Guricha
Steamed tamaryokucha that skips the final needle-shaping roll, leaving the leaf comma-shaped and curled. Omitting the shaping step is the whole difference: the same leaf, less handling, and a softer cup with less astringency.
Character
Softer and rounder than sencha, with markedly less astringency because the leaf was never rolled hard.
- Flavour
- Vegetal, Sweet, Grassy
- Aroma
- Fresh
- Mouthfeel
- Medium, Silky, Smooth
- Complexity
- Moderate
- Notes
- sweet grass, steamed vegetable, light citrus
- Aftertaste
- Soft and sweet.
Moderate intensity: noticeable weight or grip, but neither dominates the cup.
Provenance and production
- Origin
- Japan
- Oxidation
- Unoxidised
- Harvest
- Spring
- Processing
- Steaming (Japanese fixation) → Rolling and shaping → Drying
Brewing
Western brewing (teapot or mug)
1.5–2.5 g/100 ml · 65–75 °C · 1 authored infusion
Kyusu brewing (Japanese style)
3–5 g/100 ml · 65–75 °C · 3 authored infusions
Gongfu brewing (gaiwan)
3–4 g/100 ml · 75–85 °C · 4 authored infusions
No caffeine estimate is authored for this tea. TeaHQ does not infer one from its category, because category predicts caffeine poorly — matcha and gyokuro carry more than many black teas.
If you like this
Grouped by why they were suggested, strongest reason first. Nothing here is a blended score — a suggestion appears under the best reason that exists for it, and never under a weaker one as well.
Editorially linked
Someone wrote down why these two belong together. The note below is theirs.
- Kamairicha
Two Kyushu greens that skip a standard step — one skips steaming, the other skips the shaping roll — and both end up softer for it.
- Tamaryokucha
The rolled and unrolled forms of the same steamed tea. Skipping the shaping roll leaves the leaf curled and the cup noticeably softer.
Similar sensory profile
Shares controlled flavour, aroma and mouthfeel descriptors. A looser match — two teas can share descriptors and still taste nothing alike.
- Beigang Mao Jian
Shares 6 descriptors with Guricha: sweet, grassy, medium, smooth, silky and fresh.
- Kagoshima sencha
Shares 6 descriptors with Guricha: vegetal, sweet, grassy, medium, silky and fresh.
- Anji Bai Cha
Shares 5 descriptors with Guricha: sweet, vegetal, silky, smooth and fresh.
- Anji Bai Cha supreme
Shares 5 descriptors with Guricha: sweet, vegetal, silky, smooth and fresh.
- Aracha
Shares 5 descriptors with Guricha: grassy, vegetal, sweet, medium and fresh.
- Bai Mudan
Shares 5 descriptors with Guricha: sweet, medium, silky, smooth and fresh.