Houjicha - Kagaboucha

Houjicha Background Information:
Houjicha means roasted tea. Although its colour is brown due to the roasting process, houjicha is still a Japanese green tea as it is not oxidised or fermented. It is low in caffeine due to the roasting process, meaning it is ideal to drink at any time of the day and by people of any age, and houjicha is said to be especially good for our bodies during the cold winter season too. There are two main types of houjicha - one contains mainly leaves with little to no stems, whereas the other contains a much higher proportion of stems (sometimes known as kukicha or kuki houjicha). Kuki houjicha tends to be lighter in flavour but the high proportion of stems also contribute some sweetness to the flavour profile.

Notes For This Particular Tea:
This Kenjo Kagaboucha is lightly roasted stems from first harvest materials, from Kaga city in Ishikawa prefecture. It was created a long long time ago after many experiments, in order to please the emperor at the time who was known to love houjicha. This very same high grade kagaboucha is still being produced and given to the emperor to this day! The producers have been very careful to remove almost all tea leaves from this kuki houjicha (stem houjicha) which you will notice from the appearance, especially after brewing. Kagaboucha means boucha from Kaga, and boucha translates to ‘stick tea’, as the puffed up stems after roasting resemble little sticks, and this is the regional name given to kuki houjicha in this part of Japan (if you are familiar with Okutomi san, you will know that ‘Bone/Bones’ is another name that can be given to the stems after roasting). This kagaboucha has a savoury flavour when cooled down, an entrancing aroma dry or wet, and a lovely roasted flavour hot or cold.

We usually bring this tea back to the teahouse whenever we go to visit our beloved ceramic artist Iwasaki Haruhiko, who moved from Uchinada to Kanazawa in 2025 after suffering the complete loss of his studio in the 2024 Noto Peninsula earthquake. Thankfully he was able to build a small studio in Kanazawa and is gradually starting again from scratch.

Hot brewing guide with water:
Houjicha 5 grams
Water 120-140ml
First infusion 75°C for 20sec
Second infusion 85°C for 30sec
Third infusion 85°C for 60sec

To pour over ice (kyuurei):
Houjicha 6 grams
Water 125ml
One infusion only 85°C for 90sec

Pour over lots of ice and serve immediately. Alternatively, our personal favourite is to pour over just a few ice cubes (~100g) and enjoy when chilled but not ice cold (or wait for it to warm up closer to room temperature).

Storage:
Store in the fridge or at room temperature in a cool dry place, and avoid exposure to sunlight and air - both of these will degrade your tea. The tea producer of this kagaboucha recommends to consume the tea within 3 months from production which is rather strict, especially for a roasted tea.