Fukamushi vs Sencha Detailed Comparison by a Tea Expert

Fukamushi vs sencha is a comparison that is often made and these two teas are indeed very similar.

In this article, we are going to compare these two teas' color, flavor, brewing methods, health benefits and caffeine level. After reading this article, you'll be able to understand what makes them similar, what makes them different and why you should try each to see which you like more!

Without further ado, let’s get started! 🍃

Before going in the detail comparision, what's fukamushi vs sencha?

Sencha tea is the most commonly consumed green tea in Japan.

These teas are steamed after being harvested and can take on a broad range of different flavors. 

Fukamushi sencha refers to a sencha that has been steamed for a longer time, and this leads to differences in the taste, preparation and health benefits of fukamushi sencha vs sencha. 

Color

If you’ve ever seen a picture of these super vibrant green teas, it is likely a fukamushi sencha. Regular sencha teas can begin to drift into the greener direction, but they usually tend to be either a shade of yellow, or a yellowish green.

Fukamushi sencha on the other hand can produce a bright, cloudy green infusion, particularly in the second brewing of the tea. 

If you are interested in learning about why certain teas are green, yellow or brown you can read this article on 👉 Tea Colors.

Fukamushi Sencha vs Sencha flavor profil

Sencha is a broad category of tea when it comes to flavor, and much of that has to do with how the tea is steamed. Short steamed sencha can take on a milder, slightly drier flavor and fukamushi sencha teas play on more of these steamed vegetable notes. 

Regular steamed sencha or chu mushi sencha lies somewhere in the middle, with some of these steamed vegetable or spinach flavors that you might get from fukamushi sencha, and also these fresher more citrusy flavors you might be used to from short steamed sencha. 

By the way, if you're interested to learn the different flavor profil of all green teas, our team of tea experts wrote an entire article in which we're covering all teas. Make sure to read the article 👉 What does green tea taste like?

Brewing

One difference between fukamushi sencha vs sencha comes down to the brewing of the two teas. Because fukamushi sencha tends to have smaller leaf particles, it has a greater relative surface area. This means that the tea can infuse more quickly into the water. 

To brew a normal sencha, we recommend using 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees Celsius) and a brewing time of 1 minute. To brew a fukamushi sencha, we recommend using the same temperature but this time you can let the leaves brew for just 45 seconds. This is one of the many differences between fukamushi vs sencha. 

If you want to learn how to brew sencha tea, you can follow this complete guide on 👉 How to Brew Sencha Tea Step by Step.

Fukamushi vs Sencha health benefits

When it comes to the health benefits of fukamushi sencha vs sencha, the two teas are basically the same, with one exception.

During the deep steaming process, the tea leaves are broken down, allowing more of the leaf material to flow into the cup. This means that when you drink fukamushi tea, you will be getting a higher dose of the compounds within the leaf.

When preparing regular sencha with larger leaves, more of these compounds stay inside the teapot and less is extracted into your cup. This is another major difference between fukamushi vs sencha. 

Caffeine content

Sencha caffeine level will be more or less 40mg of caffeine per serving, and that range will depend on the type of tea you use and how its prepared. Fukamushi sencha will also be slightly higher in caffeine vs sencha. The difference may not be quite as extreme, however.

The tea plant produces caffeine on the outside of the leaves as a protection against insects. Caffeine can be very bitter, even poisonous to small insects, so it makes a good defensive layer. Because the caffeine is on the outside of the tea leaf, it can be easily extracted by the water. This would suggest that there wouldn’t be quite as much of a disparity in the caffeine content of fukamushi vs sencha. 

If you’re interested a complete ranking on caffeine in green teas, you can read this article on 👉 Which Tea Has the Most Caffeine.

The final verdict on Fukamushi vs Sencha

The longer steaming process is responsible for all the differences between fukamushi sencha vs sencha. This process leads to smaller leaf particles, a more vibrant color and a more full bodied flavor. While a few seconds of steaming may not seem like that big of a difference, it contributes to all the differences in fukamushi vs sencha.

If you’re interested in trying some fukamushi sencha for yourself, we recommend the Murasaki sencha from Mr. Kawaji. Mr. Kawaji is a talented farmer in Southern Japan, and he specializes in the use of deep steamed teas. He produces his teas on a small farm in the countryside, without the use of pesticides or chemicals.