Japanese Green Tea Types

Many consider gyokuro to be the finest Japanese green tea. It's a matter of preference.

Sencha

About 75% of all tea harvested in Japan is sencha. Sometimes described as an everyday tea. The best sencha is most uncommon.

Sencha is highly variable. Quality depends on the tea's origin, the season, and the leaf processing techniques.

Gyokuro

Special cultivation techniques are employed to produce a tea that is famous for its rich flavor and pale lemon-green color.  

Gyokuro tea plants are grown in the shade for approximately three weeks before harvesting begins.  Removing direct sunlight reduces leaf photosynthesis, altering the proportions of flavonols, amino acids, sugars, and other substances that give tea an aroma and taste.

For high-quality gyokuro, the leaves (unlike sencha) are aged for about 3 months or more to produce a tea renowned for its smooth, elegant taste.

Matcha

Gyokuro leaves are thoroughly dried after steaming—this is tencha. The leaves are then stone-ground into a superfine powder, and that powder is what is known as matcha. 

Good matcha is energizing and delightful.

High-quality matcha is very finely ground and whisks to a brilliant green color.