Shincha

 

2023 Shincha Releases:

Note: Every green tea located under this category is considered shincha at this time even if it doesn't specifically say the word shincha, or only has the word sencha in it's title.  This will remain the case until around the middle or end of June

  • April 15th: Yutaka Midori
  • April 15th: Sae Midori
  • May 4th:    Mio
  • May 4th:    Madoka
  • May 4th:    Organic Sayamakaori
  • May 6th:    Tsuen Kiramecki Shincha
  • May 6th:    Organic Chiran
  • May 12th:  Organic Meiryoku
  • May 12th:  Organic Sae Midori
  • May 12th:  Organic Asamushi Shincha
  • May 12th:  Asanoka Sencha
  • May 12th:  Kirishima Organic
  • May 12th:  Organic Kabusecha
  • May 13th:  Organic Oku Yutaka
  • May 23rd:  Organic Kurasawa Kabusecha
  • May 23rd:  Organic Sae Midori Kabusecha

Notes on the 2023 harvest. 

This year the harvest occurred several weeks earlier than in 2022. 

Generally speaking, because of a early warm spring has occurred the flavors overall in 2023 will probably not matcha the exceptional levels that we had in 2022. Every year is different, some years are better than others.  However, whatever the conditions know that we strive to choose the very best we can find and as always, gems will reveal themselves. 

Note: Although there was an early warm spring this year, there were also a few cold snaps afterwards. Thus, the organic teas were less affected since they are usually harvested later.

 

Shincha FAQ's

What's The Difference Between Shincha And Sencha?

A lot of people have difficulty with this concept.  All shincha is sencha, not all sencha is shincha. So what is the difference?

Normally sencha green tea is harvested 3 or 4 times per year, the first harvest being the best. Out of that first harvest, the majority is put into cold storage where it can be pulled throughout the year as needed.  You can indeed have first harvest, fresh sencha throughout the year provided it's pulled from refrigeration and has been recently packaged.

There's a portion of that first harvest which never goes into storage and which is put up for immediate sale - that's is known as shincha.

Is shincha better than first harvest sencha?

Not necessarily. It's true, there's not a fresher green tea than shincha.  The cold storage process does change the characteristics of the tea somewhat.  In some cases for the better, in some cases not.   Shincha tends to be bolder than regular first harvest sencha which mellows out a bit during the storage process. We can't say one is "better" than another. We can say that legions of customers want shincha as soon as it comes out to enjoy the freshest of the fresh sencha green tea.

When is Shincha available?

It's available from harvest in late April through usually June, as supplies permit. Quite often the tea we are selling in June is actually shincha though not labelled as such.

(FAQ's continued at bottom of page below the products)

Shincha green teas are released one by one. To be notified by email the moment any of the following shincha come into stock, navigate to the product and click on the "Notify Me When Back In Stock" button. 

 

What about "shincha" gyokuro and matcha?

Shade grown gyokuro and matcha leaf is usually harvested in May just like regular first harvest sencha. However, the normal procedure is to age the leaf of these products for a few months for optimum taste. This is why they are normally released of these teas occur in the fall and not spring. Although you can enjoy them earlier, until they are aged properly they will have a somewhat "green" taste to them. Further, during the summer the current year's gyokuro is often blended with the previous year's leaf when supplies or the previous year's tea are in low supply and won't last until fall.  There is nothing wrong with these teas, even though they are not at their peak quality.  However, they are not really "shincha".

It is the policy of O-Cha.com to not market "shincha matcha", "shincha gyokuro", or especially "shincha bancha" (a second or third harvest tea).

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