This is the best choice for a low caffeine delicious green tea. The taste is delicious and unique. This luxury tea is made from the stems of the Gyokuro tea plants for a truly luxury taste.
Distinctive Japanese green profile. Cup tends lightly vegetative leading to a beguiling finish loaded with malt.
From the Supplier:
Mado no soto
Ha ga uzumakare
Ocha wo nomu
Outside my window
The leaves are swirling around
As I drink my tea
Why begin with a haiku? Why not? The poem says just about all that needs to be said about the wonderful tea you are about to enjoy. Kukicha, known in Japan as winter tea, is in many ways the perfect beverage to sip on a cool morning. Like the branches of winter trees, stripped of their leaves, Kukicha is made with the leafless stalks, stems and twigs left behind after Sencha production. What's more, the unusually shaped tea is traditionally harvested and processed in the fall, before the tea bushes are pruned to prepare for the winter dormancy. The tea has cool windy weather written all over it.
Like Sencha grade teas, Kukicha is made by steaming the stalks before processing in order to halt fermentation. The cup produced is exceptionally clean, with a mild nutty flavor, malty highlights and cream on the finish. Many proponents claim the character is reminiscent of South African Rooibos. In Japan, the tea is commonly enjoyed on its own or, due to its low caffeine levels, (approx. 1/10th of other green teas), added to fruit juices to make children's tea.
Here in the West, Kukicha has come to be regarded as an excellent part of a complete macrobiotic or vegan diet.* (Both involve eating grains as a staple, supplemented by vegetables and beans and avoiding highly refined foods and meat.) The nutty flavor pairs exceptionally well with grain based dishes, rice and breads and the high antioxidant count offers an added degree of dietary health.