What did I buy???

[niels1]

Hi there,

I went to Japan a few weeks ago and bought, which I expected it to be, tea (since it was in the tea section).
I now opened it and tasted it, but it doesn't taste like any tea I know. I was wondering if anybody could tell me what it is:

 

[lanthas]

紀州梅 昆布茶. The first word presumably refers to plums (梅) from 紀州; the second is pronounced "konbucha" and means kelp tea.

 

[niels1]

Great, thanks!

 

[nice gaijin]

yup, kombu is a type of kelp, and Japanese kombucha (not to be confused with the fermented stuff that's become popular of late) is a slimy seaweed tea. This can be very disappointing when you're expecting something like green tea...