Green tea from Japan - what varieties are there?
Green tea is grown in many countries in a wide variety of varieties. In Japan, too, there is a great variety of green teas. One more reason to tell you about the most important varieties and their variants.
Sencha typically has a bright yellow-green infusion color and tastes fruity-fresh to slightly grassy.
SENCHA 煎茶
Sencha is the most widely produced variety in Japan and probably the best known Japanese green tea. It is green tea that grows unshaded, in full sunshine, and is steamed and rolled immediately after harvest. It has a strong taste and can have grassy and fruity to vegetable-spicy notes.
There are many variations within the Sencha variety: Kukicha and Fukamushi are the most common Sencha varieties, which differ again in their processing:
Kukicha consists of the stems of Sencha, which are removed from the green tea during sorting. Instead of throwing them away, they are sold as their own tea. The tea has less umami and flavor than a classic sencha, but it is also refreshingly light and contains hardly any caffeine.
Another variation is fukamushicha. Sencha is steamed not only to stop oxidation, but also to create different flavors. Also, the length of steaming can be used to positively influence undesirable characteristics of a particular crop. In contrast to "normal" steaming (Asamushi: 20-40s) or medium-length steaming (Chumushi: 40-60s), Sencha as Fukamushi is steamed for a very long time, up to 120 seconds. This causes the leaves to break into smaller pieces. Instead of the usual long needle-shaped tea leaves, the fukamushicha appears brittle and slightly powdery. The tea takes on a very green color when steeped, and is cloudier and sweeter. This steaming, by the way, is not unique to Sencha, but can also be applied to a Gyokuro.
KABUSECHA かぶせ茶
Kabusecha has a deep green color in the infusion and tastes aromatic sweet.
Kabusecha is a special Sencha variation that is now traded as its own variety. Here, the tea leaves are shaded with nets up to 10 days before harvest. The nets are semi-permeable - hence the tea is also called penumbra tea. The result is an intensely aromatic and deep green tea with virtually no bitter notes. The tea is rich in umami and has an intense sweetness. Unlike "normal" Sencha, Kabusecha contains more caffeine.
GYOKURO 玉露
Iwakura tea farm harvesting green tea
Gyokuro is considered the highest quality green tea in Japan. Similar to Kabusecha, Gyokuro is also shaded before harvest. However, this shading can take up to 4 weeks. The result is an extremely mild green tea with complex aromas, which requires special care during preparation with regard to temperature and steeping time. When properly prepared, a very strong umami unfolds with many nuances of taste and smell that change from infusion to infusion.
A popular because inexpensive variant of Gyokuro is Karigane. Similar to Kukicha, only the sorted stems and broken leaves are taken here. This creates a high-quality version of Kukicha.
BANCHA 番茶
Bancha is a lower quality version of Sencha. Usually the leaves from the second or third harvest (summer/autumn), which grow lower on the tea bush, are used for Bancha. These are somewhat harder, larger, less intensely green & have received the longest sunshine. Bancha therefore does not have the typical fresh-grassy taste, is less fruity and, depending on the quality, is balanced-mild to strong-elbitter. It contains a high proportion of catechins, which make the tea quite tart, but also have a very positive effect on the body. In addition, Bancha contains many healthy tannins and only a little caffeine, which makes it a very digestible green tea. Bancha is also often mixed with roasted rice as genmaicha (玄米茶). A very drinkable green tea with fine roasted aromas.
HOUJICHA ほうじ茶
Houjicha can also be made from whole unrolled leaves.
Hojicha is a green tea that is roasted. Sencha, Bancha or even Kukicha can be used for this purpose. You can easily recognize the tea by its red-brown color. The fresh and fruity-grassy aroma of green tea is greatly reduced. Instead, the infusion tastes nutty-caramel and is hardly tart.
Whole stems of tea bushes are used for sannenbancha.
A special variant of Hojicha is the Sannenbancha (three-year bancha). Tea leaf stems to whole tea bushes are cut from the tea tree and stored for 3 years to mature. Only then are the stems and branches crushed and roasted. Sannenbancha has a particularly nutty or almost earthy aroma and is considered extremely healthy. During preparation, depending on the thickness of the stems/branches, the tea must be boiled for a very long time. This method of preparation dates back to the time when Japanese houses still had a fireplace in the middle. The sannenbancha was poured into a kettle and simply left to simmer for the day on the hearth, pouring in a little when needed.
MATCHA 抹茶
Next to Sencha, Matcha is probably the best known green tea variety from Japan. Just like Gyokuro, Matcha is covered with tarpaulins 3-4 weeks before harvest. Thus, it becomes particularly intense green, sweet and aromatic. After harvesting & further processing, it is ground into finest powder in granite mills. It is important to note that not the entire tea leaf is processed: Stem and leaf skeleton are separated from the leaf. This is the only way to obtain authentic Matcha. For preparation, a bamboo whisk is used to whisk the matcha powder in a little water. Learn more about the preparation of Matcha in our section How To Matcha.
A high quality can be recognized by the bright green color of the Matcha powder.
The finely ground matcha powder is whipped with water to a beautiful foam.
And what about SHINCHA? 新茶
Shincha is not a separate variety or variant of green tea. If one speaks of Shincha it can be two different things:
In its original meaning, the first harvest of the new year is meant, because literally translated Shincha means "new tea" (shin=new, cha=tea). It can be Sencha, as well as Kabusecha or Gyokuro. Before refrigeration and vacuumization entered the tea industry, it was very important for many customers to get the fresh new tea as soon as possible in spring. At that time, long storage caused the tea to quickly lose its fragrance and aroma. Nowadays, due to modern storage techniques, the difference between such shincha and the "normal" first harvest green tea has become very small.
In its modern meaning means a pre-selection before the first spring harvest. Only particularly tender tea leaves are used and usually a special cultivar. Sometimes the Shincha also has a higher residual moisture than normal. This creates a particularly refreshing & intense flavor. It is a special edition of the coming harvest, which is only available for a short time. You can order such a special edition of Takayuki-san's Sencha N°1 directly here. Takayuki-san handpicks only the most delicate leaves of the cultivar Sakimidori to produce the Sencha N°1 SHINCHA 2021.
Other important terms
We could continue our list for a long time. There are many more varieties such as Awa Bancha, Koucha or Kyobancha, which are mostly grown in certain regions of Japan. Also, many green teas are given other terms such as Aracha, Tamaryokucha, Gaba, etc. A complete clarification of all terms would go beyond the scope here. If you have any open questions or suggestions, just write in the comments. We are happy to answer!