If you are looking for a green tea with a beautiful jade color and a strong taste, aroma and sweetness, Kabusecha is one of the best choices for you. It is a relatively expensive tea due to the time and effort involved, but it is undoubtedly delicious.
Kabusecha Shaded Sencha Green Tea
Kabusecha is a tea produced under a shade. The reason for this is that a tea tree is shaded from the sun, which makes the tea leaves sweeter. Shading reduces the production of catechins, which give green tea its astringent taste, and increases L-theanine, which gives it its sweet and savory taste.
It can be said that Kabusecha combines elements of both the Gyokuro and Sencha methods. It does not block the sunlight as much as Gyokuro, so it retains the astringent bitterness of Sencha and has a strong taste. It is also much sweeter and more full-bodied than the sencha from rojien. The effect of shading is not only on the taste, but also on the color of the liquor. Shading a tea tree gives it a greener color. This is different from the color of fukamushicha (deep-steamed tea), as the green color is produced by the components in the tea leaves and is not powdery. Most of the high quality green teas with a beautiful color are kabusecha.
How to Brew Kabusecha Sencha Green Tea
Kabusecha is a tea with a strong umami taste and should be steeped slowly in lower temperature water.
For 1 serving
- 2.5g-3g kabusecha leaf
- 80ml-129ml of boiled water
Instead of using freshly boiled water, put the water in a yuzamashi teapot and make it cool, or put it in a teacup and make it cool before using. The temperature of the water is lowered by about 10 degrees by placing it in another vessel rather than directly into the teapot. The bitterness and astringency will be reduced if the water is slightly cooled to between 70-80 degrees Celsius.
This is only a guide for making Kabusecha, and should be adjusted according to the type of tea leaves, the number of guests, and your taste. A small amount of fine tea leaves is enough to make a good tea.
Teapot and Teacup for Kabusecha
- Small Teapot for 80ml – 120ml
- Small Japanese tea cup
Kabusecha, which has the characteristics of both gyokuro and high grade sencha, tastes better when drunk in small teacups. Japanese teacups can hold a smaller amount than tea cups for black tea, and it is best to use a smaller Japanese teacup. Even when pouring into a mug, it is recommended to brew a smaller amount.
More about Kabusecha
In the cultivation of Kabusecha, the growing leaves are covered to block direct sunlight. The absence of sunlight in the period just before harvesting produces a rich source of theanine, which is responsible for the sweetness of the tea. This reduces the astringency of the tea, making it sweeter and more full-bodied.
In the past it was covered directly with straw or straw matting, but nowadays cold cloth is used. The method of shading was originally invented to grow Tencha, from which Matcha is made. Later, the benefits of shading were also used in the cultivation of sencha, resulting in kabusecha and gyokuro.
The difference between Gyokuro and Kabusecha
The difference between Gyokuro and Kabusecha is the length of time the tea is covered and the rate of shading. Kabusecha is covered one week to ten days before harvest. Gyokuro may be covered for up to two weeks. Kabusecha is shaded about 50% of the time and does not block as much sunlight as Gyokuro. (Gyokuro is shaded at 80% to 90%.) (Gyokuro has 80% to 90% shading.) It must be sunny when the leaves are harvested, so the timing of the covering is very important. The price of Gyokuro tea is higher than that of Sencha tea because it is more difficult to produce.
