Japan Bancha Yoko

Most Japanese teas are made from well handled leaves and much of their elegance and style is due to the processing: steaming immediately after plucking and then air drying. Bancha or Sencha are the everyday green tea drinks of Japan. The leaves to produce Bancha are generally plucked after the new season and tend to be somewhat more coarse. This however gives the tea its unique character and visual appearance. Since the leaves used to make Bancha are more coarse and contain some stalks and stems the resulting tea generally contains less caffeine or tannin then the finer grades of Japanese tea. Also the cup tends to be somewhat milder.