Tasting 4 Gyokuro Teas to Find the Best Gyokuro from Sakamoto

Which one of these is the best Gyokuro green tea? In this video, we're going to be trying four different Gyokuro teas from the legendary Mr. Sakamoto. These teas are all from different tea cultivars. Just like wine is broken down into different varietals like Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, tea is broken down into cultivars. Each of these tea plant varieties looks slightly different, grows slightly different, and most importantly, tastes slightly different. The most popular tea plant variety in Japan is Yabukita. Japan is actually quite cold for growing tea, so farmers have come up with a frost-resistant tea plant. The Yabukita tea plant dominates the main island of Honshu, but in southern Japan, there's a wider assortment of tea plant cultivars being grown. Because Mr. Sakamoto produces Gyokuro in southern Japan, he can grow the more delicate tea cultivars due to the warmer weather. These cultivars have a lighter and sweeter flavor than Yabukita, which is perfect for Gyokuro, a premium green tea known for its distinct sweet and savory flavor. This sweet and savory flavor is accentuated during the long shading process. The tea plant is cut off from sunlight for three weeks before the harvest. During this time, the tea develops more caffeine and more theanine, which is responsible for the sweet and savory flavor. The tea also produces more chlorophyll, which is why the leaves are so dark. Speaking of which, let's take a look at these tea leaves. So first, we have the Haruto. This is a relatively new discovery in the tea world, and it's made by crossing the Sai Midori cultivar with the Sake Midori cultivar. Next, we have the Gyokuro Kirari. This is another recent cultivar, and the name means flash of light. It's usually reserved for premium quality Sencha and Gyokuro. Next, we have the Seimei, one of the most recently discovered tea cultivars. This plant was first introduced in 2017, and Mr. Sakamoto was entrusted by the government to grow some of the first tea plants of this new species. When we visited Mr. Sakamoto in 2018, we saw some of the Seimei tea plants, which were too young to harvest at the time. We finally get a chance to taste this brand new tea variety and compare it against some of the tried and true cultivars like Sai Midori. Sai Midori is the oldest tea cultivar in this selection, but it was still only registered in 1990. The name means clear green, and it's known for having this light sweet flavor with very little astringency. This is the same cultivar used in the famous Gyokuro Chameijin, which has a wonderfully thick texture and a sweet flavor. If you want to try the Sai Midori Gyokuro, you can get it on our website, Neoteas.com. But let's brew up these four teas and see how they compare. For this experiment, I'll be using 5 grams of leaves and a temperature of 60 degrees Celsius or 140 degrees Fahrenheit. The reason the temperature we use is so low is because Gyokuro is meant to be a celebration of these sweet and savory flavors. These flavors can be extracted at lower temperatures, but the bitter catechins in the leaf cannot. This is why when you brew tea using hotter water, it will end up being very bitter. Normally, I would use a clay kyusu teapot for these teas. This teapot is the best tool for Japanese green tea because it gives the leaves more space to expand and fully release their flavor into the water. The clay itself can also accentuate the umami flavors of the tea. To keep the experiment fair, I'll be using the same stainless steel strainer for all four teas. They will need two minutes to brew because Gyokuro leaves are more tightly rolled, so they need more time to open up. After the brewing time is up, let's first compare the color of these teas. The teas all seem to be more or less the same color, with the two outer ones being slightly greener than the rest. The Seimei appears to have the lightest yellow color, while the Sai Midori is perhaps the darkest. When it comes to the flavor, the teas could not be more different. The Haruto has this very strong umami flavor, and the mouthfeel is thick and heavy. The tea is slightly floral with a hint of grass and a tiny dryness in the finish. The Kirari, on the other hand, is more mild. It has a starchy note of sweet potato, along with more minerality and less of that sweet umami flavor that I got from the Haruto. So far, the Haruto is exhibiting more of these traits I tend to look for in a Gyokuro. Next, we have the Seimei. Compared to the Kirari, this tea has a strong, brothy, and seaweedy flavor. It tastes very similar to a miso soup, actually, which is not unusual for a Gyokuro. Where this tea lacks is when it comes to the sweetness. It's not quite as sweet as the Kirari, but it's definitely more flavorful overall. Finally, we have the Sai Midori. This tea is light, sweet, and savory. It's not quite as savory as the Haruto, but it makes up for it with these notes of warm caramel. This is very similar to the flavor of the Chameijin, one of our most popular Gyokuro teas. Overall, I would say the Sai Midori Gyokuro is the strongest of the four teas, followed by the Haruto. The reason for this is that they show these strong, sweet, and savory flavors that Gyokuro is known for. If you want to try all of our favorite Gyokuro teas from Mr. Sakamoto, you can find them in our Gyokuro collection at neoteas.com and get free worldwide shipping. Thank you all so much for watching. We'll see you next time.