2013.05.11
“Shincha” or New Tea Is Available Now
Shincha or Kagoshima’s first generation of green tea of the year has started to come out since mid-April. Kagoshima is the first city in Japan to harvest tea. During this period, the farmers are very busy since they have to cut young tea leaves, steam them immediately and complete every process. In the morning, they have to cut the young leaves. In the afternoon, they have to start the steaming process in the factory. They will finish work at around 1-2 am in the next day.
There will be the counting of days for tea cutting. The farmers have to check the tea leaves just like in fruit picking. There is a certain period which is the most appropriate time to cut tea leaves. During this time, the leaves will have strong flavor, nice aroma and best quality. After such period, even only for a few days, the tea quality will decline and the price will drop. Moreover, the steaming of tea in the factory is also very important because the tea leaves need to be steamed immediately after being cut. They cannot wait since they will turn brown and the quality will become worse. Even though they use a machine to steam the tea leaves, the humidity of the tea leaves must be checked by hand or by experience. These small points are very important factors which will help enhance the tea flavor. If using too low heat, there will be too much humidity left in the leaves and the tea flavor will be weak or there will be the smell of raw tea leaves. If using too high heat, the tea leaves will become crisp and the tea will be less sweet. These are the different experiences and abilities that each plantation will keep confidential.
