★★★★☆
I really enjoyed this tea! It's a good alternative for me to something more expensive like gyokuro. Definitely one I'd buy again.
A playful steamed green tea from Japan. Kukicha is a blend of leaves and leaf stems. The lightness of the stems becomes a sweet sesame seed or chestnut note. Tender like soft white rice. Balanced and, for a Japanese tea, very low in astringency.
Customers use these reviews to describe their experience with Kukicha, including flavor, aroma, preparation preferences, strength, and how the tea fits into daily routines. Browse the full review history page by page to compare tasting notes, steeping tips, and favorite ways to enjoy this tea.
I really enjoyed this tea! It's a good alternative for me to something more expensive like gyokuro. Definitely one I'd buy again.
Unique and tasty. The description of sesame and chestnut are definitely present, giving it a nutty, nearly savory flavor. The sweetness and green elements aren't to be ignored either, but they're a bit more subtle. If you're looking for a more old-fashioned, less sweet green tea that's still very drinkable, you're hard-pressed to beat this one.
This tea has a powerful flavor. Quite grassy. If your into earthy green teas, you'll probably like it. I've come to learn that these aren't my cup of tea.
This is my new go-to green tea. It is wonderfully grassy and not at all astringent. I love having it with lunch (or any time really).
Nice tea. Not my favorite green tea but nice when I'm in the mood for something different.
Love this green tea, not only for it's unique taste, but less caffeine. Great anytime of day!
One of my favorite green teas and a staple of my tea cabinet, Kukicha is light, mellow, and just plain 'green' in flavor. Plus, it pairs really well with any foodstuffs from Japan that happen to grace the ol' cuisine-table. For me, a steep of 2 minutes -- or even slightly under -- brings out its subtle nuttiness best.
One of my favorite green teas. It may not look like much and may consist of a lot of twiggy things, but it brews up amazing! I love to combine this with lemongrass and herbals because it blends really well and is mild enough that it doesn't take away from other flavors.
Woody, with heavy grass notes. Pleasant, but not your average green tea.
This is like gyokuro's kooky cousin. It has a bright vegetal flavor that is really refreshing and tasty. It would go well with citrus flavors, I think, because it has that bright, thirst-quenching quality to it. Yum. If you're a fan of Japanese green teas, definitely give kukicha a go!
Different than the kukicha I'm used to. kukicha is usually twig tea and a lot more roasty, while this is more grassy. Don't get it if you're expecting traditional twig tea.
A satisfying, simple Japanese green without all the hype and pretentiousness. Just good tea.
Quite green and grassy, the addition of the green stems adds to the tea flavor, without adding to the traditional Japanese green astringency, which is low here, to start with.
With a slight addition of sugar (< 1 tsp. per pint of tea), it has a whole-mouth flavor that's soft and very slightly fruity. Also, near zero aftertaste.
I was running low on my favorite green tea so I decided to try a sample of this, and I am so glad I did! This is definitely my new favorite, I love the light yet still very green flavor of this tea. It is slightly sweet and much less astringent than other greens I have tried.
This tea is so smooth and delicious. It's very mellow and doesn't need any form of sweetening. I'm completely in love.
I picked up a sample bag of this, and just made my first cup. It leaves smelled wonderful when I opened the bag, and just as good when I brewed it. Tastes light, grassy. Definitely a new favorite.
The initial smell of the dried tea is amazing. It makes my mouth water just thinking about it. After steeping the recommended time, it's delightfully light. However, even though it's a light tea do not be fooled. You're more than able to taste it's grassy notes. Add a little bit of the sweetener of your choice, and you're good to go!
This tea is quite nutty and has a distinctly sweeter flavor than some of the more vegetal greens that I have tried. It also seems to be more mellow on the caffeine side of things, which for me is good for a late afternoon cup.
It was sweet and very grassy. I don't know if it's relevant but I really loved seeing the little stems floating at the top!
One of my favorites for a long time. This one has kind of sweet, grassy flavor. Price is good as well.
This has got to be my new favorite green tea. It smells heavenly in the tin, and I like that the stems are there as well because it makes the leaves very pretty because of the different colors! I like stronger green teas, and this is one of the strongest I've found. It's very grassy, but I like that in my greens. It steeps up to a pretty yellow-green color, and I could sit there and just smell a cup of this for a long time. I'm not very good at describing the 'tea flavors', but if you like grassy greens then you should definitely give this one a try. :)
Tastes very close to a cup of tea prepared for me the traditional way. green, smooth, and not bitter at all, with a velvety aftertaste
This green tea has a nice crisp earthy taste to it. It has just enough flavor for a good cup of green tea.
I like the taste of it but it gave me a headache but maybe I made it too strong. I put two teaspoons full for a cup but maybe I needed less but it tasted good. I'm going to try it again before I really make a full decision but loving the flavor.
This tea is one of my favorites but my husband hates it. It does have a stronger plant flavor to it.
Wow, I'm really impressed! I'm a huge green tea fan and this did not disappoint. Upon first sip, it had a very grassy taste, which might be off-putting for some, but not for me. It has really lovely subtle nutty notes and I'm actually drinking it right now! Overall, definitely would order again.
Lovely grassy flavor.
However, I tend to know kikucha as more of a twiggy flavor.
Okay, as a relatively novice tea drinker, I had read other reviews mentioning 'grassy' when referring to some Japanese teas such as this Kukicha. But I never had a frame of reference. Now I do. This tea definitely has what I'd call a 'grassy' flavor, much more so than the Genmai and Hojicha (which strike me as more 'ricey' or 'nutty'), but I find it very pleasant. It's very green in color. Love it or hate it, I suspect this is one of those teas that will elicit some stronger opinions. Personally, I love it.
Not strong or scary for people who are afraid of green teas. Nice to know that they arent wasting something that works. Wish it had more of a wood like flavor though.
This is a delicious cup of tea good for any me-time emergency. Its a good clean tea that can be a guilt free treat :)
This is a more grassy/vegetal green tea, which I happen to love, so I really enjoy this tea. I can get 2 steeps each time, but not really more than that as the flavor seems to fade away. But it's lovely to look at and a nice alternate grassy green tea.
So, so wonderfully grassy. Like mowing the lawn but while sitting on your couch lazing about--tastes like late spring in a cup. One of my favorite green teas.
This is sweet and grassy, but not overly so. Goes well with a tiny bit of honey.
This tea was a total surprise! I'm not an expert on greens, mostly describing them as 'grassy' but kukicha is in a world of its own. As soon as I opened the bag I smelled a rich, wet flowers smell, almost verging on a scent of fermenting fruit like flavors added to a wine or a beer. If this sounds a little strange, that's because it is a little strange, but trust me that this is ultimately a great tea. This unique flavor was still present when brewed but it coupled with a bright tart green flavor and a citrus, almost tropical gentle sweetness. I say citrus, but it is not sour like lemons, but actually subtly sweet more like mango or pineapple, and truly the flavor is much more complicated like a wine or fruity beer merged with a green tea. This gets 4 out of 5 because I would not drink this everyday, but it did blow me away for a green tea.
I really enjoy this tea. I understand that it can be a little grassy for some people, but if you are an avid tea drinker this is fantastic. It rebrews great and I normally can get a good 5 brews from it before it becomes weaker.
Drinking this was like being back in Japan all over again--this is the sort of green tea I used to get there, and it's perfect. Light, refreshing, with an odd sweetness that's nothing like fruit or sugar at all, but distictly kukicha.
This is my favorite green tea! The stems really do offer a great flavor to this tea and it tastes very green and smooth. The best green tea on the market!
I like this tea a lot. It is light and not as vegetable as I feared. I'd buy it and drink it again.
From the bag I get a lovely grassy aroma with a hint of sweetness. Vaglue reminiscent of sunflower or sesame seeds.
From the cup, much of the sweetness is gone and is replaced with buttery, steamed-vegetal characteristics with plenty of grassy aroma. That nuttiness from the bag falls gently on the palate with a pleasant, lightly-toasted flavor. Full-bodied. A wonderful grassy tea.
I think I drank grass... It's actually not bad if you like the taste, and I'll probably brew it again if I feel like being one with nature or something. Probably my least favorite I've tried from this site, but it's not terrible.
My favorite green. Bursting with vegetal flavor, it even tastes healthy. The aroma in the tin is beautiful too! If you like a grassy, vegetal green this is your tea.
This one tastes a little bit like grass and is overall a weaker green tea but is still an enjoyable tea.
This tea is so fresh and grassy--I love it! I know most people don't like grassy teas, though.
My mom had bought this tea when I was in middle school, and all of it was gone very quickly. I had no idea where she bought it and I had almost given up hope of finding this amazing tea again. It has a wonderful chartreuse color, and a very grassy/earthy/sweet taste to it. The best part is that I feel as though I don't need any sugar to really bring out the best in this tea. I would definitely recommend this tea to anyone who likes earthy teas or green teas.
Great stuff. Has a standard sencha vegetal taste, but without the caffeine.
I'm generally not a green tea person - and if you asked me why, this would be the tea I'd use to describe why I prefer pretty much any other sort of tea. This tea is just extremely grassy to the point where it's a bit like drinking a cup full of grass clippings.
Bright, lively green tea. Super-chartreuse liquor to prove it. An interesting Japanese green tea, to say the least.
This was my first Japanese green tea, having started out on Chinese greens. It was a lot more powdery in the bag than I expected which left fine particles floating in my tea (I used the ingenuiTEA brewer.) But the flavor was excellent. Very vegetal without being too grassy or seaweedy. It's savory but light with faint floral notes. For me it's a tea to drink with or after dinner. Probably my new favorite green!
My favorite green tea EVER. First of all, many green teas are not actually green when seeped in water. However, this is a bright green. Better way of getting your serving of greens. .) It is also light but has a great POW for a green tea. I really feel awesome after I have this.
I just didn't love this tea. It seems odd for me to have that opinion given that I love a leafy green tea. This one was just too much like brewing grass cuttings for me to like it. It doesn't have a vegetal taste, for me, only grass. I'm not sure if it's chlorophyll or something of the like, but I simply don't like this much on its own.
It does have a great, low astringency level. Also, its strong flavour makes it really lovely as a blend. It's another tea I use with Cocomint Green, to cut the overbearingness of the chocolate peppermint. It does that job REALLY well. Like adding two extremes together makes for a balance.
There isn't anything wrong with the tea, so I can't rate it bad in good conscience. I won't order it again though.
This is quickly becoming my new favorite tea. Although not as strong as gyokuro or sencha, kukicha has plenty of flavor despite it being full of twigs (something that originally made me hesitate from buying it). The flavor is something like hojicha meets matcha, flavorful, but not overpowering in grassy notes.