Ambrose wrote:Ok so I love japanese greens, Ive ordered from dens and hibiki-an only so far. Im wondering where can I get some good sencha for the $
My last order from hibiki-an I went with superior matcha and sencha. A big down grade from the super premium stuff in my opinion. Still much better than anything from dens.
Do you pretty much get what you pay for ?
Ive been recently curious about yuuki-cha, or ippodo, even o-cha. Im looking for some really great sencha and matcha.
Thoughts?
There are many vendors who supply high quality sencha and matcha if you're willing to import from Japan. There is no customs duty on Japanese tea or teaware unless the amount is above a certain threshold.
I think Hibiki-an and Maiko are overpriced. Ippodo only offers EMS shipping, which is expensive. O-Cha and Yuuki-cha both have great tea and offer regular airmail and they ship fast, so the wait isn't too long; typically one week from O-Cha and 5 days from Yuuki-cha using standard airmail.
Do you get what you pay for? Usually, but not always. I think all the Yuuki-cha teas I've tried are good to exceptional values. Overall, O-Cha's are among the best you can buy anywhere and are offered at competetive prices, so they're also a good choice.
O-Cha also has, overall, the best selection of matcha I've found anywhere with the lower priced Kiri no Mori possibly being the best value in a low priced matcha and the expensive Uji Matcha Manten being the best matcha I've ever had from any vendor, at any price. As for sencha, I don't think you can go wrong with Yutaka Midori or Miyabi for deep-steamed versions.
Yuuki-cha's Yutaka Midori is also excellent, as is their Sae Midori. Their teas always appear fresh, even at the end of the year. In my opinion, they beat everyone else in this regard. They recently offered a new, reasonably priced matcha called Shizouka Matcha Sakuraka, which comes in a 50 gram resealable bag for $22. It is named such because it's aroma is supposed to be like that of cherry trees. It is unique and I highly recommend it.
