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Japanese Green Tea Types Explained: Sencha, Gyokuro, Hojicha, Genmaicha and More
Outside Japan, "Japanese tea" usually means matcha. Inside Japan, matcha is a small, special-occasion slice of what people actually drink. The everyday tea in Japanese homes, offices and restaurants is sencha, and on a cold evening it might be roasty hojicha or toasted-rice genmaicha. If you like matcha, there's a whole shelf you haven't tried yet.
This guide explains each common type, how it's made, what it tastes like, how to brew it, and where to start. Research-based, no sponsored picks. Last checked: October 2026.
All of them come from the same plant
Every tea on this page is made from Camellia sinensis, the same plant as black tea and oolong. What makes Japanese green tea different is steaming: freshly picked leaves are steamed within hours to stop oxidation. Chinese green teas are usually pan-fired instead. Steaming is why Japanese teas taste grassy, oceanic and savory rather than nutty or toasty (with a couple of deliberate exceptions below).
The differences between Japanese teas come from three choices:
- Shading. Covering the plants for days or weeks before harvest raises umami and sweetness and deepens the green. Gyokuro, kabusecha, tencha and matcha are shaded. Sencha usually isn't.
- Which part and which harvest. Young leaves from the spring first flush make the premium teas. Later harvests, larger leaves and stems go into everyday and roasted teas.
- What happens after steaming. Rolled into needles (sencha), ground into powder (matcha), roasted (hojicha), or blended with toasted rice (genmaicha).
The main types at a glance
| Tea | What it is | Taste | Caffeine (relative) | Price tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sencha (煎茶) | Unshaded leaves, steamed and rolled into needles. Japan's everyday tea. | Fresh, grassy, light bitterness, clean finish | Medium | Everyday to premium |
| Fukamushi sencha (深蒸し煎茶) | Sencha steamed two to three times longer. Leaves break into smaller pieces. | Deeper green cup, rounder, less astringent | Medium | Everyday |
| Kabusecha (かぶせ茶) | Shaded about one to three weeks. Between sencha and gyokuro. | Sweeter and softer than sencha | Medium | Mid |
| Gyokuro (玉露) | Shaded about three weeks or more. Japan's top leaf tea. | Intense umami, brothy, sweet, almost savory | Higher | Premium |
| Matcha (抹茶) | Shaded tencha leaves, stone- or machine-milled to powder. You drink the whole leaf. | Rich, sweet-bitter, creamy when whisked | Higher | Mid to premium |
| Bancha (番茶) | Later-harvest, larger leaves. A broad, regional everyday category. | Light, plain, mildly woody | Lower | Budget |
| Hojicha (ほうじ茶) | Bancha, sencha or stems roasted until brown. | Toasty, caramel, nutty; almost no bitterness | Lower | Budget to mid |
| Genmaicha (玄米茶) | Green tea (usually bancha or sencha) mixed with toasted rice. | Popcorn-like, savory, mellow | Lower | Budget |
| Kukicha / Karigane (茎茶・雁ヶ音) | Stems and stalks sorted out during processing. "Karigane" usually means stems from gyokuro or high-grade sencha. | Sweet, light, fresh | Lower | Good value |
| Konacha / Mecha (粉茶・芽茶) | Small particles and buds sifted out of sencha. Konacha is the tea in sushi restaurants. | Strong, quick to brew, slightly bitter | Medium | Budget |
Caffeine columns are relative, based on how each tea is made and how makers describe them. Exact amounts vary with the leaf, the amount you use and how long you steep. We don't make health claims; if caffeine matters to you, check the maker's own figures.
The teas worth knowing, one by one
Sencha: start here
If you want to know what Japan tastes like day to day, buy a mid-priced sencha. It's the tea served in a teapot at a family dinner, in a paper cup at a highway rest stop, and in plastic bottles in every convenience store. Quality ranges widely. Spring first-flush sencha (labeled 新茶 shincha when sold fresh in May and June, or 一番茶 ichibancha) is sweeter and more aromatic than later harvests.
Fukamushi, the deep-steamed style, is common in Shizuoka. It makes a cloudy, deep green cup that's more forgiving if you get the water temperature slightly wrong, which makes it a good choice for beginners.
Gyokuro: the umami tea
Gyokuro is shaded for weeks, so the leaves build up amino acids and taste unlike any other tea: rich, sweet and savory, closer to a light broth than to grassy sencha. It's brewed with cool water in small amounts and sipped slowly. Yame in Fukuoka, Uji in Kyoto and Okabe in Shizuoka are the best-known producing areas. Treat it as a weekend tea, not a mug-all-day tea.
Hojicha: the evening tea
Hojicha is roasted over high heat until the leaves turn reddish brown. Roasting removes most of the grassy, bitter notes and leaves a toasty, slightly sweet cup. In Japan it's often served after dinner and to children. It also makes an excellent latte, and powdered hojicha is sold for exactly that. If you like coffee and find green tea "too grassy," this is the one to try.
Genmaicha: the comfort tea
Genmaicha mixes green tea with toasted, sometimes popped, rice. It smells like popcorn and tastes savory and mild. It was historically an economical tea. Some versions add a little matcha (抹茶入り玄米茶) for a greener cup. It's forgiving to brew and works well with food.
Kukicha and karigane: the value pick
Stem teas are a by-product of sorting premium leaf, so they can taste far better than their price suggests. Karigane from gyokuro production is a quiet bargain: some of gyokuro's sweetness at a fraction of the price.
Matcha
Matcha gets its own guides on this site: what the grades really mean, choosing matcha for lattes and how to make it at home.
Brewing guide
Leaf teas in Japan are brewed short and repeated: one portion of leaves gives two or three infusions. Water temperature matters more than anything else. Boiling water makes sencha and gyokuro bitter.
| Tea | Leaf per serving | Water | Temperature | First steep | Later steeps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sencha | 4 g (about 2 tsp) | 6 oz / 180 ml | 160–175°F / 70–80°C | 60 seconds | Hotter water, 10–20 seconds |
| Fukamushi sencha | 4 g | 6 oz / 180 ml | 160–175°F / 70–80°C | 30–45 seconds | 10 seconds |
| Gyokuro | 6–8 g | 2–3 oz / 60–90 ml | 120–140°F / 50–60°C | 2 minutes | Slightly hotter, 30–60 seconds |
| Hojicha | 5 g | 8 oz / 240 ml | Just off the boil, about 200°F / 95°C | 30 seconds | 30–60 seconds |
| Genmaicha | 5 g | 8 oz / 240 ml | About 195°F / 90°C | 30 seconds | 30–60 seconds |
| Kukicha / karigane | 4–5 g | 6 oz / 180 ml | 175°F / 80°C | 45–60 seconds | 20 seconds |
These are typical starting points from Japanese tea houses' brewing guides. Every tea is a little different, so read the instructions on the bag first and adjust to taste.
No thermometer? Pour boiling water into an empty cup, then into another cup. Each transfer drops the temperature by roughly 10°C (about 18°F). Japanese households do exactly this, and it also pre-warms the cups.
About the kyusu
The kyusu (急須) is the Japanese side-handled teapot. It's designed for this style of brewing: small capacity, a built-in fine strainer for tiny sencha particles, and a side handle for pouring every last drop, which matters because leftover water keeps steeping the leaves and turns the second infusion bitter. Any small teapot with a fine strainer works. A kyusu just makes it easier. Gyokuro is traditionally brewed in an even smaller pot called a houhin.
Reading the bag
Japanese tea packaging carries the same food-label fields as matcha. The useful ones:
- 名称 (product type): 煎茶, 玉露, ほうじ茶, 玄米茶 and so on. "緑茶" alone is a generic label and often a blend.
- 原料原産地名 (origin): 静岡県 Shizuoka, 鹿児島県 Kagoshima, 京都府 Kyoto, 福岡県 Fukuoka and others. Shizuoka and Kagoshima are by far the largest producers.
- 賞味期限 (best before): Leaf tea keeps longer than matcha, but sencha still loses aroma within a couple of months of opening.
- Words like 一番茶 (first flush), 上 or 特上 (grades used by individual shops, not a national standard) and 農家直送 (direct from the farm).
Which one to try first
- You like matcha lattes: hojicha, especially powdered hojicha for lattes.
- You want "real" everyday Japanese tea: a mid-priced first-flush sencha, or fukamushi sencha if you're new to brewing.
- You want something special: gyokuro, brewed small and cool.
- You drink tea with meals or late in the day: genmaicha or hojicha.
- You're on a budget but want quality: karigane or kukicha.
Where to buy
Established Kyoto houses such as Ippodo and Marukyu Koyamaen sell sencha, gyokuro, hojicha and genmaicha alongside their matcha, with English brewing notes. Japan-based brands like SEN ship internationally. Since 2025, matcha demand has pulled some tea leaf away from other green teas, so sencha and gyokuro prices have risen too; leaf tea is still far cheaper per cup than matcha.
Store opened leaf tea in an airtight tin away from light, heat and strong smells. Unlike matcha, it doesn't need the refrigerator once opened, but finish it within a month or two for the best aroma.
Sources and notes. Tea categories and processing descriptions follow standard Japanese tea industry definitions and tea houses' published product descriptions. Brewing parameters are typical ranges drawn from Japanese tea houses' brewing guides; individual teas vary. Production regions reflect Japan's Ministry of Agriculture tea statistics. Caffeine comparisons are relative and general; this article contains no health claims.