Yame Handpicked Okumidori 3-Star Dento Hon Gyokuro

Gyokuro (玉露) is Japan’s most revered style of green tea—grown under shade before harvest to create a cup that is sweet, full-bodied, deeply umami, and remarkably low in astringency.

This tea takes that tradition to its highest level.

Yame Dentō Hon Gyokuro (八女伝統本玉露) represents the most traditional and demanding form of gyokuro production. To carry the Dentō Hon designation, the tea must be grown and processed in Yame, shaded for more than three weeks under traditional honzu bamboo screens (not synthetic tarps), and entirely hand-picked. The bamboo covering allows air and moisture to circulate naturally, helping develop greater sweetness and deeper umami in the leaves. It is labor-intensive, costly, and rare—even within Japan.

Yame has long been considered the birthplace of Japan’s finest gyokuro. Its misty mornings, warm days, cool nights, and mineral-rich soils naturally encourage high amino acid development and produces teas with exceptional depth and balance.

100% Handpicked

Nearly 99% of Japanese green tea is harvested by machine. This gyokuro is 100% handpicked, ensuring that only the most tender and delicate buds are selected. The result is greater clarity, smoother texture, and enhanced sweetness.

Cultivar: Okumidori (おくみどり)

This tea is made entirely from the Okumidori cultivar, which buds later in the season, making it more frost-resistant, and is known for its deep green color, mellow balance, and rich umami.

Flavor Profile

This gyokuro starts with soft vegetal notes of blanched spinach, an edamame-like sweetness, with a deep nori-like umami. The texture is thick, silky, and almost broth-like. The gyokuro also has a gentle rounded floral note in the back reminiscent of honeysuckle, with a lingering umami that settles softly at the back of the tongue.

The experience is rich and mellow, yet refined, savory but with a hint of floral sweetness.

Brewing Instructions

There are several ways to enjoy high-quality gyokuro:

Traditional Method (Recommended)
Using a gyokuro teapot or shiboridashi:
5g tea + 100ml water at 120°F (50°C)
Steep for 7 minutes.

Sencha Style (for second of third brew)
Using a gyokuro teapot or shiboridashi:
5g tea + 100ml water at 140°F (60°C)
Steep for 90 seconds-2 minutes.

Cold Brew
5g tea + 750ml water. Refrigerate overnight.

Room Temperature Infusion
5g tea + 750ml water. Steep 30 minutes.

Low temperature is key to drawing out sweetness and umami while maintaining smoothness.

Notes: Nori, Edamame, Blanched Spinach, Honey Suckle