Sencha (煎茶)

Sencha is the green tea we reach for on an ordinary day, which is exactly why it deserves care. In spring, shincha, the first new tea, is shun, bright and soft from the new leaf. Through the rest of the year, sencha is the quiet cup after rice, after work, after too much talking.

Temperature is the first secret. The sweetness in sencha comes out before the sharper catechins take over, so cooler water gives the cup time to stay gentle. The second secret is dose and time: enough leaf to give the tea its body, then one quiet minute. More water isn't kindness. It only thins the cup and tempts you to steep longer, which is where the roughness begins.

A kyūsu, the small side-handled teapot, makes this easy because it pours fast and holds the leaves back. A small teapot and a fine strainer will do the same work at home. Pour every last drop into the cups, little by little between them, because the last drops are strongest and a wet leaf left drowning keeps brewing. This is honmono made reachable: good leaves, soft water, a cool hand with the kettle, and nothing hidden.