Jou Netto Gyokuro

Jou Netto Gyokuro｜上熱湯玉露

 Tasting notes: Grassy, seaweed, umami
 Origin: Uji, Kyoto, Japan
 Cultivar: Samidori
 Oxidation: ⦿○○○○

A true "Jewel Dew", Jou Netto Gyokuro is a vibrantly green Japanese tea with an intensely savoury, umami flavour and a thick broth-like texture. It is made from a high quality kabusecha (a class of Japanese tea leaf) and is shaded to a lesser extent than other gyokuros, allowing it to retain a sencha-like earthiness, whilst keeping its signature seaweed flavour. 

If you are used to drinking Chinese green teas, you’ll find that Japanese green teas like gyokuro taste completely different—a whole other category of tea! In general, Japanese greens are much more savoury, with a strong umami flavour.

This distinctive flavour is produced by two main tea processing methods that the Japanese have perfected. 

Firstly, for gyokuro, the tea plants are grown under the shade, protected from direct sunlight. This slows the rate of photosynthesis drastically, which keeps a higher proportion of theanine in the leaves and gives the tea its rich umami taste with calming properties. Shading also lowers the tannins in the tea leaves significantly, reducing astringency.

Secondly, to stop oxidation, the leaves are steamed rather than pan-fired. This retains their vivid green colour and grassy, vegetal flavour, and gives the resulting tea a thick texture.