HomeWhat’s the difference between Sinha and Sancha? These two names sound very similar and the teas themselves look practically the same. So how are they different? In this blog we are going be comparing three different types of senica from our website to see how the flavor of a Sinha compares to the flavor of two regular Setia teas. In the end we’ll show you which one of these three t’s you should buy based on what flavor profile you’re looking for. First, let’s compare the leaves of these three teas. We’ll start with the Nuuk Shincha, a. T. That’s produced by Mr. Nuuk in Shrank. A Beautiful Town in Southern Japan. This tea is a Shinto which translates to new tea. It’s the first tea to be harvested in the spring of each year, typically from late March to early April. Some Japanese tea connoisseurs wait around all year to be among the first to try the fresh Sinha harvest. This is where it gets a little bit confusing as all the sanrateities we have on our website are first harvest. So what’s the difference? When a farmer is producing shincha, the priority is to get the tea harvested and shipped out quickly. This tends to capture a fresh and vegetable flavor profile that changes from year to year for a premium setia. Like the other two we have here, a farmer may have different priorities. He can afford to take a little bit more time to let the leaves mature and then carefully blend them to find the perfect balance of flavors. Some farmers try to capture a similar flavor from year to year, which they can accomplish by blending tea varieties together in different ratios. This may lead to a flavor that’s smoother and more balanced, but you won’t get the same vibrant and vegetal notes as you would get from a fresh sinha, but that’s something we’re gonna test out. Taking a look at the Nuuk, you’ll notice that it has a darker color and some smaller leaf particles. This is likely due to the longer steaming process of the leaves, which makes them more brittle. In this case this can actually enhance the drinking experience because it leads to a richer extraction. Next, we have one of our most popular sancheities, the Yamaha no Sato. This is a deep steam tea we found after meeting the farmers of Sattoen in Shizuoka. It’s made by blending together the leaves of Yaukita tea plants and Asatsuu tea plants. These leaves are also steamed for a longer time so you can see they have smaller leaf particles. Finally, we have the Chanoka Mountain Setia. This tea was introduced to us by Mr. Takada, a tea farmer in Uji. It’s grown up in the mountains which will lead to a distinct flavor profile we’re going to explore in a bit. First, let’s brew up the teas. For each tea. I will be using five grams of leaves and a brewing temperature of 70 degrees Celsius or 100 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Normally I would use 100 and 50 miters of water and bre, these in Aqu teapot for a richer flavor. But for the sake of the experiment. I will be using three tea strainers just to keep everything equal. I’ll let each of these Ts brew for one minute and then I’ll take the strainers out. You’ll notice that the color of the first two teas are much greener compared to the third. This is because the Nui Shincha and the Yamaha are deep steamed teas, which usually yields a greener color. The deep steam teas are also more opaque. This cloudy green color is difficult to see through while the mountain sania is almost clear. But let’s have a taste of each one starting with the mountain centi. The first thing that struck me about this tea was the mineral. You can feel the minerals as a tingling sensation and it generally comes from the soil teas that are grown in rocky mountain soil like the Chanoka Sancha as well as the Kukicha Osaka tend to have a strong mineral to them. It also has much more subdued starchy or cereal flavor profiles that almost goes into the roasted direction. Finally, there’s a hint of straw in the taste. This is something you would normally associate with a stem tea like the Kukicha or Katagani. Next we try the Yamaha right away. I’m struck with the complexity of this tea. There’s a combination of steam spinach edammae and a hint of fruitiness towards the end. What makes the Yamaha unique is its distinct ley berry note that comes out more when the tea is cold brew, but you can get a little bit of it in the hot brew tea. The tea also has a slight savory flavor in the finish, which is normally something you would find in Akure. Finally we go for the Nuuk Shiina. This tea is most similar to the Yamaha, but still very different. What jumps out is the strong grassy flavor in vibrant acidity. Recently a customer asked us which tea they should go for if they want this intense grassy flavor and this would definitely be the best option. So this makes perfect sense. If you want a young green tea with plenty of acidity, freshness and grassiness, you should go for a shin like the Neuki Shincha. If you want a green tea that is a little bit more balanced and mature, you can go for a regular sancha like the Yamato Nos Sato or the Chanoka Mountain Centcha. If you want something a little more mild and subdued, you should go for the Chanoka. But if you want to try something new and you aren’t afraid of these fruity and vegetablegeal notes, go for the Yamaha. Thank you all so much for tuning in. I hope you found this tasting guide helpful. If you have any questions about our green teas, please feel free to leave them in the comments below. Until then, we’ll see you next blog.
