I've finally got around to writing the promised post on unwrapping a tea type in more depth. Over the last year or so I have become increasingly captivated by green teas, particularly those from Japan. One of my favourite green teas is Sencha, and it is this tea I want to 'unwrap' below.
WHAT IS SENCHA?
Sencha is the term for Japanese green tea that is grown in full sun, as distinct from gyokuro (which is grown in shade for up to 3 weeks), or genmai cha (which contains puffed brown rice) or matcha (which is made from finely ground gyokuro leaves and used in the traditional Japanese tea ceremonies). Sencha makes up around 75% of all Japanese tea production, and varies considerably in quality.
WHAT DOES SENCHA LOOK LIKE?
Sencha leaves are usually rather long and narrow in appearance with a colour ranging from pale to dark green. As a general rule the darker and more intense the colour, the better quality/fresher it is.
In the cup, sencha brews a light yellow to powerful green colour (again, the darker the better). After steeping, the leaves unfurl to a rather more roundish shape with a glossy green appearance.
WHAT DOES SENCHA SMELL LIKE?
Sencha leaves usually have a distinct grassy smell (if this is lacking it 'may' be a sign that tea is not fresh). Also, sencha often has a smell of the sea - that sea-weed beachiness that sets it apart from Chinese green teas.
WHAT DOES SENCHA TASTE LIKE?
I believe the marks of a good sencha is in the balance between its natural sweetness and its astringency. A fresh, fine quality sencha should be quite rebust in flavour, exhibiting it's grassiness without being bitter. When brewed correctly, the sweetness merges with this grassiness to make it such a memorable drink.
HOW DO I BREW SENCHA?
It is usually recommended to use 1 heaping teaspoon of sencha for every 250-300 mls of water. The water should be at around 80 Celcius (leave the water in the kettle for 3 minutes after boiling, then transfer water between pot and cups - thus also prewarming the tea vessels), and allow to steep for 1-2 minutes. Leaving any longer than 2 minutes will cause your brew to become bitter. For what it's worth, I tend to use more tea for my brew (1 heaping teaspoon for 200-250ml of water), and a slightly cooler water temperature (around 70-75 degrees - leave kettle for around 4 minutes before transferring to pot/cups). This results in a sweeter, smoother flavour. Also, it allows for better tasting second and third infusions as the tea leaves haven't been 'burnt' of their taste in the first infusion.
HOW DO I STORE SENCHA?
Like all teas, it is important to store sencha in an air-tight container away from light and heat. Doing so will leave your sencha reasonably fresh for up to a year - although you will notice a deterioration in taste already after a couple of months.
SOME REMARKS IN CONCLUSION...
If you haven't tried sencha before - you must! However, do ensure you purchase genuine sencha tea. Some Chinese companies market their tea as sencha, usually referring to it as 'Japanese-style '. This usually indicates that the tea has been processed using steaming rather than the usual Chinese pan-fry method - but does not guarantee the tea will resemble the true Japanese sencha tea in quality of appearance, aroma and taste.
Secondly, try to get as good and fresh a sencha as possible. Anything bought from a supermarket or general grocery store will be vastly inferior to sencha bought from a reputable tea-merchant. If possible, discover when the tea was harvested and from where. Uji is the oldest tea-growing area in Japan and is usually the source of the finest teas.
Thirdly, any tea-bag sencha will be of a rather dubious quality - usually the late season harvest and lower-grade leaves - resulting in a comparatively tasteless brew.
Fourthly, during May-July it is possible to buy Shincha tea ('shin=new, cha=tea). This is first harvest sencha which has only been slightly steamed. The result is a very aromatic and fresh tea. Due to its limited processing, shincha is a rather perishable tea which is why it is only available during the harvest months of May-July and should be consumed within three months (which in actuality is the 'best consumed within' period of most sencha tea).
Fifthly, if you find you are a little disappointed with your sencha experience upon your first attempt, don't despair. Two things are important to keep in mind. One, you will need to experiment with brewing times/amounts before you get it right. Two, like most extra special food and drink items, sencha tea is an acquired taste. Whilst some are hooked by the first cup, others will need a few drinks for their tastebuds to fully appreciate this unique flavour (especially if they are used to drinking black tea and perhaps subconsciously expecting a similar flavour).
I hope this has provided you with sufficient information to whet your appetite (or if you are a seasoned sencha drinker, confirmed what you already know) on sencha.
Until next post,
Happy gongfucha!
