japanese green tea

: Gyokuro: Japan’s Shaded Green Tea of Deep Umami

Gyokuro is the quiet pinnacle of Japanese green tea — a small, vivid cup with a soft glow and a depth of umami that feels almost brothy. It’s famous not just because it is “expensive,” but because it is carefully grown in shade and gently brewed to reveal sweetness that ordinary green tea rarely reaches. Why Shade Changes Everything About 20–30 days before harvest, tea gardens for gyokuro are covered to block most sunlight. When leaves grow in shade, they keep more theanine (the source of sweetness and umami) and form fewer bitter catechins. The result is a tea ...

: Deep-Steamed Sencha (Fukamushi-cha): Japan’s Smooth, Velvety Green Tea

Fukamushi-cha is what many people imagine when they think of a rich, mellow Japanese green tea. It looks deeper in color, feels softer on the palate, and brews quickly into a satisfying cup. While it belongs to the sencha family, one simple change in processing makes it taste remarkably different. What Makes It “Deep-Steamed” Regular sencha is steamed briefly to stop oxidation. Fukamushi-cha is steamed for two to three times longer. That extra steam tenderizes the leaf, breaks more cell walls, and releases fine particles that pass through the strainer into your cup. The result is a velvety texture, ...