What is fukamushi sencha? The best tasting green tea

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What is fukamushi sencha?

Fukamushi sencha, or Japanese deep-steamed green tea, is Japan’s favorite green tea and is known for its rich, sweet taste.

As one of the newest types of Japanese green tea, fukamushi sencha has only been around since the 1960s, when its cultivation method was first developed in Shizuoka, Japan [1]. And even in such a short time, it’s said that this green tea’s taste has already deviated from the original batches [2].

How is fukamushi sencha made?

As the story goes, deep-steamed sencha’s birthplace was the Makinohara plateau, a barren place that made growing tea a long, laborious process [3]. Eventually, the tea that did come out of the region had thicker leaves and stronger astringency than mountain-grown tea, meaning it tasted rather bitter and not like what tea drinkers in the area were used to.

Tea farmers found out that steaming the tea leaves for longer than traditional sencha (standard Japanese green tea) resulted in a less astringent, tastier tea.

From start to teacup, here’s how this accidental tea invention gets made today as Japan’s most commonly produced tea [4].

After harvesting, the tea leaves are steamed [5]. This stops the oxidation process, which creates black tea. The length of the steaming process is what differentiates normal sencha from fukamushi sencha, which can be steamed as much as twice as long for 40-60 seconds.
The leaves then go through cooling, pressing, rolling, and drying to reduce moisture and lock in freshness.
The extra heat exposure through longer steaming also breaks down fukamushi sencha leaves a bit more, making a tea that infuses quicker and has a stronger taste than normal sencha [6].

Fukamushi sencha’s flavor makes it the best tasting green tea

The key step of steaming fukamushi sencha for longer has several impacts on its taste, making it–in my opinion and according to the majority of Japan–the best tasting green tea.

All in all, fukamushi sencha’s taste is less bitter, more sweet, and strongly leafy.

For starters, a compound called pectin dissolves more easily through steaming, which enhances sweetness [1].

Steaming also changes the leaves’ chlorophyll, giving a more “green”, leafy flavor. For me, this is similar to the cloudier tea taste of matcha and is less watery [7].

Finally, as mentioned before, the longer steam also reduces the tea’s “astringency.” Astringency is more of a sensation than a flavor, but you can think of it as an unpleasant, bitter, drying effect in your mouth.

What are fukamushi sencha’s health benefits?

With all the changes to taste, deep-steaming green tea’s health profile also gets a bit of a makeover.

Fukamushi sencha contains several of the same nutrients as other green teas like catechins and amino acids, both of which support all sorts of health functions [3].

However, because fukamushi sencha’s tea leaves are more broken up than their less steamed cousins, more nutrients like fiber, vitamins, and minerals are extracted through steeping. Normally, 70-80% of tea’s nutrients otherwise remain in the tea leaves.

How to steep fukamushi sencha

sencha and mochi — The kyusu is a Japanese teapot suited for finer leaf green tea like fukamushi sencha and gyokuro.

If you’re like me and like to skip the guesswork to achieve the perfect tea taste, then cold brewing fukamushi sencha is the way to go. That’s because it’s impossible to oversteep while cold brewing and the process extracts even more caffeine and nutrients from the tea leaves over several hours. To cold brew fukamushi sencha, simply throw a few teaspoons of tea leaves into a bottle of your choice and leave it in the fridge for a few hours or overnight.

For a hot steep, you’ll want a special teapot with a fine mesh strainer to catch the broken down tea leaves. The kyusu teapot is perfect for finer teas like fukamushi sencha and gyokuro.

To steep:

Use 8oz (about a kyusu’s worth) of hot water at around 180°F (80°C) with about 2 teaspoons of tea leaves [8].
Steep for 30 seconds.

Two teaspoons is almost double the amount you’d use for other tea, but Japanese green tea can be steeped for up to 3 times, so you get much more tea in the end!

Where to buy fukamushi sencha online

Quality Japan-grown fukamushi sencha is available online through several Japanese tea brands. Generally, and from my own experience, it’s near impossible to find any sencha at all in standard supermarkets so it’s best to save yourself the hassle!

I would also strongly recommend loose leaf fukamushi sencha over tea bags because of the flexibility, taste, cost, and ability to re-steep multiple times. Tea bags are typically up-charged and may contain more broken-up, leftover tea leaf parts.

Here are a few tea companies, which specialize in Japanese tea, that sell fukamushi sencha and that I personally drink.

1. Senbird Tea

Senbird Tea works directly with tea farmers in Japan to source all their teas. You can read up on each farmer’s profile directly on each product page to get to know exactly who put in all the hard work into your teacup. Their Fukamushi Sencha Moriki is organically grown in Shizuoka, Japan and has an option to refill the original tin for a more sustainable option.

Read more about Senbird Tea in my review!

You can save 15% on all Senbird Tea purchases with promo code: steepedreams.

Website: senbirdtea.com

2. Japanese Green Tea Company

Japanese Green Tea Company is fairly straightforward thanks to their name, but it’s worth knowing that their Issaku Reserve Fukamushi Sencha is multiple award-winning and one of a kind. That’s because Japanese Green Tea Company exclusively works with the tea farm to distribute the uniquely grown sencha outside of Japan. Tea is grown using the sustainable chagusaba method, which uses Japanese sugarcane as natural fertilizer, and gives an even sweeter taste.

Read more about Japanese Green Tea Company in my review!

Save 10% on all Japanese Green Tea Company purchases with promo code steepeddreams.

Website: japanesegreenteain.com

[1] Brekell, Per Oscar. A Beginner's Guide to Japanese Tea: Selecting and Brewing the Perfect Cup of Sencha, Matcha, and Other Japanese Teas. United States, Tuttle Publishing, 2021.
[2] van Driem, George L.. The Tale of Tea: A Comprehensive History of Tea from Prehistoric Times to the Present Day. Netherlands, Brill, 2019.
[3] “京都のお茶　通販　創業安政元年株式会社ちきりや.” 創業安政元年ちきりや, https://kyo-chikiriya.com/blog/tea_about/steamedtea/.
[4] “Current Outlook of Japanese Tea - Maff.” Current Outlook of Japanese Tea, https://www.maff.go.jp/e/policies/agri/attach/pdf/tea_202012.pdf.
[5] “The Crude Tea Manufacturing Process for Sencha.” The Processing of Sencha Green Tea, http://www.itoen-global.com/allabout_greentea/production_processing.html.
[6] Paul, Caroline, and Beckwith, Sebastian. A Little Tea Book: All the Essentials from Leaf to Cup. United States, Bloomsbury Publishing, 2018.
[7] Heiss, Robert J., and Heiss, Mary Lou. The Story of Tea: A Cultural History and Drinking Guide. United States, Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed, 2011.
[8] “深蒸し煎茶のおいしいいれ方｜お茶のおいしいいれ方｜お茶百科.” お茶百科, http://www.ocha.tv/how_to_brew/nihoncha/hukamushi/.

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about the author

Hello, is it tea you’re looking for? Raquel is an Arizona-based tea drinker who writes about tea as a side hobby. Her current favorites are Earl Grey with a splash of milk and any Japanese green tea.