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Kukicha

Wikipedia: Kukicha | Teaviews: kukicha-tea 
Last Updated: Mar. 14, 2014 

About Kukicha

Light yellowish-green twigs and stems, broken into large piecesGreen (unroasted) Kukicha, showing stems and twigs, and little leaf.
Kukicha(茎茶) or twig tea, less commonly called bocha(棒茶), is a Japanese green tea made of the stems, stalks, and twigs of the tea plant. Kukicha has a unique flavor and aroma. Surprisingly, its aroma is twig-like.

Sometimes kukicha is roasted to make hojicha. Roasted twig teas are commonly labelled as both hojicha and kukicha; when in doubt, look at the actual leaf or written description to see whether you are purchasing a roasted or unroasted tea, and whether it is made of leaves or twigs.

Kukicha can be made from the plants used to produce gyokuro, in which case it is called karigane or shiraore.

It is a common claim that kukicha has less caffeine than other teas, due to the fact that the stems of the tea plant contain less caffeine than the leaves and buds. This generalization, however, is not universally true; one study (in which only one kukicha was tested) found kukicha to have relatively high caffeine content among green teas.[1] The caffeine content of tea is influenced by many factors.

References:

1. Friedman, M. et. al. Distribution of catechins, theaflavins, caffeine, and theobromine in 77 teas consumed in the United States, Journal of food science, Vol. 70, No. 9, Nov-Dec, 2005. p. C550-C559.

Recent Kukicha Reviews — RSS rss icon

80 / 100

Everyday Kukicha Twig Tea from Maeda-en

Style: Kukicha – Region: Japan
Aug. 9th, 2020

I liked this tea. I decided to get it because I wanted something that wasn't roasted or aged, that would still be more subdued in caffeine. I prefer naturally low-caffeine teas over ones that have had caffeine removed through some chemical (or other) process. Because kukicha is the twigs, with some leaf pieces (which y...

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76 / 100
Picture of Organic Karigane

Organic Karigane from Mighty Leaf Tea

Style: Kukicha – Region: Japan
May. 13th, 2017

Thank you to Mighty Leaf for this sample! Overall I haven't been as impressed with the green teas from Mighty Leaf as the black ones, but I like this one a bit more. This was a very atypical example of a kukicha / twig tea, much more full-flavored than I expected.

I was intrigued by how the leaf smells...it smells...

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73 / 100
Picture of Organic KuKi Cha Green Kamakura

I just received a package of this Kukicha today, and immediately decided to give it a go.

Lately I've been brewing in a pseudo-gong fu style...using a lidded tasting set as my gaiwan (actually works quite well). But I recently ordered a couple of gaiwans that should be here soon.
Steeped 2 teaspoons in 4 ounces o...

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73 / 100
Picture of Kukicha

Kukicha from Adagio Teas

Style: Kukicha – Region: Japan
May. 17th, 2015

It tastes a lot like their sencha overture, but a little worse. While I would describe sencha overture as tasting like fresh spinach, this tastes more like canned spinach. It's more fishy, and the taste is a bit strange. The taste is also weaker and "softer". I don't dislike it, though! It's sweet, savory, and enjoyabl...

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83 / 100
Picture of #12 Shira-Ore Stem Tea With Matcha

The aroma of the dry leaves is so green! There are notes of cut grass, fresh spinach, and an underlying sweet nuttiness, the aroma reminds me of the smell of summer when everything is in full growth.

The first steep is delightfully mellow, not to be boring but the tea tastes pretty much exactly as it smells, no myst...

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Most-Rated Kukicha

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Kukicha

Brand:Adagio Teas
Style:Kukicha
Region:Japan
Caffeine:Caffeinated
Leaf:Loose
65
3 Ratings
Picture of Organic KuKi Cha Green Kamakura

Organic KuKi Cha Green Kamakura

Brand:Upton Tea Imports
Style:Kukicha
Region:Kanagawa, Japan
Caffeine:Caffeinated
Leaf:Loose
2 Ratings
Picture of Twig Tea

Twig Tea

Brand:Choice Organic Teas
Style:Kukicha
Region:Japan
Caffeine:Caffeinated
Leaf:Teabag
1 Rating
Picture of #12 Shira-Ore Stem Tea With Matcha

#12 Shira-Ore Stem Tea With Matcha

Brand:Kurihara Tea
Style:Kukicha
Region:Fukuoka, Japan
Caffeine:Caffeinated
Leaf:Loose
1 Rating
Picture of Karigane (Gyokuro Sencha)

Karigane (Gyokuro Sencha)

Brand:Den's Tea
Style:Kukicha
Region:Shizuoka, Japan
Caffeine:Caffeinated
Leaf:Loose
1 Rating

Top-Rated Kukicha

No image of this tea

Kukicha

Brand:Adagio Teas
Style:Kukicha
Region:Japan
Caffeine:Caffeinated
Leaf:Loose
65
3 Ratings

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