This is the Ocha no Igeta Strawberry Wakōcha.
The dry leaf featured black tea from Shizuoka Prefecture blended with raspberry chips and strawberry leaf. The dry leaf offered gentle fruity strawberry notes.
Prepared using a 2.5 g tea bag infused in 150 mL of water at 90°C for 30 seconds, compared with the recommended preparation of boiling water for 2–3 minutes.
The infusion presented with a transparent red-brown hue. Aroma opened with fruity black tea notes, supported by mellow berry sweetness.
Steeped as recommended, initial contact delivered soft red berry notes with gentle sweetness alongside a light-bodied liquor. While the aroma suggested a more vibrant fruit profile, the strawberry remained comparatively restrained on the palate. Through the mid-palate, the wakōcha base steadily developed, with its fuller body and robust black tea character progressively overtaking the delicate berry notes. Mild bitterness emerged before giving way to a leafy mineral dryness towards the finish. The liquor remained smooth throughout, but the fruit never regained prominence. Aftertaste carried mild bitterness and lingering astringency, with only faint traces of berry sweetness.
Steeped to taste, using the shorter, cooler preparation produced a markedly different balance. Strawberry appeared immediately with a jammy character, rich and aromatic but without the sweet-tart quality of actual jam. The berry notes held their own against the black tea, which instead provided a rounded fruity backdrop rather than aggressively overtaking the strawberry. Bitterness and dryness were absent, leaving a smooth liquor throughout. Towards the finish, the strawberry gradually petered out while the black tea lingered softly and pleasantly.
Overall, a flavoured black tea with a preparation-sensitive flavour progression and smooth mouthfeel, where the recommended steeping produced a drying, black-tea-dominant profile, while the shorter, cooler preparation brought the strawberry forward and produced a more balanced cup. The latter better suited the intended fruit character.
This Ocha no Igeta Strawberry Wakōcha contained 7.5 g (2.5 x 3 tea bags). The tea was sourced from Japan, packaged in Japan and purchased in Sendai, Japan in 2024.