Japanese Tea Ranking

How to Select Japanese Tea?

Here are "two points" that you must check when selecting Japanese tea.

Choose by tea type 

Each type of Japanese tea has its unique flavor. Choose the right one for you, paying attention to whether you prefer a sweet, non-habitual taste or whether you are more interested in the aroma.

For those who want sweetness, gyokuro and kabusecha are recommended

Gyokuro is a green tea with almost no catechins, the characteristic astringent component, and a rich sweet, and umami flavor. Kannaicha, which is made using almost the same production process as gyokuro, has a mellow taste with little astringency because the production of catechins is suppressed as well. Those who prefer tea with a certain degree of astringency should choose sencha or matcha.

Sencha is the best for hospitality

Sencha is the most commonly consumed type of green tea and is green in color. Green tea is made by heat-treating (steaming or roasting) freshly picked green tea leaves without fermenting them. Sencha is the most common type of green tea made in this way. It is non-habitant and easy to drink, and would be ideal for hospitality.

Hojicha and genmaicha for savory aroma

Tea has an indescribable healing aroma, and roasting makes it even more fragrant. If you want to fully enjoy the aroma, hojicha, and genmaicha are recommended. Both have less caffeine than gyokuro and are suitable for drinking before bedtime. Genmaicha is attractive because you can enjoy the fragrant aroma, sweetness, and flavor of brown rice at the same time.

Choose a tea that clearly states its place of origin as “from ⚪︎

⚪︎ prefecture”

Having talked about taste and aroma, the next thing I would like to focus on is the place of origin. Japan is home to some of the most famous tea breweries in the world, and tea produced in the natural environment nurtured by the land has a deep flavor. However, if you are not careful, it is not uncommon for what you think is Japanese tea to be made with tea leaves from China.

Only 100% tea leaves from the same production area can be labeled as"⚪︎⚪︎tea".

For example, only tea made from 100% Kagoshima tea leaves can be labeled as "Kagoshima tea". If more than 50% but less than 100% of the tea leaves are used and mixed with tea leaves from other regions, it must be labeled as "Kagoshima tea blend".

If you are going to taste Japanese tea, you want to compare the characteristics of teas from different regions. If the place of origin is ambiguous, the use of pesticides is often unclear, so it is best to avoid them if at all possible.

Top selling products by ranking

Popular Japanese teas are introduced here in a ranking style. The ranking is made based on the best-selling ranking and reviews on major Japanese e-commerce sites.