Roku Gin - Sencha And Gyokuro Tea Botanicals

This is an adult post.

This Roku Gin is a Japanese Gin from Suntory. I was intrigued by this bottle as I read, from the label, that this gin had included the following botanicals - Sakura flower, Sakura leaf, Yuzu peel, Sencha tea (green tea), Gyokuro tea (refined green tea) and Sanshō pepper. Further traditional botanicals were also added which include eight traditional botanicals ; juniper berries, coriander, angelica seed and root, cinnamon, cardamom, bitter orange and lemon peel.

Tea in gin?  Interesting.

I bought this bottle at the airport duty free and decided to try this 'tea'.

I drank it neat (I recommend adding a cube of ice) and at another time, followed the Suntory Roku website recommendation, of adding a few slices of ginger, ice and tonic into a tall glass.   I admit gin is not on my drinking list, but this Roku made me relook at gin again. The aroma is fresh, floral, citrusy and sweetish ( I thought there was eucalyptus).  43% APV.    A refreshing drink...a little intoxicating though.  Yes, this is a tea blog....there is a little tea in the drink.  Counted. 

But I digress.  I will be on a business trip next week (20-25 May) and I will not be able to mail out any tea during this period.  Apologies in advance.  

To all mothers....Happy Mother's Day 

The Book Of Matcha

This book is a fun book to read.

"The Book of Matcha" is written by Louise Cheadle and Nick Kliby. Published in 2016 by Sterling Epicure.  This is a tea book that delves into the world of matcha, from history production, health benefits and the recipes included in the book would make you reach out for your matcha and give the tea a new twist.  

This book is easy and fun to read and the illustrations and pictures are lavishly included to make reading the book a breeze.

The authors categorise Japanese green teas into 6 classes; matcha, sencha, genmaicha, kukicha, hojicha and gyokuro.  The last, gyokuro is considered by the authors as one of the most expensive green teas as follows:

"Gyokuro Tamahomare (its full name) is one of Japan's most precious teas revered for its purity and richness of taste.  Mainly grown around Kyoto, Japan's ancient capital, gyokuro males up less than one percent of Japan's tea production.  Produced from just one harvest a year in late May or early June, twenty days before the tea leaves are plucked the tea bushes are covered with a netting. Covering the bushes in this way increases their production of chlorophyll (the pigment that makes the leaves bright-green) and amino acids.  As with matcha, the leaves are rich in L-theanine, which gives the tea a lovely sweetness.  Gyokuro is also known as 'jade dew' and is one of the most expensive green teas."

The matcha lemonade  recipe was one of my favourites.  Half teaspoon of matcha, syrup, lemon juice, club soda and ice with a garnish of mint leaves are all thats needed to make this drink.  

Yes, to make matcha ice-cream, you will need lots of matcha, 1-2 spoons full.  This would suggest using a lower grade as high end matcha would be too expensive.  

The authors misspelled Singapore as 'Sinagpore'.  Nevertheless, it is a good read.