May we introduce: Our Kabusecha

Here we introduce you to our Kabusecha green tea and show you our recommendation for preparing this mild-sweet green tea. In this blog series, we will give you a detailed description of the teas in our entire range. In addition, we tell you all about appearance, smell and taste & go into dosage, temperature and brewing time. Let's go.

Background

Kabusecha is a so-called penumbra green tea that comes from a single tea farmer in Shimada, in the famous Shizuoka Prefecture. Iwakura-san does not use any pesticides, herbicides or chemical fertilizers. However, what is special is that the tea is covered with nets (depending on the current environmental conditions) up to 30 days before harvesting. These nets allow only half of the sunlight to pass through. Due to this shading, it is very intensely aromatic, has a deep umami & the content of bitter substances is greatly reduced. The natural fertilization with tea grass (Chagusaba) is a traditional method from Shizuoka and makes it particularly sweet.

It is also an unsorted tea (aracha). It takes a lot of experience to process an unsorted tea to such a flavorful quality. Therefore, Iwakura-san steamed the Kabusecha longer (Chuumushi) than our Senchas. We will describe more about this in the next section.

First impression

The tea has a deep green leaf - but is unsorted (aracha). Thus, the green tea contains not only the typical tea needles, but also plenty of broken leaf and also some tea powder and smaller stems. It smells intensely sweet with a fruity-fresh note.

Dosage & Preparation

For the infusion we use 3-4 heaped teaspoons on a Japanese Kyusu teapot (about 350-400ml). The water temperature is optimal for our taste at 70°C. After 50sec brewing time, the tea already has the desired aroma.

Regarding the correct temperature: If you have a temperature display on your kettle, this is easy. Otherwise, half a liter of boiled water should have the right temperature after about 10 minutes of cooling with the lid open. Alternatively, you can also pour the water several times. The water loses about 10°C each time it is poured into a cold container.

First infusion

The first infusion has a Sencha-typical green-yellowish-bright color - but is overall a bit more naturally cloudy. It has a spicy-sweet smell. The fruity aroma can be easily perceived. You can already smell the umami.
The taste is very full-bodied with a very dense umami, seems very creamy and especially sweet. It is a very palatable green tea with a sweet and mild aroma.

Second infusion

Since the tea leaves from the first infusion have opened, we let the second infusion brew only for about 10sec. We leave the water temperature at 70°C. Visually alone, the tea surprises: much greener and even more luminous presents the infusion. The aroma is even spicier and richer. The taste is full-bodied, has a slight umami, is still sweetish with a very slight bitterness in the aftertaste.

Third infusion

For the third infusion, we continue to stay at 70°C and let it infuse a little longer for about 20sec. The third infusion becomes a little clearer again. It smells fresh and almost grassy. The taste is also lighter and fresher overall. In the aftertaste, a slight bitterness is again noticeable.

Fourth infusion

For the last infusion, we increase the temperature to 80°C and let it brew a little longer for about 40 seconds. Visually, the fourth round is almost reminiscent of the first infusion. The smell is grassy and mild. The taste is a bit more fruity and dense than the third infusion. It is also a bit sweeter and the bitterness has completely disappeared - a nice mild conclusion to our Kabusecha test round.

Final remarks

When preparing your Kabusecha, you can follow our recommendations or try for yourself what you like best. If you were to start with a lower temperature and a shorter infusion time, for example, you would certainly be able to make even more infusions. Each individual infusion would then also taste slightly different, as described here.
Want to give it a try? Then just take a look at our store at Kabusecha.

How do you prefer to prepare your Kabusecha? What tips do you have in store? Let us know in the comments!