ChaTo

I got a BIG bag of this from a friend who got it in San Francisco’s Japantown. The amount of tea intimidated me, so I offloaded most of it to ashmanra and distributed half the remainder to other tea drinkers.

It’s exactly as Cameron B describes ( https://steepster.com/CameronB/posts/435684 ) and really pleasant to drink. Tonight’s sipdown was brewed in the big glass pot for 3 of us in the house. I paired it with a small white chocolate peanut butter cup. The tea is also rich and nutty but the slight astringency of the tea absolutely complemented the richness of my dessert. I like the charcoal taste here — the tea is roasted skillfully and has a nice, smooth roasted flavor.

This has a richer flavor brewed in a small clay pot and can be steeped again. It does equally well with the recommend 90C as with 100C.

Now I wish I had kept more of this houjicha for myself :$

December Sipdown Challenge – a genmaicha or hojicha

I have given up caffeine after 3 pm, with only the occasional slip where I have it between 3 and 4. Otherwise there is no sleeping.

A couple of years ago I discovered that I loved ice cream and hot tea. One of my favorite combinations was ice cream and a pot of Lapsang alongside. I was sad to give up my tea and ice cream treat but the discovery of hojicha has given back this pleasure. This hojicha in particular is my go-to for ice cream and tea nights. I mainly use the powdered for lattes and this one for “by the pot” drinking.

Not a sipdown, as derk sent a very generous amount!

This was a gift from derk! Thank you, thank you!

A while back I ordered powdered hojicha from 3 Leaf Tea and really enjoyed it. I really wanted to try loose leaf hojicha as well, and derk offered to send me some, and boy did she send me some!

Ashman are having this as a little “nightcap”. Ha ha! We are so wild.

A good deep sniff of the bag has noticeable chocolate aroma to me – more milk chocolate than cocao, I think. In addition to that and equally strong is the aroma of latex or acrylic paint, and I mean that in a good way. I smell that same element in a lot of oolongs and some greens.

The taste really isn’t chocolate-y, though. It tastes like toasted nuts, and the “art class” aroma maintains its position as a forerunner with the nuttiness. There is that classic roasted Japanese tea burned popcorn vibe as well.

This has a taste that lingers with great warmth well after the sip. This is going to do very nicely as a post-3 pm tea that really is tea and not an herbal.

Many thanks, derk! It is delicious, Ashman likes it, too, and this is a good supply!

Sipdown! (34 | 381)

From derk, of course!

This is a really lovely hojicha. It has such a sweet and nutty flavor, with a roastiness that’s light and not overpowering. There’s a nice richness to it as well, which really helps play up the nutty notes.

If I didn’t already have a ton of hojicha, I would definitely consider ordering some of this. I’ll have to keep it in mind for the future though!