Shincha is the first tea of the year, picked from the season's opening flush and sold within weeks of being made. Japanese growers count 88 nights from the start of spring â hachijuhachiya, around the beginning of May â as the traditional moment to harvest. The plant has spent the winter storing amino acids, so the first leaves carry more sweetness and a bright, almost fruity aroma that later harvests never quite match. That aroma is also the reason shincha is drunk young: it fades over the months, and by autumn the same tea has settled into an ordinary sencha. Brew it like a sencha, a touch cooler, and drink it while it is new.
Tea Artisan: FujiwaraăăKagoshima
In the middle of the wooded mountains, the Fujiwara family manages a small tea garden where they carefully handcraft the Yakushima Shincha.
Fujiwara-san has fulfilled a long time dream by creating his own organic tea gardens. At the same time, he has really become a pioneer for organic cultivation in the region and it is a privilege to work with him!
Origin: YakushimaJapan
The Yakushima Kuritawase Shincha is grown on the beautiful island of Yakushima in the far South of Japan. This island benefits from lots of rainfall, mountainous terrain and a mild subtropical climate, making the perfect growing conditions for Japanese green tea. When we visited Yakushima Island, we were blown away not only by the diversity of wildlife, but also the people's commitment to protecting it.
Cultivar: KuritawaseTea variety
As the name would suggest, the Yakushima Kuritawase Shincha is made from the Kuritawase cultivar, a rare cultivar in Japan.
Kuritawase: The kuritawase cultivar is very rare in Japan as a whole, but it can be found on the islands of Tanegashima and Yakushima. It buds earlier than the common yabukita and itâs used in a sencha to produce a yellow liquor, a pleasant milky aroma and a smoothe flavor that has less astringency.
Preparation & ServingsUp to 48 cups
Hot brew: 5 g of leaves, 150 ml of water at 60°C (140°F), 1 minute.
Brew it again: the same leaves give 3 infusions. Re-infuse 2 more times with water at the same temperature, 20 seconds each; every infusion tastes a little different.
Cold brew: best enjoyed hot, we do not recommend cold brewing this tea.
One pack: Up to 48 cups · 16 à 5 g servings, 3 infusions each · 80 g / 2.8 oz.
Why choose Nio Teas?
For us, tea is more than a beverage, itâs a way of life. Weâve spent years visiting tea farms across Japan, tasting teas with the people who grow them and building lasting, direct relationships. We believe this is the most sustainable way to source tea: fewer intermediaries, greater traceability and a closer connection between farmer and drinker.
Every tea is 100% pesticide-free and carefully selected for its taste, origin and craftsmanship. Whether youâre discovering Japanese tea or comparing cultivars and terroirs, youâll find honest tasting notes, precise brewing guidance and real support to help you get the best from every cup.
Typical values per 100 ml of brewed tea, from the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan (MEXT, 8th edition), sencha infusion (food no. 16037; 10 g leaf, 430 ml water at 90°C, 1 min). Values in your cup vary with the leaf, the water and the brewing time.
Complete Your Tea RitualNo Kyusu at home? No problem!
100% Pesticide-FreeDirect from FarmersPure & UnblendedSingle-Origin TerroirSmall-Batch HarvestAuthentic Japanese Craft
Unveiling Shincha's Superfood Power
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Caffeine
Natural caffeine for a gentle, sustained lift.
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Antioxidants
Rich in catechins and other naturally occurring antioxidants.
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Chlorophyll
Naturally rich in chlorophyll, the pigment behind matchaâs vibrant green colour.
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Potassium & Calcium
Naturally occurring minerals that contribute to matchaâs nutritional profile.
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L-theanine
An amino acid naturally found in tea, associated with a calm, focused feeling.
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Vitamins A, C, E & K
Contains a range of vitamins naturally present in the whole tea leaf.
Why Buy Your Shincha from Nio Teas
No middlemen, no pesticides, no risk.
30-Day Satisfaction Guarantee
Try it with confidence. If it isnât right for you, contact us within 30 days.
15 Japanese Tea Farmers
Our tea brings together the craft and regional expertise of 15 partner farmers across Japan.
Direct from Farmer to Cup
We build lasting relationships with our farmers for fewer intermediaries and greater traceability.
100% Pesticide-Free Shincha
Every Shincha is grown without pesticides, then personally tasted and selected by our team.
How to Make Shincha Like a Pro
To prepare this Kuritawase sencha, you can use a lower temperature water and a shorter brewing time. 1 minute should be more than enough time to extract a delicious flavor from the green tea.
Heat the Water
Heat water to 60°C (140°F).
Add the Leaves
Add 5 g of leaves to a kyusu teapot.
Steep
Pour 150 ml of water and steep for 1 minute.
Pour & Brew Again
Pour out every drop, then brew the same leaves 2 more times (20 seconds each).
Loose Leaf Tea Over Teabags
Rich in Flavor, Not in Microplastics.
Farmer: Fujiwaraăă
Why Organic Shincha Fields Make a Difference
Tea plants absorb everything from the soil, making pesticide-free farming especially important. The farmers we work with have found a way to grow delicious tea without harming the natural ecosystem.
Nio teas has been my favourite place to purchase good quality teas for a while now, and still they never disappoint me. Their teas are excellent quality, however, Iâd like to give more attention to customer service - Nio team has been very kind and helpful each time I had any sort of problem. Their customer service never disappoints, they are very attentive and quick in responding to any queries, hence why Iâve been a loyal customer for a while now.
Apr 1, 2026
5 out of 5 stars
5/5
Sean
My favorite vendor for Japanese organic loose leaf green teas. They are sourcing some of the best organic teas out of Japan and supporting family farmers and the growing organic tea industry as a whole.I have ordered from every vendor for years and Nio consistently has the best prices and selection overall. They provide top notch customer service and fast shipping as well. Highly recommended đ
Shipping is free once your order passes the threshold for your country â USD 54.99 · EUR 54.99 · GBP 44.99 · CHF 49.99 · CAD 74.99 · DKK 399 · SEK 599 · PLN 229 · CZK 1,290. Everywhere else it's the equivalent of USD 54.99, converted automatically. Below the threshold a flat rate applies, always shown at checkout before you pay.
When will it arrive?
Delivery in 4â12 Business Days Due to High Demand
We ship from warehouses in the US, the EU and Japan â whichever is closest to you. US and EU orders arrive in 4â12 business days; the handful of countries served from Japan take around 10. Business days count from dispatch rather than from when you order, and exclude weekends and public holidays. You'll get a tracking number by email the moment your parcel leaves the warehouse.
We only buy from fields grown without pesticides or chemicals. We ask each farmer directly how they manage their land, visit the plantation and processing facility ourselves, taste every harvest before committing, and check that the biodiversity around the fields is alive. Small family farms don't always carry paperwork â so we verify it in person instead.
Japanese green tea covers an enormous range, and choosing online isn't easy. If you've tried yours and it isn't for you, email info@nioteas.com within 30 days with your order number and a line on what you didn't enjoy. We'll send a different tea of equal or lower value, free. Nothing to post back â keep it, share it, or try brewing it cooler. Once per order.
Email info@nioteas.com within 30 days with your order number and a photo. We'll approve it, cover the return postage with a prepaid label or a reimbursement, and refund you â no restocking fee. Refunds go to your original payment method within 2 business days of the return reaching us; your bank may take another 5â20 to show it.
Unopened items in their original packaging can be returned within 30 days. Tea is sealed for hygiene, so opened packs can't come back â but the swap above covers exactly that situation. Return postage is yours unless the item arrived damaged, defective or incorrect.
Orders to the US and EU ship domestically from our local warehouse, so there's no customs charge and no duty. A small number of destinations are served from our Japan warehouse, where your own customs authority may apply import duty, VAT or a carrier handling fee on delivery. Those are set by your country, not by us. Ask before you order and we'll help you check.
Dusty dry leaf, smells sweet like roasted green melon or cantaloupe, light green residue everywhere, smells so yummyyyy
Taste, bit of a zing to it, mellow but spoken, no dryness, odd, like a wet puddle, rain forest moist air mist in my mouth. Little baby astringency, yellowish greenish color saturated moderately, soupy. Slurpy goodness, a brain teaser for sure. Theres that zing again, not bright af but not dull, cant find words.... moves like a liquor, tastes like a dewy aged matt of grass with some slightly humid moss atop it? Asparagus tenders
Long lasting moist, stickiness in the mouth, sweetness, amylase party, coating my teeth and roof of my mouth in biocompounds... this is so.. good? Im so confused, its COOL!
On Ice Koridashi style:
Fresh cut romaine lettuce, an herbal bite to it, green apple, mature Cucumber, freeze dried strawberry.
Wet painted turtles without a thought between their eyes.
A very fresh Shincha Yakushima Kuritawase, a Japanese tea that enchants with its fresh and complex bouquet. At the first sip, a lively aroma envelops you, where the unmistakable marine notes of nori seaweed and a hint of savouriness gently emerge, giving the palate a unique sensation. The perfect balance of sweetness and umami gives an extraordinary freshness, leaving a long persistence in the mouth, with an aftertaste reminiscent of unripe grape skins, a childhood memory. Perfect for a morning pampering that awakens the senses and gives energy.
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Some tasting notes i could detect during different phases of trying this tea:
Dry leaf - cured parma ham (prosciutto), smoked salmon and cream pastries, wakame, white soy sakura arare, sakura leaf senbei (reminds me of those two savoury snacks from a sakuraco box I bought) keloggs cereal and a yeasty note of freshly kneaded dough for baozi buns.
Wet leaf - baked salmon (but not in the fishy sense) with fresh lovage leaves and lemon juice, hint of white pepper, hot clay, hint of dried rosewood and steamed spinach.
Texture - thick, resinous, lingers quite long.
Taste - not as umami as a gyokuro, a little more delicate and approachable (if you love an umami bomb, you might have to brew this for a little longer than recommended but if you feel overwhelmed by a lot of Japanese teas and want to get into them, this is the perfect one to go for imo) has notes of creamy spinach, lovage, avocado, homemade humus and bitter cucumber with a hint of starfruit.
Overall this tea surprised me more than I anticipated. As much as I love a strong umami green, sometimes it can be a little overwhelming if I haven't had such a tea in a long time and I think this Sincha also shows that there is so much more on the market than that, this one is a little more delicate and lighter, more akin to some Chinese greens I've had except it still has that savoury richness that many Japanese green teas are known and loved for.
Steeped according to pkg reccomendation and enjoyed a beautiful light green hue tea liquor with fresh spring Sakura, sweet, salty, umami broth. Iâve steeped this chilled over ice and warm and loved it both ways.
I loved this tea! I was afraid that my relative inexperience with high quality Japanese green tea would mean the result would be lacking, but the tea was so sweet and smooth with a stunningly long sweet finish.
Der Bio-Shincha schmeckt so reich und intensive, wie die Shincha Sorten, die ich damals in Japan gekauft habe. Er ist der Hammer! So ein reicher intensiver Geschmack! Wunderbar! Genau was ich gesucht hatte. Andere Bio-Shincha aus anderen Online-Quellen schafften das nicht. Werde ich wieder kaufen!
This is very nice green tea, and is definitely less astringent than some others, as per your descriptions. I am far from being an expert on green tea because I make a pot of green tea and a pot of hibiscus flower tea and combine them, so I am not the best judge of the individual teas themselves.
This sencha tea from Nio is a great choice for anyone who enjoys a milder tea with a clean, refreshing taste. It's perfect for an afternoon pick-me-up or a relaxing evening beverage.
I've been a fan of sencha tea for years, and this one from did not disappoint. The flavor is well-balanced and not too strong, making it a nice choice for a daily cup of tea.
The sencha tea from Nio has a nice aroma and a subtle taste that's not too overpowering. It's a good choice for those who prefer a more delicate tea like me!
I appreciate the freshness of the sencha tea. It has a clean finish and is easy to drink without any overpowering notes and there is a subtle sweetness to it
