4.1.09

ZaZen 98662




16 comments:

Lauren said...

The tea picture fills me with peace.

The fabric seems to weave a story.

Thank You
-L

MyoChi said...

I like your Rakusu, Jordan...:) Very nice shot of the rice field.

oxeye said...

Red fence, Blue truck. It really draws the eye.. Good picture Jordan.

Barry said...

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood...

SlowZen said...

Lauren, Taru, Jeff, and Barry,
Than you all for your kind words!

Jordan

Lauren said...

Hey, Jordan, on a T note.

I've got some "double Green Tea" from Republic of Tea. I think it is essentially lower grade matcha in little quarter sized tea bags.

It recommends steeping for 1 to 3 minutes.

I want that light matcha flavor like in green tea ice cream without any spitwad flavor undertones.

I found last night a short steep was more delicate than a long (In retrospect, "duh").

Any advice from your T wisdom? Does water temp, for example, really make a difference?

Cheers,
-Lauren

Anonymous said...

...A beautiful day in the neigborhood,
would you be mine
could you be mine
won't you be, my neighbor?

(Barry started it :)

SlowZen said...

Lauren,
I have never tried the "double Green Tea" from Republic of Tea.
But I have had other tea that may be similar, usually a lower grade Sencha or gyokuro(Sp?) dusted with a lower grade Matcha. Generally this type of tea is only good for one or two infusions and if they are well done they will have an earthy flavor to them. This is where I got the idea of livening up three time infused Sencha with a scoop of Matcha.
I prefer to brew my tea for about 90 seconds, at 140 degrees, higher temperatures and longer steeping time means less infusions and stronger (and often bitter)tea.
On to the perfect Matcha tea, A LOT has to do with the preparation. Not just of the tea but of your self as well. Preparing the palate with a sweet before enjoying and whisking the tea like your hair is on fire is a good place to start, but to learn more about Matcha I would really suggest you go directly to someone who is an authority on it like my friend Margie. She blogs at Sweet Persimmon linked on the right. I am sure she would appreciate your questions!
Just for the record, I drink a lot of Sencha because that is what family friends usually bring back as souvenirs when they come back from Japan… I don’t think they even drink the stuff, so I never know what I am going to get most of the time, but it is mostly Sencha. So any perceived wisdom is just the result of trial and error… or practice and experience…

-------------------------------
Molly,
Sure house number 668 is open; you will of course be the neighbor of the beast…


Thank you all for your comments!
Jordan

Yamakoa said...

Hello Jordan,

Great pics. The froth on the Matcha made my mouth water.

Do you use a thermometer to know the temp of the water or some other method?

Happy brewing,
"Y"

SlowZen said...

Yamakoa,

My wife always says the bubbles should be small... I am not so picky! But then I end up with undissolved tea in the bottom of the cup and she says "See!"

At home i have a water pot that keeps tea at 140 degrees but at work i only have the industrial water server that puts out water at 180+. So What i do is put water into a measuring cup and bring it back to my desk and use a food service thermometer to measure the temperature until it cools down to 140. Sometimes flying a desk has its privileges.

Take care,
Jordan

Anonymous said...

We are all working out of our beastness, aren't we?

SlowZen said...

Molly,
Or animal-ness, hungry ghost- ness, Human-ness, and even sometimes Buddha-ness.

Take care,
Jordan

Uku said...

Beautiful pictures. I love that daily harmony.

With palms together,
Uku

Gregor said...

Looks like the mathca skills are coming along, looks tasty.

SlowZen said...

Uku,
Thanks!

---------------------------------

Greg,

Thanks, part of the beauty of my making of matcha is that I profess to have zero skills, that makes it quite wonderful!

Thank you for the kind words!

Jordan

Gregor said...

Hey Jordan,

You are welcome :)

I think some of the beauty in preparing and enjoying Matcha is how individual and unique an experience it is each time.

Thanks for looking!