Ocha & Co. Fukamushicha

This tea costs £20 for 100g, which places it firmly in the premium range, and it definitely shows.

The package arrived vacuum-sealed to preserve maximum freshness, which is always a good sign for high-quality tea from Japan. The leaves themselves are a deep green and finely broken, exactly as fukamushi should be. The dry aroma is a nice, strong grassy roasted smell, quite pleasant that I enjoyed.

I followed the brewing recommendation of 80C for about 40 seconds. If you prefer a bit more bitterness, you can steep it a little longer. The result is a hallmark of authentic fukamushi tea: rich, full-bodied, and with a deep umami flavour. You can see the quality in the cloudy appearance of the tea. For those new to this style, yes, you are meant to drink the cloudiness and the fine sediment at the bottom. It contains all the good stuff that makes fukamushi even healthier than regular sencha.

The only minor issue is with cleaning your strainer. Because the leaf particles are so fine, some will get stuck in a normal mesh strainer and require a bit of extra effort to clean. There are special teapots (kyusu) for this tea, but they aren't essential.

So despite the high price, it's completely justified; you're paying for quality and I can certainly gives it a 5 stars.