KURIHARA HERITAGE GYOKURO

25 g or 100 g bag
Yabemura village, Yame, Fukuoka, Japan 2023
deeply vegetal / sweet savory / brothy
 
Gyokuro is grown beneath shading, cutting out approximately 85% of sunlight. This allows the tea leaves to mature with obtaining bitterness. The result is an ultra delicate green tea with an extremely sweet taste profile.
 
Kurihara Tea's heritage gyokuro is grown beneath traditional, handmade bamboo and/or straw shading. While gyokuro is harvested at the same time as other spring teas, producers commonly prefer to age their gyokuro for at least 4 months before releasing the product for sale. This short aging process allows any bitter or astringency to mellow while slightly increasing the umami. Kurihara Tea chooses to make the new tea leaf available right away both for tea enthusiasts to taste the fresh leaf in spring, and also enjoy aging on their own.