How To Make Kooridashi Ice Brewed Gyokuro

Kooridashi Ice Brewed Gyokuro is a fun brewing method that will bring you a new experience in drinking iced Gyokuro, or Japanese shade-grown tea. Depending on what brewing methods you use and the temperature of the water, the taste of the tea will be completely different.

Gyokuro is a high-grade sencha prepared from the tips of tea leaves shaded from sunlight two weeks before harvest. This tea has a mild and sweet umami taste and is known for its high caffeine content and great health benefits. 

Gyokuro Isshin

玉露一心

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With the Kooridashi Ice Brewing method there will not be any use of hot water, which usually brings out the astringent flavor from catechin in the tea leaves. Instead, amino acids are able to come out from the lower temperature, producing more umami and a very sweet flavor.

Kooridashi literally means “ice-out” in Japanese. In this brewing method, we will simply be putting tea leaves and ice together in a pot, and leave to melt at room temperature for 4-5 hours or in the fridge overnight. Follow along with the steps below to enjoy your own refreshing Kooridashi Iced Brewed Gyokuro!

You Will Need:

• 10g Gyokuro tea leaves
• 50g Ice Cubes 

1. Put the tea leaves in a kyusu or teapot (with a capacity of 500-700ml) without a tea strainer and spread thinly for easy extraction.
   *Using a tea strainer is not recommended, as the extracted tea may get lukewarm over time at room temperature. If you would like to use a tea strainer, we would encourage you to leave the ice to melt in the fridge overnight.
2. Put the ice directly on top of the tea leaves. We recommend using ice made from filtered water or mineral water for a more delicious flavor.
3. Leave the teapot at room temperature for 4 to 5 hours or leave it in the fridge overnight. After the ice melts (it’s okay if the ice is not completely melted), shake it gently to even out the tea extract. Pour into cup(s). Enjoy the beautiful green color and wonderful umami flavor!

Since the tea leaves are open from extraction after the Kooridashi Ice Brewing method, you can easily reuse them to make cold brew tea. Although the color and taste will not be as strong as Kooridashi, it will still be delicious.

Feel free to try the Kooridashi Ice Brewing method with other green teas as well and let us know what you think!

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