Using a variety of processes to produce a range of delicious teas
Sencha -煎茶-
Sencha is the most popular tea in Japan and we carry many types of Sencha such as Kabuse, Fukamushi and First Flush etc. Please find your favorite ones below. The freshly-picked tea leaves are steamed and then dried as they are rolled. After the leaves have been shaped, they are blended to achieve the best flavor for the consumer. In general, sencha is green tinged with yellow and has a well-balanced combination of aroma, umami and bitterness, providing you with a freeling of luxury that increases with the grade of green tea.
Matcha -抹茶-
Matcha is a fine powdered green tea commonly used in sadou (the tea ceremony). The young tea leaves are shaded from direct sunlight and steamed in the same way as for gyokuro, then turned into tencha (non-ground leaves) by drying without rolling, and finally ground in a stone mill. Its elegant aroma and concentrated sweetness make matcha a sheer pleasure to drink, and as the powder is dissolved in hot water, all of the tea’s beneficial nutrients can be taken in. Matcha is perfect for drawing out the flavors of Japanese confectionery and cuisine.
Houjicha -ほうじ茶-
Houjicha is a Bancha that has been roasted over charcoal. The tea is fired at a high temperature, altering the leaf color tints from green to reddish-brown. It has a refreshing and clean flavor without any bitterness. This fragrant and refreshing Japanese green tea is made by roasting sencha or bancha over a high flame. The roasting process diminishes the tannin and caffeine content of the leaves to suppress astringency and bitterness and draw out fragrance.Houjicha is a warm brown color, and since it has a somewhat mild flavor, is popular with children and the elderly. Low in caffeine, houjicha is also the green tea of choice for infants in Japan.
Genmaicha -玄米茶-
Genmaicha is a mixed of roasted brown rice grains and Sencha that offers you well-balanced and refreshing flavor. Genmaicha is a richly-flavored Japanese green tea made by mixing roasted rice with sencha or bancha. Before being blended with the tea, the rice is steeped in water and steamed then roasted at a high temperature, and the popped rice stands out white amongst the tea leaves. Genmaicha allows you to enjoy the special savory fragrance of the roasted rice together with the refreshing taste of its low caffeune content, genmaicha is recommended for all ages, from children to the elderly.
– Kagoshima Tea Movie –
by courtesy of Tea Industry Chamber of Kagoshima
