DENTŌ HON GYOKURO | Yabe

This pinnacle premium-grade organic Gyokuro brews an exquisite, buttery-sweet thick oil-like broth of Umami liquor, with rich and complex aromas that will stay on your palate long after 

Much like an expensive glass of red wine, we recommend letting a small mouthful swirl on your tongue to experience fully its flavours. A refreshing aftertaste will follow, but still, you will enjoy the first impression for a long time. This is especially true of Yame-grown Gyokuro; green tea specialists praise its long-lasting taste compared to Gyokuro grown in the Uji area for example. The remaining tea leaves after brewing can be eaten and enjoyed by adding ponzu or soy sauce, and sesame seeds.

Put about 6g (1 serving) of tea leaves in a teapot, pour 90cc of hot water 45, 50, or 60 degrees Celsius, and let the tea steep for 2 or 2.5 minutes. The cooler the water, the less bitter the tea, and a sweeter/savoury umami profile will be present. can be stepped up to 5 times, the flavour profile will change with each consecutive brew. 

Indulge in this premium pinnacle-grade Gyokuro, grown and harvested using traditional methods in the picturesque mountains of Yame, Fukuoka. Our producers specialize in the most traditional form of Gyokuro - the Dentō Hon Gyokuro - which is considered one of the most exquisite and rare teas in Japan.

Not all Gyokuro are grown in the same way. There is regular Gyokuro, and, there is Dentō Hon Gyokuro.

To create the perfect Dentō Hon Gyokuro the experienced farmer must follow three methods of growing and harvesting to be categorized as such. First, only rice straw screens - not synthetic fibre sheets - can be used for shading. A shelf is built over the tea bushes, woven with rice straw, and spread all over the entire tea fields. This method - known as Sumaki (スマキ) shading - is incredibly rare these days and requires a significant amount of labour, making yearly production limited in quantity. Second, the tea leaves must be harvested only by hand - Tezumi (手摘み) - without the use of machines. Third, the tea plants must be Shizen-jitate (自然仕立て), allowing the unpruned tea trees to grow in their natural shape until ready for harvest.

This Gyokuro is rare, incredibly difficult to produce, and requires years of skills to perfect. The result of this intensive process is an exquisite tea with lustrous, beautiful leaves. Gyokuro is usually smoother and more full-bodied than Sencha, thanks to its high levels of L-theanine and the lower water temperature used to brew it. Its scent is rich, and its taste is thick and mellow. When cultivated according to traditional methods, its fragrance can be up to five times more powerful than Sencha.

Experience the luxury of Dentō Hon Gyokuro and discover why it's considered one of the most prized teas in Japan.

Cultivar: Yabukita, Okumidori, shizen-jitate tea plants

Method: JAS organic certification

Origin: Yabe, Fukuoka

Grade: Premium

Elevation: 650mt above sea level

Harvest: First flush, Hand-picked (tezumi), Spring 2022

Shade: Sumaki traditional natural method, shaded for 20 days before harvest

Fertilizing: Bokashi fertilizer (hand-picked fermented organic fertilizer)

Steaming: Medium (futsūmushi)

Flavour profile: Rich, round and vegetal sweet notes, gentle Umami finish

Producer: Harajima family

Content: 20g - 50g