Hojicha

Description

Origin: Wazuka, Kyoto 
Cultivar: Gokou
Cultivation: Unshaded 

Know your tea: 

Hojicha was originally a poor man's tea. It came into being as an attempt by farmers to salvage the leftover stems and broken leaves that were otherwise unwanted, by roasting them and enhancing their flavors. Today, Hojicha is an extremely popular and preferred tea due to its rich, nutty, and comforting flavor profile and low caffeine content. The farmer who has created this Hojicha for us is the only farmer to ever have achieved the perfect score in the tea competition that has been held in Kyoto for over 90 years. This Hojicha is grown and harvested in the mountains surrounding Wazuka village and hasn't seen a pesticide in over 15 years, and is roasted in a small-scale tea leaf roaster (Morita-style) that uses a spinning metal barrel to ensure even roasting. 

Ingredients: 100% roasted green tea leaves and stems

Tasting Notes: Roasted hazelnuts, butterscotch, chocolate

Liqueur Body: Golden brown, medium-bodied.

Preparation

We encourage you to experiment with the amount of leaves, amount and temperature of water, and infusion times to reach your preferred strength of tea,  but here's a suggestion for this particular tea: 

3-5 grams of tea per 120ml of water at 85-90 degrees celsius. Infuse for 30 seconds. Reinfuse 2-3 times

Pro Tip: Unlike Chinese teas, Japanese teas should not be rinsed, as the first cup is the most prized one.

Storage Instructions: Green tea is best stored in the refrigerator, in a dark, dry, and airtight container.