Sencha Fukamushi Superior from Hibiki-an

It has taken me so long to work out how to get the best out of this tea. Two weeks, in fact. It seemed that only small differences in temperature resulted in a lack of flavour, or excessive bitterness. However, once I sorted out my brewing technique, the tea most definitely rewarded me with a flavour similar to, but distinctly different from the standard sencha.
Hibiki-an’s sencha fukamushi uses sencha leaves shaded “five to seven days” before harvest. Additionally, the leaves are ‘deep steamed’ (= fukamushi) for longer than the standard sencha tea. Plus for US$30 per 200g (7.05oz) and Hibiki-an’s quality and service, this offers value for money.

Brewing Instructions: 8 grams of tea (1.5 tablespoons) in 80 degree celsius water for 40 to 45 seconds. IMPORTANT: I brewed this more towards the lower end of 70 degrees for 40 seconds, and had far tastier results. Feel free to comment about what you’ve found best, or any recommendations you have!

Leaf Appearance: Dark green, very slight yellowing on the occasional leaf, leaves more broken up (I’m guessing the deeper steaming breaks the leaves down more than a light steam).

Dry Aroma: Distinctly sweet and seaweedy.

Brewed Aroma: Mild grassy notes – fairly typical of a Japanese Green.

Flavour: What we have here are flavours with similarities to both gyokuro and sencha, but far these are far more integrated than in the blended sencha (see earlier post). You get this mild, mellow savouriness accompanying the grassy notes of the sencha, with a very vague bitterness on the aftertaste (as expected of a good sencha). It’s smooth! You could almost say that there’s a hint of cocoa in the flavour. Almost. Also, the brew is cloudier than a sencha, but I’d put that down to the deep steam process. The second steep is notably milder, with most of that initial savouriness gone, leaving behind something quiet and mellow, with no bold notes in sight. The third infusion has only the slightest sweet and grassy flavour, but otherwise tastes of boiled water.

Rating: 3 out of 5 – while the first steep is an example of well integrated flavour, this isn’t the most complex of teas, and I found that anything after the first steep becomes something to quaff rather than linger on. So if you want a well made, good quality Japanese green tea that’s more mellow in flavour than a sencha, but less savory than a gyokuro, this is it. Plus if you’re in a rush, you’ll only have time to drink the best bit!