Japanese Genmaicha Green Tea Review

Burnt Rice from Japan

Summary : One of the most foul tasting and smelling drinks I've ever had.

Review : I love experimenting with teas. You never really do know what you'll find. And so it happened that during my last order from Culinary Teas I got a sample pack of their Genmaicha Tea, a green tea.

GenmaichaTea is known as "popcorn tea", and for good reason. Genmaicha tea combines Japanese green tea leaves with fire-roasted rice (see photo of the leves to see the rather unique character of this tea). The name "popcorn tea" comes from the fact that during the firing of the rice that gets added to the tea, it is common for the rice to pop, much like popcorn.

Like all teas from Culinary Teas , this tea came packaged in a airtight, lightproof soft container. As such, the tea was nice and fresh. And the aroma of the tea right out of the bag smelled ok, a bit different perhaps, but certainly not bad. Unfortunately, that is the best thing I can say about this tea.

Now, I do like Green Tea. I really do. However, this tea tasted terrible on my own tasted buds and, quite literally, had a horrible odor to it once the tea is brewed. The best way to describe the smell of this tea once brewed is that it smells like burnt rice. And sadly, the taste of the tea isn't much different either. It is as if someone added a bunch of burnt white rice to a pot of green tea - the taste of this rice just overpowers everything - and I do mean everything!

Overall, if you are a lover of traditional green tea, stay well away from this one, as this Gernmaicha Tea tastes nothing like any Green Tea you've tried before! Supposedly, this tea is suppose to be "sweet". Well....right. Beyond the taste of burnt rice, I could taste nothing sweet in this tea at all. About the only good thing I can say about this tea is that, thankfully, it didn't have much of an after-taste. Then again, just a few sips was enough to rid me of the desire to drink this tea further - no doubt contributing to the lack of after-taste!!

Recommendation : Serve this drink for when you have uninvited house guests and want them to leave - the smell of the brewing tea alone should encourage any guests to voluntarily leave in short-order.

Featured Green Tea Li Zi Nutcracker : Green tea from the Guangdong province of China. Li Zi is a popular tea locally that had only recently been available in the West. Its name refers to chestnuts, a hint of its nutty taste and aroma. It's a fun tea to prepare. When dry, the leaves of our "Li Zi Nutcracker" appear both grey and matted. Once infused, however, they magically turn green, producing a bright, clear cup with a refreshing, nutty taste. Available from Adagio Teas

@ Copyright 2008 TeaDiscussion.Com    All work on this site is the legal property of TeaDiscussion.Com and may not be duplicated in any way without express permission.