Supreme Sencha

Sencha is the most widely drunk tea in Japan and accounts for about 65% of all the tea produced in the country.
There are many grades of sencha, from the everyday for drinking at home or in the office, to the more complex and very special. Our Supreme Sencha is far from everyday and is made from the first tender young leaves picked in early spring. The leaves are at their most succulent and flavoursome at this time of year and the new spring growth has a wonderful fresh, juicy quality creating a tea which has a refreshing clean, green flavour with a gorgeous grassy sweetness. Supreme Sencha is grown from the cultivar Saemidori meaning " clear green" which is renowned for its beautiful colour and taste.

Sencha is a steamed tea. The method for steaming tea was first invented in Japan in 1738 by Nagatani Soen as a way of improving the tea that was then being made using the panning method (pan-firing). The new steaming method produced beautiful vivid green teas with a delicious, fresh taste and was soon being made and consumed all over Japan. By steaming the tea for a very short time (usually between 10-30 seconds), the necessary enzymes are killed and the original aroma and taste of the tea are preserved.
Our Supreme Sencha is grown in Ise Bay on the island of Honshu. As with all good teas the terrior where the tea is grown contibutes greatly to the flavour and the fresh sea breezes that blow into the bay can be tasted in the umami and marine notes of this fabulous tea.