Where Can I Get Good/Cheap Gyokuro, Sencha, & Genmaicha?

[ButchCivic]

Hi everybody, I'm just getting into loose green teas and want to know a good place to order good Gyokuro, Sencha, and Genmaicha. I don't have to have the very best, I want the "best brew for my buck". I was looking at Samovar first, but then found Den's Tea. What do people here think of these two sources? Is there a better choice? I plan on purchasing 4+ ounces of each. I wonder if they carry loose green teas at the Price Club. LOL.



Thanks A Lot.

[JRS22]

Den's Tea specializes in Japanese tea. Since they sell 2 ounce packages if you want 4 ounces of each tea you can try different varieties - 2 gyokuros, 2 senchas, 2 genmaichas.

I've never tried Samovar teas but their prices look high.

[iannon]

O-cha is another good vendor for Japanese greens with a lot of varieties at different price points. if you want Organic I like Yuuki-Cha as well.

[Chip]

Great Japanese tea is cheaper per cup very often than a cheap tea due to the potential for many very enjoyable steeps. A cheap tea may give you one good steep or even none.

Skimping on quality is not something I would personally advise. I had to do this a number of years ago for 2 reasons, lack of good sources and lack of good Japanese tea in the USA. Now there is simply no need to buy so called cheap tea as there are great sources and great Japanese teas available for around 20 USD per 100 grams (just under 4 ounces).

When I do the math taking into account the multiple steeps I normally get with a good sencha, it works out to less than a quarter dollar per 7 ounce steep.

I compare this to cheap 10 USD "sencha" and this works out to more than a good sencha. So why bother, get a good one.

I rank my top 5 specialty Japanese vendors (out of a bookmarked list of well over 20 specialty vendors) currently:
O-Cha
Zencha
Den
Yuuki-Cha (moving up the list)
Hmmm, the 5th spot is tough, nobody is really clearly claiming the spot. I will say Maiko

[Oni]

The best bang for the buck is given by Horaido teashop, their teas are stellar, and the prices are low because they have a small shop in kyoto and they are not a real online shop, you can order from them ofcourse, but generally they prefer ems shipping, but still they sell asamushi for 15 $, and handpicked gyokuro from gokoh breed for 30 $, it doesn`t get cheaper and better than this.

[Chip]

The best bang for the buck is given by Horaido teashop, their teas are stellar, and the prices are low because they have a small shop in kyoto and they are not a real online shop, you can order from them ofcourse, but generally they prefer ems shipping, but still they sell asamushi for 15 $, and handpicked gyokuro from gokoh breed for 30 $, it doesn`t get cheaper and better than this.

In your opinion of course. I have not tried them personally yet, hope to soon. Each year I make an effort to try a few vendors I have not tried .

[Ebtoulson]

I've wanted to try a good quality sencha and gyokuro for a while now but have never gotten around to it. While I was browsing denteas I noticed they have a "green tea sampler for novices" for only 3 dollars (even the 3 dollars will get refunded once you spend 15 dollars) so I figure its worth a try to see if you like them.

Sampler

note: you can only order it once

[hooksie]

I can attest to the quality of Den's. While I have very little to compare them to, I was not left disappointed. Mmm Sakura sencha.

[Pentox]

Hm, this is a really tough question imo.

Den's imo doesn't fair to well with their genmai and their gyo. O-cha is a bit higher on the price point. Zencha is also up there on the price scale. Yuuki I don't have much experience with. Haven't yet tried Maiko or Horaido. Ippodo is a fairly good shot, but it only really works out well if you're buying a lot in one go. (I hate the shipping). My normal fav, Lupicia doesn't fair well in the genmai dept, and their gyo while pretty good is pricey. Sugi is pricey and doesn't carry a gyo, but has the most stellar genmai ever.

If you want a vendor who carries all 3 and has a decent price:qual ratio, I guess I would have to say Den's. Tough call though. Good shipping options, offers all 3, decent pricing.

[iannon]

Maybe a lower rung than the ones mentioned above but I have been quite happy with what ive gotten from shizuoka tea as well. free shipping if you go over 35 bucks, which is pretty easy to do, and i even liked their hand picked gyo hoshino as well at the price they offer it at anyway.

i also have been very pleasantly surprised at their responsiveness to my email questions to them. I tend to be up later in the evening and ive had replies from them sometimes within minutes of sending off a question. Not saying thats the norm but ive been happy

[Oni]

When I try a new vendor I usually buy both sencha and gyokuro from them, one middle grade, one higher grade from each, so I can evaluate their performance, one teashop I haven`t tried and I wish to is marukyu-koyamaen, I emailed them about the possibility for me to order, they confirmed, but the prices are super high, they need an effort.

[TEAcipes]

Maeda-en has a good selection for beginner's too, with different lines for different price points!
However, like Chip said, price correlates closely with quality in Japanese greens. If you want to be blown away, you have to be willing to pay the price. That said, when I am looking for a budget everyday tea that I can guzzle at home, I purchase bancha from the local Japanese market. When I want good quality tea for house guests to drink, I usually get the Gyokuro Kuki at Maeda-en, or Rishi's Sencha Sakura. Or Shin-cha, given the season.