Tencha

Location: Wazuka (Uji region)

Harvest Season: May

Cultivar: Samidori

Process: Camilla sinensis leaves are shade-grown for 20-30 days. The tarps inhibit photosynthesis, so the plant sends concentrated amounts of chlorophyll and L-theanine to the new growth of leaves. Once the leaves are harvested, they need to be processed quickly (within 24 hours after harvest). The leaves are steamed to halt oxidation, and then cooled with strong blasts of air.

The steaming time can vary from producer to producer, but to give you an idea usually steaming is between 30-40 seconds. Cooling the leaves helps bring out the aromatics of the tea. Then the leaves are then dried, cut, and sorted. Tencha is not rolled (otherwise it would be destined for gyokuro or kabusecha), but rather is sent to the ishi-usu stone mills to become matcha. (Unless of course, you're drinking our tencha as a loose-leaf tea, which is sent to you instead!)

What is Tencha Loose Leaf Tea?

Tencha is the term for tea leaves that have been properly shade-grown for 20-30 days, allowing the leaves to concentrate ample amounts of the sweet amino acid L-theanine - a characteristic of delicious matcha. It is quite a rare occurrence to try the theanine-laden leaf as a steeped tea, but we're excited to share the opportunity with you! By enjoying our tencha you can to truly experience the whole story and experience of quality matcha.


Tencha leaves are often fertilized three times as much as teas that are unshaded, and are not processed further as they would be if the end result was sencha or gyokuro. Only the tender, first flush of spring-harvested leaves are made into tencha. If you have a high-quality tencha, the flavor will retain a beautiful, mellow sweetness in the brew compared to other green teas.


Read more about Tencha and its importance to matcha on our blog