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Bancha Tea is made from the older leaves of the tea plant, which are not only lower in caffeine, but also richer in minerals. While green teas made from younger leaves take on these fresh, citrusy flavor profiles, bancha has more of these cereal and wood tasting notes. The older leaves also produce less caffeine, making bancha a low caffeine green tea.

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  • Bancha

    Bancha

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What is bancha tea?

Bancha tea is the second most popular type of green tea in Japan after sencha. It’s made from the more mature leaves of the tea plant. These leaves are thicker, higher in minerals and lower in caffeine. If you are interested in learning more about bancha tea, you can read all about it in this article

bancha tea in a cup

Bancha green tea flavor profile

The taste of bancha green tea is a bit more mild and earthy compared to its younger counterparts. You may notice tasting notes of wood, cereal and even citrus. The woody notes come from the older, thicker stems used in the bancha tea, which even have a tiny bit of bark on them.

Bancha tea production

Bancha green tea is produced just like any other type of Japanese tea. The older leaves are harvested and steamed shortly after. The reason these leaves need to be steamed is that as soon as they are picked, the oxidation process will begin. Oxidation is what turns tea into black tea, so when a farmer is producing green tea, they need to apply heat to stop the oxidation process. After the leaves have been steamed, the leaves are then steamed and rolled. The shapes of bancha tea leaves will be flatter and less tightly rolled compared to sencha. They will also take on a much light, “camo green” color. 

Bancha tea brewing instruction

When it comes to brewing bancha tea, you can follow these simple steps here. The one thing that is important to note is that bancha can stand up to hotter water temperatures. While younger tea leaves are more sensitive to temperature, the older leaves handle it much better.

  • Step 1

    Add 5 grams of bancha to your Japanese teapot

  • Step 2

    Add in 150ml of water at 175 degrees fahrenheit

  • Step 3

    Allow the leaves to sit undisturbed for 1 minute

  • Step 4

    Pour out the kyusu teapot into a cup and allow the built in filter to sift out the leaves

  • Step 5

    Reinfuse the leaves 4-5 more times or until they lose flavor
japanese bancha tea

Bancha tea benefits

One of the major benefits of bancha green tea is that it is lower in caffeine. Bancha caffeine is so low because the older leaves of the tea plant don’t produce as much caffeine as the younger leaves. The tea plant uses caffeine as a defense mechanism to protect itself from insects. The younger, and more tender leaves are more vulnerable, so they require more protection. The older leaves are tougher and therefore less likely to be eaten. As a result the bancha caffeine content is quite low, with between 20-40mg of caffeine per cup. Bancha also is high in minerals, and is commonly consumed after meals to help with digestion. This high mineral content, along with the mild taste profile, makes bancha tea good for snacking, pairing well with popcorn and mixed nuts.

Frequently Asked questions

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Delivery

We offer free worldwide shipping options to all of our customers wherever they may be in the world. On the larger orders, we can even provide free express shipping, which can arrive in just a few days. If you need your bancha leaf tea urgently, please be sure to select the faster shipping option at checkout, which will be provided either for free or for a reduced fee.

Teas and Teaware

If you have any questions about our bancha leaf tea, you can ask our experienced customer service team. The best way to reach us is by email, but if you would prefer you can reach out to us on social media as we also respond to direct messages and comments on Youtube, Tiktok, Instagram and Facebook.

Order issues

While issues with orders are quite rare, mistakes do happen and you may experience a longer than expected wait time due to customs, holiday traffic or weather. We automatically provide tracking information shortly after your order so you can find out where your bancha green tea is at all times.

Payments

We are currently accepting payments from major credit cards, paypal and even bank transfer. If you have a question or concern as you are trying to pay for your bancha green tea, please feel free to reach out to us and we can help resolve it!

Returns & Refunds

While it is rare for someone to tell us they don’t like the bancha green tea, occasionally it may happen. We want everyone to end up with a tea they like, so we would prefer to send you a replacement tea rather than have you stuck with a bancha green tea you don’t like.

There is no need to return the bancha leaf to us, just keep it and share it with someone who would appreciate it! Feel free to contact us via email and we can help to solve whatever issue you might have with the tea you ordered! 

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