What Is Shincha?
A New Tea Season Begins
Shincha marks the beginning of a new tea year in Japan.
Each spring, after months of winter dormancy, tea plants begin to produce their first new leaves. This first harvest is known as shincha, or “new tea,” and it’s something we look forward to every year.
As the 2026 season approaches, we’ve started receiving early updates from our partner farmers and our team in Japan. While the teas are not yet ready, the fields are already showing promising signs.
This is a look at what shincha is, and how this year’s season is beginning to take shape.
What Is Shincha
Shincha refers to the first harvest of Japanese green tea in spring.
After winter, tea plants store nutrients and amino acids within their leaves. When new buds begin to grow, these concentrated components are carried into the young leaves, resulting in higher levels of amino acids like theanine, a smoother, more umami-forward taste with less bitterness and astringency.
Because shincha is produced in limited quantities at the very start of the season, it is only available for a short time each year.
It is, in many ways, the freshest expression of that year’s tea.
What Makes Shincha Different
Beyond the timing of the harvest, the way shincha is finished also shapes its character.
To preserve the character of the fresh leaves, our shincha is processed at a gentler final drying temperature (hi-ire) than our standard teas. This allows the natural aroma and flavor of the new leaves to come through more clearly.
The result is a tea that feels bright and lively, with a fresh green aroma, soft sweetness, and a smooth, rounded taste.
Early Updates from the 2026 Tea Fields
We’ve begun hearing from the fields as the new season approaches.
According to Sugiyama-san, who works closely with our partner farms as part of our domestic sales team, the new buds are growing well this year, and the harvest is expected to begin around the usual timing.
Recent rainfall has been steady, which is especially important at this stage, helping support healthy leaf development.
While it is still early, these initial conditions are a positive sign for the quality of this year’s shincha.
Reading the Fields
Even before harvest, the tea fields begin to show how each tea is being prepared.
In the weeks leading up to harvest, farmers may cover parts of the fields to reduce sunlight exposure. These shaded leaves appear a deeper, richer green and are used for teas like gyokuro or tencha. By limiting sunlight, the plants retain more amino acids, resulting in a deeper umami flavor.
In contrast, unshaded leaves appear lighter, with a slightly yellow-green tone. These are used for teas such as sencha, which develop a brighter, fresher taste.
It’s not uncommon to see both shaded and unshaded sections within the same field, each carefully managed to produce different styles of tea.
Caring for the Tea Fields
Tea fields are carefully maintained over many years.
One important practice is known as daigiri (台刈り), or rejuvenation pruning. Every five to seven years, tea bushes are cut back significantly, often to about half their size, to help restore their vigor.
Immediately after this process, the fields can look almost bare, which can be surprising at first. However, this is a natural and necessary step.
Within about a month, new shoots begin to emerge from the pruned branches. These fresh shoots are stronger and more nutrient-rich, contributing to better quality tea in the following seasons.
It is one of the many ways farmers care for the tea plants over time, ensuring consistent quality year after year.
Looking Ahead to This Year’s Shincha
The first harvest will begin soon.
As always, shincha will be produced in limited quantities, reflecting the conditions of this specific season. Each year is slightly different, shaped by the weather, timing, and the careful decisions made in the fields.
As tea producers, we taste and select from these early harvests directly from our partner farms, refining each tea to highlight its character.
Shincha is a brief moment in the tea year, but an important one. It marks the transition into a new season, and the culmination of months of preparation before the first leaves appear.
We’ll continue to share updates as the 2026 shincha season progresses.