In the landscape of Mie, in the heart of Kansai, a small family tea garden, grown organically according to the house's standards, produces this Kuki-Hojicha offered by Mariage Frères. The idea is to marry two Japanese teas: a high-quality kukicha, made of fine stems of gyokuro, and a hojicha made from the fine leaves of bancha roasted over a gentle charcoal fire.

Hojicha is a roasted green tea, which changes everything: roasting removes its greenness and gives it notes of cocoa, wood and caramel, and a mahogany colour. Kukicha stems, for their part, are naturally very low in caffeine. It is a plain tea, and it contains none of the allergens requiring mandatory declaration.

The house describes the aroma at length: roasted cocoa mingled with liquorice wood and caramel on the dry leaf; gingerbread and damp undergrowth on the infused leaf; then a deep amber, fresh liquor, where notes of immortelle flowers, tonka bean and raisins resonate, with a finish as soft as heather honey. What stays with you is a toasted, round cup, without bitterness.

It is drunk from morning until evening, alone or with a meal, according to Mariage Frères, and its very low caffeine content makes it a late-day tea. It goes with a Japanese dinner, rice, a grilled fish, and it is also enjoyed cold in summer.

For preparation, allow 3.5 g per 200 ml of water at 90 °C and 3 minutes of infusion. Kuki-Hojicha is sold loose leaf: we weigh and pack it to order in our shops in Bordeaux and Nice, from the 5 g sample to the kilo, in a pouch designed to preserve its flavour. Keep it in an airtight container, away from light and air.