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It’s been a while since I posted a tasting note. I attribute this lack of reviews both to having a weird form of writer’s block (palate block? flavour description block?) and to drinking teas I’ve already written about. I have at least five tasting notes I need to write before I can mark some teas as sipdowns. Not having written about some teas is also one of the many, many excuses I’ve made for delaying Daylon’s package for an embarrassingly long time. (I promise it exists, and you’ll be drinking spring Longjing in November!)

Here’s another Chanoka matcha from Nio, which I think comes from the same farm as their Chanoka Silver. I don’t have enough experience with Japanese green teas to understand what’s special about the Okumidori cultivar, so this will be a learning opportunity. I steeped 2 g of matcha in a mason jar containing around 100 ml of cool water. Once again, I got foam!

The dry aroma is an unusual combination of chocolate, cream, green veggies, and umami. Sadly, the chocolate isn’t prominent in the matcha itself, though it does retain a creamy texture and hints of cocoa. I also get kale, green pepper, grass, spinach, and umami. The matcha is sweeter than most, though with a kick of vegetal astringency near the end.

This tea gets major points for its sweetness and limited astringency. I’m beginning to understand why people might drink matcha voluntarily, though it’s still not my preferred tea type.

Until October 31, you can buy two tins of matcha and get the third one free. You can also use the code LEAFHOPPER15 to get 15% off everything on the site, possibly including Advent calendars (I get a small commission when you use this code).

Flavors: Chocolate, Cream, Grass, Green, Green Pepper, Kale, Spinach, Sweet, Umami, Vegetal

Preparation
2 g 3 OZ / 100 ML

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Since I discovered Teavana’s Monkey Picked Oolong four years ago, I’ve been fascinated by loose-leaf tea. I’m glad to say that my oolong tastes have evolved, and that I now like nearly every tea that comes from Taiwan, oolong or not, particularly the bug-bitten varieties. I also find myself drinking Yunnan blacks and Darjeelings from time to time, as well as a few other curiosities.

However, while online reviews might make me feel like an expert, I know that I still have some work to do to actually pick up those flavours myself. I hope that by making me describe what I’m tasting, Steepster can improve my appreciation of teas I already enjoy and make me more open to new possibilities (maybe even puerh!).

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