Shincha and Mattcha from Hibiki-an

It has arrived! After a brief stop-over at Quarantine, the tea arrived on Friday. I am very pleased with this, my second purchase from Hibiki-an. The tea arrived inside Japanese-style wrapping paper and included within was a postcard from the company and two informative sheets on tea brewing and storage.

The Sencha Premium (shincha) came vacuum-packed in a foil-lined pouch and the Mattcha Premium (also vacuum-sealed in foil came in a delighful little container. I always look forward to that wonderfully grassy aroma when opening a packet of shincha. And this batch did not disappoint. It's deep, rich greeness was as evident in its scent as much as its appearance. I must admit my first brew was not overly successful (not enough leaf/too much water). By the time I realised it was too late to try to correct (as steepage time is crucial with shincha). So I simply resolved to consume (the still very drinkable) first brew, then try again. This time I took more care with measuring the tea, the water and the temperature, resulting in a fantastic brew. Watching the jade-green liquor in the cup as I poured this brew confirmed I had got it right this time. The natural sweetness tempered by the characteristic astringency is so well balanced (perhaps even more so than the previous year's harvest). The tea also holds up well to three infusions (and may perhaps handle a fourth if the correct water temperature is used throughout). In summary, another fine new season sencha from Hibiki-an!

This is the first mattcha I have purchased from Hibiki-an. As I opened the pouch inside the container, I was immediately struck by the intensity and brightness of the powder's colour - it is an almost flourescent light green. Getting some of the powder on my fingers while opening it, I tasted the tea straight on my tongue and could instantly tell that this was indeed a fine mattcha (which is all the more immpressive when one considers that they produce two mattcha's of even higher quality than this one). I prepared a chawan of this mattcha, using water at just over 70 degrees Celcius, whisking it vigourously with my chasen for around a minute, by which time a pleasant layer of froth had appeared on the tea's surface. My previous mattcha purchase was around seven dollars cheaper than this one (thought I'd see what an anonymous, lower-end-of-the scale mattcha tasted like), and the contrast between the two is phenomenal! When one breaks down the seven dollar difference across the entire number of bowls of mattcha can be made from a 40 gram container of the stuff, the few cents (or less) per bowl extra is more than worth it. The (never to be bought again) mattcha was so flat in colour and flavour, whilst this Hibiki-an mattcha has such a rich, intensely grassy flavour with a wonderful sweetness. The problem I face is that I want to enjoy this tea for longer than the three months it will remain fresh for, so must ensure that I don't let it get bad by 'keeping it for special occasions'. (I let this happen to the first mattcha I ever bought and ended up making mattcha icecream with it!) All this writing about tea is making me itchy to get to the kitchen and make a pot of one tea or another, so that's all for now.