Author: Michelle

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Hojicha Co.’s Hojicha Gold Roast

Hojicha Gold Roast by Hojicha Co.
Green Tea / Straight
$24.00CAD for 80g

Hojicha Co. has provided me with Hojicha Gold Roast for the purposes of writing an honest review.

First Impressions

Hojicha Co. specializes in (surprise!) hojicha – if you ever wanted to learn about hojicha production, preparation, or recipes, their website is pretty informative! But let’s talk about Hojicha Gold Roast, which Hojicha Co. was very kind to send to me to try. It came in a kraft paper pouch that’s plastic lined, sealed, and resealable. The front label doesn’t have too much information, but the back is quite informative. There’s some tasting notes, preparation instructions, and the ingredient list of one.

The aroma of Hojicha Gold Roast is nutty and sweet, you can definitely tell it’s a roasted tea because of the general smokiness to it. It’s pleasant though, because it’s not overwhelming smokey and reminding me of a camp fire. Hojicha Gold Roast consists only of roasted green tea. From the product page, I found out that the tea was harvested in May in Kyoto, Japan and produced from a roasted sencha. It clearly pays to check out the product page for more information!

Preparation

Hojicha Co. recommends steeping Hojicha Gold Roast in 90°C (194°F) water for 30 seconds for the initial steep. I followed the steeping instructions and used water that was heated to 195°F and allowed it to cool for a bit as that was the closest temperature on my variable temperature kettle.

First Taste

Hojicha Gold Roast steeps to a light golden orange colour. There was some of the tea that got through my stainless steel infuser – so if that’s something that bugs you when you’re drinking tea, I would recommend steeping Hojicha Gold Roast in a filter bag. The aroma is a mix of nutty and smokiness. I found the tea itself to be sweet with some light floral notes that also had that smokey flavour and nuttiness to it. The green tea is smooth and was easy and pleasant to drink.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Hojicha Gold Roast five times (six steeps total). I found that the colour deepened with the first two resteeps, and gradually lightened after that. The flavour of the tea became less smokey and more nutty and umami, which was a nice touch. The light floral sweetness I found to stay fairly consistent throughout.

My Overall Impression

I loved Hojicha Co.’s Hojicha Gold Roast. This was just a really nice hojicha experience. The flavour profile is complex, and it’s definitely worth resteeping over and over again to get the different flavours as it subtly changes. I found that sweetness was enjoyable, as was the gentle smokiness that wasn’t overwhelming. I don’t think this tea needs any sweetener at all, as it has a nice natural sweetness to it that works really well with the other flavours.

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

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DavidsTea’s Vanilla Matcha

Vanilla Matcha by DavidsTea
Green Tea (Matcha) / Flavoured
$9.98 for 50g

First Impressions

What’s this? Another matcha post on a Monday? I’m impressing even myself! This week’s #matchamonday review is DavidsTea’s Vanilla Matcha, which is a flavoured matcha drink mix that came in the Matcha Discovery Kit (first discussed in my review of Pumpkin Pie Matcha). In a familiar green-tone foil pouch (it comes sealed, and is resealable!) with the information about the ingredients and steeping instructions on the back.

Vanilla Matcha has a bit of a dull olive-ish sheen to it. The aroma is primarily that of vanilla. The packaging mentions that there is coconut in it somewhere, but I don’t smell anything that reminds me of coconut. Vanilla Matcha consists of: coconut nectar, matcha green tea, and natural vanilla flavouring.

Preparation

DavidsTea recommends whisking Vanilla Matcha in 85°C (185°F) water. I opted to follow the preparation instructions.

First Taste

Vanilla Matcha whisks to a bit of a dark green. It’s not as bright as I’m used to when it comes to matcha, but nonetheless it has a strong vanilla aroma to it. The taste of the matcha is primarily vanilla and sweet. I don’t really taste coconut still, and the flavour has a bit of grassy quality to it. The tea is was smooth, and the flavour is pleasant. I find that the vanilla and sweetness overpowers the grassy notes from the matcha base.

A Second Cup?

As matcha is a suspension and all of it is drunk on the first go-around, there are no second cups.

My Overall Impression

I thought that DavidsTea’s Vanilla Matcha was just okay. There was just something about it that didn’t speak to me as a personal preference. While I found the sweetness and the vanilla flavour was good, I wasn’t that fond of the grassy qualities in the blend because the vanilla flavour overwhelms the matcha base and it wasn’t the most enjoyable. I can see this blending easily as an iced matcha latte and it did whisk easily, so using a blender bottle would be easy if you were making matcha on the go.

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

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Lemon & Cranberry Scones

When life gives you lemons… you zest it and make some scones! At least that’s what I did – and why not? I love the flavours and smells of citrus, and using the zest from a lemon is always a good idea (bonus, you could juice the lemon afterwards to make yourself an Iced Tea Lemonade or a Matcha Lemonade!). Plus, scones are always an excellent accompaniment to a cup of tea to have a little treat yo’self moment or to start off an afternoon tea.

Lemon & Cranberry Scones – Makes 18-24

3½ cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt¹
½ cup butter (cold, diced)
⅓ cup white granulated sugar
2 egg yolks
1 cup milk (plus extra for glaze)
Zest from 1 lemon
1 tsp lemon juice
1 cup dried cranberries

¹ Optional, so if you’re watching your salt intake, feel free to omit!

Preheat oven to 425°F.
Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt.
When will mixed, add in butter. Use 2 butter knives or a pastry cutter to incorporate the butter with the flour.
Add sugar – mix in. You should still see butter not fully mixed in.
Add 1 egg yolk, milk, lemon zest and lemon juice – mix some more.
Fold in dried cranberries until well mixed in.
Dump dough out onto a floured surface (e.g. your kitchen counter).
Pat the dough down or roll out until approximately 1¼” (~3cm) thick.
Using a floured round cookie cutter (or a smooth glass or jar), cut out scones.
Mix remaining egg yolk with ~1 tablespoon of milk, brush onto tops of scones as a glaze.
Place onto a lined cookie sheet and into the oven they go!
Bake for 12-15mins or until the tops are golden brown.

Recipe adapted from Will Torrent’s Afternoon tea at home, “Classic scones”

If you make these Lemon & Cranberry Scones, I’d love to see your photos! Be sure to tag me on Instagram (@onemoresteep #onemoresteep) or comment below with a link to the photo!