Kokeicha from Tantalizing Tea

I have so many new teas to review since my vacation. I’ve tried some delicious chocolate pu’erh from Numi and yummy mango-flavored mate from a local whole foods store in Pittsburgh. Last weekend, I went to the Winter Park Farmer’s Market and found that Tantalizing Tea had set up a booth! Tantalizing Tea is tea vendor from Eustis, Florida.

I sifted through a lot of samples and found a few things; Afternoon Repose, Honeybush (which I’ve been meaning to try for some time) and Kokeicha. I bought 2 ounces because it was 50% off of the normal price. (Might as well, right?)

Kokeicha is powdered Sencha that is mixed with water then molded into little noodle-y bits. It’s the most intriguing tea I’ve ever seen. (Kinda reminds me of fiber cereal. )

It took me a little practice to figure out how to brew this to my tastes. The only directions that the tea came with were very general “this is how you brew green tea” instructions. I found that, for me, brewing at 170F for about 1:30-2 minutes was enough. It’s a very strong tea but I really like the strength that it has; it reminds me of matcha.

When you pour hot water over Kokeicha, the water immediately turns green and frothy. After about a minute, the tea clears up and is a bright honey-color.

The flavor is strong, like I’ve previously said. It tastes green in the way that the green tea tasted when I was a kid at a Chinese restaurant. It’s got a little bite (which would probably go away with less steeping/ lower temperature) but I think it’s the bite that gives this tea its character.

After brewing, the tea looks like green tea noodles. :9 Yum!

I’m definitely hooked on this tea and am going to need to buy more next time I go to the Farmer’s Market.

I also got a new teapot from John for Christmas. It’s a cast-iron dragonfly teapot. I love it! It’s easy to clean, heavy and so cute and little!