(ばんちゃ)

ばんちゃ
noun
bancha, coarse green tea
food
1. bancha, coarse green tea
A common, everyday grade of Japanese green tea made from larger, mature leaves harvested later in the season. Less refined than 煎茶(せんちゃ) but widely drunk as an everyday beverage. It has a mild, slightly astringent flavor.
食後(しょくご)番茶(ばんちゃ)()
To drink bancha after a meal.
Bancha is affordable enough to drink every day.
My grandmother always brewed a large pot of bancha in a kettle for the whole family to drink.

Usage

A staple everyday tea in Japan, less expensive and less delicate than 煎茶(せんちゃ) (sencha). Made from larger, coarser leaves picked in the later harvest. Often served at restaurants as a complimentary tea.

The proverb (おに)十八(じゅうはち)番茶(ばんちゃ)出花(でばな) (even a demon at eighteen, even bancha at first brew) means that anything can look its best at the right moment — used humorously about young women.

Common collocations

  • 番茶(ばんちゃ)()れる: to brew bancha
  • 番茶(ばんちゃ)()かす: to boil bancha
  • 京番茶(きょうばんちゃ): Kyoto-style roasted bancha
  • 番茶(ばんちゃ)出花(でばな): bancha at its first brew (proverb)