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Genmaicha ("Brown Rice Tea") Green Tea.
This tea is unusual, and can be considered and "aquired taste", as it has toasted brown rice with either sencha or bancha green tea leaves, and in some cases, popped rice which looks like baby popcorn is added (as in the picture below), and matcha tea powder for a greener and sweeter cup of tea. It has a nutty taste from the rice that is really nice. This tea can be bitter with a bad blend or not steeping properly, but when it is good, oh man is it good! It is having a strange effect on me now though, as I expect all green tea I drink to taste like genmaicha. :P
( other images of genmaicha tea )
I originally tried Adagio's Genmaicha Pop sampler, at first I liked it, but then it was bitter. That could have been my brewing method though...I think you are supposed brew this uncovered, and I was closing the lid of my IngenuiTea teapot. Being a green tea, my water may also have been too hot. My sample is finished now, so I have no more loose leaf to try. I picked up Choice Organic's Genmaicha from Chamberlins recently, and I have to say it reawakened my taste for this tea. Haven't had one bitter cup. And I am quite surprised too, because it is a bagged tea rather than loose leaf like the Adagio was. It doesn't have the "popcorn" in it as the Adagio did. I took the box to work and have about 3-4 cups of this a day, though usually 1 or 2 infusions are a little weaker as I will use the same tea bag twice before throwing it out. Writing this just now made me come up with a brillaint plan...well, I should try it out before I call it brilliant. :P The other day, at Infusion, I had the genmaicha, which was loose, and I think it did have the "popcorn" in it, and it was great.
I haven't figured out if a bancha or sencha leaf make a better genmaicha, or whether the ratio of toasted rice to tea leaves makes a difference, let alone whether the "popcorn" contributes at all to the taste or if it is just for looks. I will keep trying it though. My next brand to try is The Republic of Tea's "Tea of Inquiry" which is their version of genmaicha...I have heard many people say they liked it, so I feel positive to try it. I may also try Rishi's genmaicha blend...I think I can get both here locally. I may try to get some over the weekend.
This tea is unusual, and can be considered and "aquired taste", as it has toasted brown rice with either sencha or bancha green tea leaves, and in some cases, popped rice which looks like baby popcorn is added (as in the picture below), and matcha tea powder for a greener and sweeter cup of tea. It has a nutty taste from the rice that is really nice. This tea can be bitter with a bad blend or not steeping properly, but when it is good, oh man is it good! It is having a strange effect on me now though, as I expect all green tea I drink to taste like genmaicha. :P
( other images of genmaicha tea )
I originally tried Adagio's Genmaicha Pop sampler, at first I liked it, but then it was bitter. That could have been my brewing method though...I think you are supposed brew this uncovered, and I was closing the lid of my IngenuiTea teapot. Being a green tea, my water may also have been too hot. My sample is finished now, so I have no more loose leaf to try. I picked up Choice Organic's Genmaicha from Chamberlins recently, and I have to say it reawakened my taste for this tea. Haven't had one bitter cup. And I am quite surprised too, because it is a bagged tea rather than loose leaf like the Adagio was. It doesn't have the "popcorn" in it as the Adagio did. I took the box to work and have about 3-4 cups of this a day, though usually 1 or 2 infusions are a little weaker as I will use the same tea bag twice before throwing it out. Writing this just now made me come up with a brillaint plan...well, I should try it out before I call it brilliant. :P The other day, at Infusion, I had the genmaicha, which was loose, and I think it did have the "popcorn" in it, and it was great.
I haven't figured out if a bancha or sencha leaf make a better genmaicha, or whether the ratio of toasted rice to tea leaves makes a difference, let alone whether the "popcorn" contributes at all to the taste or if it is just for looks. I will keep trying it though. My next brand to try is The Republic of Tea's "Tea of Inquiry" which is their version of genmaicha...I have heard many people say they liked it, so I feel positive to try it. I may also try Rishi's genmaicha blend...I think I can get both here locally. I may try to get some over the weekend.