Kabusecha (2025)

General

The majority of loose leaf tea produced in Japan is senchaa. Strictly speaking, the term sencha refers to any tea that is infused. However, special types such as gyokuro are normally classified as their own type of tea. Earlier pickings are generally of higher quality. In addition to this, the growing environment of the tea bushes as a whole affects the taste of the tea. The tea leaves are steamed quickly after picking, which prevents the leaves from oxidizing. The leaves are then rolled and dried. High-quality sencha offers a fine combination of vegetal sweetness, juiciness and pleasant bitterness.

Kabusecha is a special type of sencha tea. The tea bushes are shaded for 2-3 weeks before picking the tea leaves, thanks to which the color of the tea leaves darkens as a result of the increase in the amount of green leaves. At the same time, the taste of the tea becomes milder and sweeter. The production of Kabusecha tea is similar to Gyokuro tea, but the shading time is shorter.

This tea

Kabusecha is tea that is picked from shaded tea bushes. This 2025 kabusecha was grown in the Yame region on the southern Japanese island of Kyushu. Like many kabusecha qualities, the tea leaf is slightly more intact than the average for sencha tea qualities. Because of this, the color of the tea is slightly lighter than that of similar quality sencha.

Taste

Dry tea has a succulent aroma and a slightly toasty aroma. In the bowl, the aroma is very nutty and toasty and deeply fresh. The taste is juicy and nutty. A tickling aftertaste.

Infusion

Use about 2g (tablespoon) of leaves per person. The water temperature should be around 80 degrees. The suitable length of brewing is 2-3 minutes if the size of the pot is less than 500ml and 2-4 minutes if the volume is larger. If the tea is brewed in a mug, a brisk teaspoon of leaves is enough. Adjust the number of leaves and the length of the stew to taste. The leaves can often be infused a few times.