Sencha
Yamama Masudaen Co.
Rating: 14/20

With so many green tea options out there—from gentle to strong; hot, flavored, or iced—it's sometimes hard to tell what sets a particular brand or type apart. With Yamama Masudaen Co.’s Japanese Sencha, which costs $20 for 100 grams of tea (about 16 pots), the answer is obvious: beauty. Everything about this tea is a treat for the senses. First, the eyes: opening the pretty, decorated pouch reveals vibrantly green leaves which look almost impossibly fresh for something that’s traveled all the way from Japan’s Makinohara Plateau. Next, the nose: a rich, grassy scent wafts up from the leaves as you pour a small amount into the strainer. Then, the eyes again: the tea steeps to a lovely spring green after only 30 seconds. And finally, the mouth: with a delicate flavor accented by just the right amount of sencha-kick, this tea will leave you feeling healthy and restored. As Yamama Masudaen Co.'s Sencha shows, green isn't just the color of ordinary things.

For more information, visit www.masudaen.com

Want more tea info? Check out our tea features