Japanese Green Tea

Sencha

Japanese Characters: 煎茶

Meaning – ‘Decocted Tea’, ‘Decoct’ means ‘To extract the essence of something by boiling it’.“

What is Sencha?

Sencha is the most popular Japanese tea. 
Many people in Japan think of Sencha when they hear “o-cha”– a polite expression of tea.
Most Japanese households stock and serve it for their family and guests.

Sencha” or “Decoted Tea” is the most famous tea product in Japan today. About 80% of the Japanese population are said to be frequent Sencha tea drinkers.
The “Sencha Season” is around the last third of April to May, the period when new tea leaves (shincha) are coming. 
The most expensive and delicious Sencha is taken from the first harvested leaves of the year, between early april and may and is called ‘New Tea’, or ‘Shincha‘ in Japanese.

Not only do they enjoy it in the traditional way, using tea pots and tea cups, but bottled hot/cold Sencha is also popular. 
To relax their clients and smooth their relationship with them, some Japanese companies give their clients Sencha rather than other teas.

Appearance

The colour of Sencha can range from a light yellow-green, to a thick grass green.

Cultivation

Plants used to produce Sencha leaves are under direct sunlight for the whole growing cycle, causing Vitamin C and Tannin content to increase within the leaves.

The process of sencha production is the typical method of Japanese tea production.
Contrary to European tea, Japanese tea is not fermented. 
As opposed to Chinese tea, whose leaves are roasted, sencha leaves are not. 
Freshly picked tea leaves are steamed to prevent oxidation, which are directly cooled down to remove moisture and to prevent colour change. 
Therefore, the tea colour in the teacup becomes a greenish-yellow.
The leaves become needle-like shaped by being rolled and rubbed repeatedly.
After desiccation and the finishing processes, Sencha reaches the consumers.

Sencha is grown all over Japan. Various weather conditions such as temperature and altitude determine taste and aroma. Especially, Shizuoka, Kagoshima and Mie Prefecture are the top 3 for tea production in Japan.  Uji-cha in Kyoto has established a status as a brand.

Taste

Allowing Sencha to steep in hotter water produces a more astringent flavour, while cooler temperatures will produce a mellower tea.
The distinguishing feature of sencha is its fresh aroma. 
The vegetal and woody scent reminds us of grass. 
The wind-like briskness awakens and stimulates our spirits. 
The crisp bitterness and mild flavor achieves a brilliant combination. 
It is recommended to drink Sencha in the morning because the caffiene content is higher than in other teas.
The tea’s flavor tends to change depending on the season and place where it was cultivated.
Steamed Sencha leaves have a grassier and bitter flavor while the pan-fried ones have lighter and less bitter taste.
Almost all Sencha is Steamed.

Sencha is separated into “asamushi” (lightly steamed) and “fukamushi” (deeply steamed) tea.  Recently, fukamushi is welcomed by many young people because it is less bitter.  See the section on Fukamushicha.

Sweets

Sweets are important for Japanese tea, especially for Sencha, which does not have strong individuality. 
Yokan, sweet jelly bean paste and arare, crispy puffed rice pellets are good sweets to eat when sipping tea. 
Western confectionary like profiteroles and sencha go well together.

Health

Sencha is good for health as it contains 3-4 times more Vitamin C  than spinach, as well as 20 times more Vitamin E. Some soaps and cosmetics are made by the Vitamin C extracted from Japanese tea.
It also contains various minerals like potassium, calcium and phosphor and numerous other beneficial health boosters such as fiber and chlorophyll.

Preparation

To prepare sencha pleave view our basic guidelines for preparing green tea.