Shincha Fuji Yumesuruga (2025)

General

Shincha or New Tea is a Japanese green tea that is produced from tea leaves picked in early spring. It could be considered a special type of Sencha tea. In early spring when the temperature is still quite low, the tea leaves have a unique, slightly vegetal aroma and taste. Later in the spring, the flavor intensifies and the picked tea is produced as sencha. The production volumes of Shincha are quite small and it is a specialty of early spring.

This tea

Yumesuruga or Dream of Suruga is a rarer Japanese tea bush variety. Suruga is the old name for the Shizuoka region. The variety is most widely used in the Shizuoka region. This shincha, or early spring tea, was picked near Mount Fuji in early spring 2025.

Taste

The dry tea has a juicy aroma. In the cup, the aroma is even eggy and currant-like grassy. Could this be the volcanic soil of nearby Mount Fuji? The aroma is bright grassy and oily.

Infusion

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