Essay on Japanese Senchas By Jesse Jacobs 

Eating heirloom tomatoes in August, and persimmons in January, more and more people are embracing a diet based on the seasonality of the foods they eat. Food tastes better, and has a better environmental impact when it is grown and consumed in season. And yet few people know that tea, that little leaf that has lubricated the palates of kings, peasants, and everyday folk throughout the millennia, also has distinct seasons.

And with the Summer upon us, we are now blessed with fresh-crop green tea. Reportedly sipped by the Buddha to keep from falling asleep while meditating, most of the world drinks green tea. High in antioxidants and polyphenols, low in caffeine, and wide ranging in flavor, green tea has also made significant inroads into contemporary America. And yet even with the current �seasonal-local-organic� hysteria that is sweeping our nation, �fresh� green tea is virtually unknown.

Until now...

Summer signifies the arrival of fresh green tea from Japan and China. These two different cultures both grow tea, each of them unique due to different processing and growing techniques. The tea is grown and processed in the Spring and made available to us in the Summer. Available now, green tea is the perfect antidote to hot, muggy summer weather: inherently cooling, refreshing, and gently uplifting.

Although all tea comes from the same plant, Camellia Sinensis, there are many varietals of that plant used for tea. In China, more than 70 tea varietals make up large, medium, and small leaf teas. These varietals are suited to the diverse Chinese climates, and produce more durable, sturdy cell structures that are very specific to the varietal�s micro-climate.

In China, green tea is processed by any of the following methods, each method yielding a different looking and tasting tea: Dry Pan Roasting (Chaoquing) Baking (Hongqing) Combination of Roasting and Baking (Ban Hong Chao) Sun-Curing (Saiqing) Steaming (Zhenqing)

Pre-rain Spring tea in China is marked by tea picked between the New Year (Feb. 19) and the first week of April. Because these tea leaves have not yet taken on the water from the rainy season, the flavor is pure, delicate, and undiluted; a taste distinguished by the fact that the plant struggled to survive a long, cold winter. Depending on the kind tea they are creating, artisans pick just the first two leaves and the unopened bud, or just buds, or just the leaves.

Some of the world�s premier tea comes from Shizuoka and Kagoshima prefectures in Japan. Tea plants in Japan are often shaded to encourage an overproduction of chlorophyll, resulting in a leaf and brew that is a deep green. What differentiates Japanese green teas from one another is the source Varietal of the leaf, and the heat process used to neutralize the oxidizing enzymes and fix the chlorophyll and polyphenols in the leaf. The high grade of deep volcanic water is used to steam Japanese tea, helping to create the flavors unique to sencha.

�Fixing the Green� in Japanese Green Tea What makes �fixing the green� so significant? It increases the amount of magnesium. Steaming kills the enzyme faster than roasting, but, requires - as a result, with roasted tea, the enzyme is often still present at the rolling process.

There is an enzyme in the tea plant that changes its color when exposed to moisture, oxygen, and heat. The leaf�s color changes from green to yellowish, to red, to brown, to black. From the picking, to the basket, to the steaming house, preventing the tea leaf from fully oxidizing into a black leaf, and retaining the vibrant green color takes years of skilled training.

Asamushi (lightly steamed), _ is steamed for 30 seconds before the final drying process. Also known as �mountain tea,� Asamushi is from Kaogshima prefecture. It yields a vibrant, golden infusion, and has a bittersweet, toasted, hazelnut aroma. The processing of this leaf creates a long, needle-like, slightly shiny, dark green leaf.

Fukamushi (deep steamed) tea has undergone a 90 second steaming before the final drying. Deep steaming was developed about 30 years ago in response to the industrialization of the water supply. Attempting to retain the �umami� (deliciousness) of the tea, this process yields a vivid green, opaque infusion with a smooth rich, milky, deep green, full bodied, less astringent, and more sweet infusion. Less yellow, less clarity, and more opacity than the asamushi this tea has more broken leaves and fine particles which float suspended in the infusion. These particles reflect light, and create a rich mouth feel that make it immediately appealing to many here in the US. _

Chumushi (medium steamed) tea is steamed for 50-75 seconds, and has nuances of each of the above teas.

Kuki Matcha Kukicha is stem and leaf tea. Matcha is pulverized, ground tealeaves. Kukicha is a green twig tea from Japan that has a milky, smooth, full bodied taste, reminiscent of roasted rice and grass. Thick bodied, kukicha is a blend of green twigs and leaves, which makes it ideal for chilling with ice. This tea was designed to very simple to brew, not be fussy- it can take a range of water temperatures and tastes great cold as well.

Houjicha This is a dark roasted green tea which is low in caffeine. It has a mildly sweet flavor and a calming digestive effect. It also has a smooth body, rich flavor and aromatic notes of roasted barley and dark chocolate. Made with the leaves and stems of the �first flush of the spring harvest, this is a premium tea.

Bancha Steamed green tea from coarse leaves

What to look for with green tea: Good tea is fresh tea, picked recently, and stored in airtight packaging away from heat and light. Spring tea is available in the Summer, and, once opened, it should be consumed as quickly as possible. Unopened, it can retain its freshness for several months provided it is stored in an airtight container, and away from heat and light sources.

Even though the tea business is a $10b industry here in the US, production is limited to primarily Japan, China, and Korea. There are reportedly a few micro-renegade farmers in Sonoma County California starting to grow tea bushes, but it is far from being available. For now, the highest quality tea still comes from small family farms in Asia, and becomes available every season.

You don�t need to be an expert to understand good tea. The dry leaf should look consistent in size, shape and color. This will yield a consistent taste. To explore the breadth and depth of seasonal teas, this author suggests you expose yourself to a tea tasting, either at home our in any of the nation�s burgeoning tea-houses. If available go for certified Fair Trade and organic tea. Within a few pots, your taste buds will tell you which teas are fresh and good.