Twig Teas are a particularly unusual speciality tea produced in Japan and as far as I am aware no where else. They are green teas and come as roasted or unroasted. We have sourced a wonderful organic toasted Twig Tea that we have all got very excited about.
‘Kuki’ are the leaf stalks or petioles left over from the production of Sencha, Matcha or Bancha teas. They are nearly free of caffeine but rich in trace elements. This Japanese green tea speciality is roasted the same way as Hoji Cha, and it produces a strong tea but with sweetish notes and a mild coffee flavour with possibly a hint of chocolate, how very Jilly Goolden of me…
Organic teas are not common from Japan despite most of the production being made using very traditional ways. I suspect that traditional growing is more important to Japanese tea drinkers than a label telling them it is organic and as such they choose not to join an ‘Organic Certification Organisation’.
In Japan this tea is often combined with juice and given to children, it is most likely the least caffeinated natural tea produced. Use hot 70oC to 75oC water and only steep for a short length of time, one minute or less. I must admit this really is quite a special tea, flavoursome and yet gentle and definitely incredibly ‘moreish’. The second infusion only got 45 seconds, and the third infusion just half a minute.
