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Lotte’s Green Tea Choco Pie

Green Tea Choco Pie by Lotte
Green Tea (Matcha) / Dessert
$4.99 for 336g (12 pcs)

First Impressions

Full disclosure, I was given a Green Tea Choco Pie by a coworker at work and told her that I needed to know where to get more. At which point, she pointed out that my favourite Asian grocery store had them (very conveniently in the aisle next to the tea aisle). And at the price of $5 for a box of twelve, it makes for a nice little snack.

The Choco Pies come individually packaged in foil packages, clearly labelling what’s inside. Each Choco Pie is 28g. Each Green Tea Choco Pie consists of: sugar, wheat flour, corn starch syrup, shortening, vegetable oil, mixed milk powder, cocoa powder, D-sorbitol, glycerin, ethanol, lactose, glucose, gelatin, liquid whole egg, salt, sodium bicarbonate, artifical flavours, cocoa mass, green tea powder, lecithin, calcium phosphate monobasic, ammonium bicarbonate, glycerin esters of fatty acids, mixed formulation, vanillin, xanthan gum, tartrazine, brilliant blue FCF.

Essentially what you see when you open the package is a chocolate covered object… And that’s about it.

First Taste

Green Tea Choco Pie consists of a chocolate coating, a soft matcha cookie, followed by marshmallow, and then another soft matcha cookie, and the chocolate coating. It tastes sweet, with a flakey cookie layer and a chewy and sweet marshmallow layer. It was maybe four bites total to eat the whole thing, but the cookie layer wasn’t too sweet, the marshmallow layer had a good chew, and the chocolate layer was thin so it doesn’t overpower the rest of the flavours.

My Overall Impression

I loved Lotte’s Green Tea Choco Pie. It makes for a nice, inexpensive snack. Bonus points for being well balanced in terms of flavour between all the layers of flavour of chocolate, marshmallow, and matcha. These little snacks might make their way into my regular rotation of work locker snacks and I’m not mad about it.

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Teakan’s Cold Dew Shou Mei

Cold Dew Shou Mei by Teakan
White Tea / Straight
$38 for 61g

Cold Dew Shou Mei is part of Teakan’s Volume 6 Exploration Kit, a collection of five single origin teas. Cold Dew Shou Mei makes up 6g of the 61g kit.

First Impressions

Cold Dew Shou Mei comes in a kraft paper pouch that’s sealed and resealable. Being part of a Teakan collection, I expect it to taste good. This particular shou mei is from Fuding, Fujian, China and was harvested in autumn of 2021, so late in the growing season.

The bag tears open easily, and reveals some gorgeous leaves. There’s a mix of of shades of green, but they’re primarily a similar shade to a fresh, live leaf – which is pretty amazing. The leaves of Cold Dew Shou Mei have some downy feathery bits to the leaves, and the aroma is very similar to stone fruit – think plums and apricots. It has a sweet undertone – and look at the gentle, and natural curls to the leaves that occurred in the drying process.

Preparation

Teakan recommends steeping Cold Dew Shou Mei in both western style (80°C/176°F for 1 minute) or gongfu style (90°C/194°F for 5-10 seconds).

I opted to do an initial steep of Cold Dew Shou Mei in 80°C water for 1 minute.

First Taste

Cold Dew Shou Mei steeps to a clear, pale yellow. The aroma is sweet, lightly floral, with a fruity undertone. The flavour of Cold Dew Shou Mei is crisp, sweet, and has a strong fruity flavour to it that reminds me of stone fruits, much like in the aroma of the dry leaf. Cold Dew Shou Mei has a pleasant mouthfeel, that is slightly drying after the end of each sip, but it’s not off-putting for me.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Cold Dew Shou Mei five times (six steeps total), by adding an additional 30 seconds for each subsequent steep. The colour became a darker, more golden yellow. The flavour gets more fruity and a bit less sweet.

My Overall Impression

I loved Teakan’s Cold Dew Shou Mei. This white tea looks remarkably like someone just plucked some dry leaves off of a plant – especially considering how green the leaves are. The flavour of Cold Dew Shou Mei are a treat to the senses, and I find that the tea resteeps quite well so I’d highly recommend that.

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Teakan’s Gyokuro

Gyokuro by Teakan
Green Tea / Straight
$38.00 for 61g

Gyokuro is part of Teakan’s Volume 6 Exploration Kit, a collection of five single origin teas. Gyokuro makes up 15g of the 61g kit.

First Impressions

Gyokuro is the fourth tea from the 6th Exploration Kit that I’m reviewing. I love experiencing the Exploration Kits from Teakan because the ability to try single origin teas without breaking the bank. Gyokruo came in a sealed, resealable, kraft paper pouch. It has a white and black label on the front of the back. This particular Gyokuro comes from Yame, Fukuoka, Japan. This green tea was harvested in spring of 2021.

The leaves of Gyokuro were surprising to me. I don’t know why, but I had expected more full leaves. That said, the dry leaf is dark green, with mild pops of spring green, and the leaves are flat, almost like green needles. It’s a mix of short pieces, and dusty looking pieces of leaves. The aroma is both salty and grassy.

Preparation

Teakan recommends steeping Gyokuro in 70°C (158°F) water for 2 minutes. I opted to follow the steeping instructions.

If you don’t have a variable temperature kettle that allows you to go down to 70°C (158°F), I would recommend choosing your lowest temperature and then allowing it to cool down.

First Taste

Gyokuro steeps to a greeny yellow colour. There is the presence of the tea dust that escaped my stainless steel infuser and settling to the bottom of my cup. The aroma is grassy. The flavour of Gyokuro though? Salty. It reminds me of being on the beach, smelling that salty air, and it’s just an umami bomb through my time mouth. It’s salty, savoury, it reminds me of seaweed snacks. It’s just… Strong. The grassy notes play second fiddle to the umami flavour profile that just take over my mouth. Gyokuro has a thin texture to it, and the flavour lingers on the tongue.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Gyokuro twice, adding an additional 30 seconds for each subsequent steep. The leaves are bright green after steeping. The flavour remains very similar to the initial steep – umami, savoury, reminds me of seaweed snacks throughout the steeping session that I had with Gyokuro.

My Overall Impression

I thought that Teakan’s Gyokuro was just okay. I felt that Gyokruo was just too much of an umami bomb for me, personally. It packs of a punch of flavour that will definitely wake you up, if you’re looking for that something to perk you up. It has a flavour that I think a lot of people will like, Gyokuro is a classic and it has a savoury undertone to it. I think it’s a great tea, but it’s just not one for me.

Curious about the cup rating system? Click here to learn more.