Blogs » tea » Gyokuro and Sencha’s Best Features? Characteristics and Delicious Brewing of Kabusecha

Gyokuro and Sencha’s Best Features? Characteristics and Delicious Brewing of Kabusecha

In this article**”As introduced in this article, kabusecha is made through a process of shading the tea leaves from sunlight for about 3 to 10 days before harvesting. Kabusecha can be considered a middle ground between gyokuro, which is shaded for 20 to 30 days before harvesting, and sencha, which is not shaded. Therefore, it combines the rich sweetness and umami of gyokuro with the refreshing astringency and bitterness of sencha, resulting in a very well-balanced flavor that can be described as ‘the best of both worlds.’

In this article, we will introduce the characteristics of kabusecha and how to brew it deliciously. Kabusecha is often distributed with deep green, thin tea leaves, as shown in the photo below. (Due to differences in tea leaf grade and processing methods, there are also tea leaves that have a slightly curled shape.)”**

The brewed tea will look like the photo below.

Characteristics of tea leaves and brewed tea appearance

The tea leaves are deep green and slender, like a needle, and the brewed tea has a deep green color.

Flavor Characteristics

Kabuse tea offers a rich umami and sweetness unique to it, finishing with a crisp astringency.

Aroma Characteristics

You can experience the unique seaweed-like aroma and fresh green scent typical of gyokuro and kabusecha.

Extraction Conditions

Tea leaves amount: 7g (3-4 teaspoons)  
Water amount: 300ml  
Extraction temperature: 65°C  
Extraction time: 3 minutes

Recommended tea pairings

・- Red sea bream carpaccio
- Okonomiyaki
- Melon shortcake
- Senbei (Japanese rice crackers)
- Mixed nuts
- Yokan (sweet red bean jelly)

teplo teapotUsing the teplo teapot, you can achieve optimal extraction conditions automatically. If you’re interested, be sure to check it out. You can experience the rich nori-like aroma.