A green tea is the least oxidised of all the tea classes. The tea is picked and quickly dried (Chinese green tea) or steamed (Japanese green tea) which stops leaf enzyme activities and oxidation. The result is a tea that is appreciated for its freshness, brightness and vegetal flavour. Green teas also deliver a healthy shot of disease fighting antioxidants (see our primer on the health benefits of green tea). Although caffeine content can vary between types of green tea and the temperature of the water used for the steeping, green teas generally have a lower caffeine content that black and some oolong teas.
Individual green teas vary dramatically in flavour and aroma. A Japanese Gyokuru tea for example can have a complex, “green” and sweet flavor reminiscent of honey while a Chinese gunpowder tea will often be fresh and flinty suggestive of water washing over pebbles. Other teas can be floral, nutty, buttery, kelpy, smoky, toasty and earthy depending on the tea variety, when the tea was picked, where it was grown and how it is processed. Green is the most commonly-consumed tea in China and Japan.
Japanese green tea
Japanese green tea evangelists say that the brief steaming of Japanese tea brings out the umami flavours. They also note that the tea varieties used have been bred over decades to reduce their astringency and bitterness. Japanese tea production is highly mechanised and purchased by price and taste rather than origin as is the case for Chinese teas.
Many Japanese green teas are blended and several famous teas feature the addition of other raw materials. One of the most popular is Genmaicha which is a blend of Sencha leaf (sometimes Bancha leaf and very occasionally Gyokuro) and kernels of roasted, popped rice. Kukicha green tea is a mix of Sencha leaf and thin cut twigs from the tea bush.
Japan is also home to the famous jade-green Matcha powdered tea. This is milled between two rotating stones from the Tencha leaf. Ceremonial grade Matcha is used in Chanoyu, the Japanese tea ceremony. The Tencha leaf is covered in shade before harvest (sometimes even staying in complete darkness for a period) to encourage the production of chlorophyll which, when ground, provides an intensely sweet, grassy, vegetal flavor.
Chinese green teas
It was the Chinese who first turned fresh tea leaves into green tea which now make up approximately 70% of China’s tea output. The leaf is plucked by hand (some teas are only plucked once a year during Spring) and then quickly dried at the tea factory to halt the action of the oxidative enzymes.
The most commonly used drying methods include basket-firing, oven baking, sun-drying, wok drying, roasting and tumble drying. Tea masters then twist, roll and turn the leaves into the required shape. For example gunpowder green tea leaves are rolled into a ball shape, Longjing is shaped into a short, flat budset, Tai Ping Hou Kui comprises two flat leaves and a bud while Pan Lon Yin Hao is spiraled and curled.
Purchasing tips
Green tea grades are not standardised, making it difficult to judge quality on name and grade alone. In China teas are generally classified according to the time of the pluck and the shape or style of the leaf. In Japan teas are classified according to the tea producer, the type of tea (Sencha, Gyokuro etc), season and quality of the tea. Green teas are strongly seasonal so whatever tea you are purchasing it’s important to consider its freshness (with Spring and early harvest teas being especially prized). Also look for consistency – where all all the leaves are the same size, colour and shape.