love with some of those things, too! :)

Favorite Companies:
3 Leaf
Bird & Blend
Dammann Frères
Harney & Sons
Kyoto Obubu Tea Farms
Lupicia
Old Barrel Tea Co
Simpson & Vail
Taiwan Tea Crafts
TeaVivre

Tea Rating Scale:
90-100: Outstanding! Permanent cupboard resident
80-89: Great – a possible staple
70-79: Good, but I wouldn’t buy it
60-69: It’s decent
50-59: Meh… I may or may not have finished the cup
40-49: Ick. Couldn’t finish it.
00-39: Repulsive, I spat it out

I will sometimes refrain from rating a tea if I feel I’m too biased due to my personal dislikes, or if I suspect the sample has been compromised by age or scent contamination.

Cupboard Spreadsheet:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ZEuKf1-ppR-VXajO4vV39zU1N3zjFJteEPAynqD2yl0/edit?usp=sharing