What is Senchado?
We all know of Chado (茶道), or Chanoyu (茶の湯), also called Chaji (茶事) or Chakai (茶会, which refers to the traditional Japanese tea ceremony. But how many of us know that Senchado (煎茶道 – The Way of Sencha) was as much of a thing as Chado at a time? Although now sencha is drunk in much more casual settings, most commonly in the comforts of one’s home or perhaps at a sushi restaurant, it started off as a ceremonial tea quite similar to modern Gong Fu Cha.
During the Kamakura period (1185 -1333), Japanese powdered green tea (Matcha) became popularized in many different ways. It was the only tea drunk until the 17th century, when Sencha slowly began to gain popularity.
Baisao and the History of Senchado
Senchado is reserved for drinking Sencha and the higher-grade Gyokuro. Loose-leaf tea was introduced to Japan in the 17th century by a monk, calligrapher, and poet named Ingen Ryuki, who was also the founder of the Obaku school of Zen Buddhism. The Obaku school was known for a more Chinese-oriented approach to its teachings than other schools of Zen Buddhism. Ingen introduced loose-leaf tea, roasted or pan-fired, similar to Chinese teas or today's Kamairicha, which was brewed communally.
Senchado came to life and was popularized in the 18th century by a poet and monk named Baisao (売茶翁) of the same school of Zen Buddhism. Baisao was known for leaving the temple and selling tea around Kyoto. His name translates as “old tea seller” and he is regarded as the first Senchado master.
Baisao would walk around Kyoto carrying a woven basket made of bamboo thrown on a stick over his shoulder, along with a bamboo tube, which he used for donations for serving tea. Baisao resented the elite, rigid structure of matcha ceremonies. He chose to focus on complete simplicity. He prepared loose-leaf sencha by quickly simmering it in a pot of boiling water.
Baisao preparing sencha
Although Chanoyu was once adapted from Chinese methods of preparing powdered tea, since then, everyone in China has switched to loose-leaf tea prepared in a carefree style. Baisao, alongside many of his friends, promoted this simplistic way of drinking tea while despising the set of rules matcha drinkers had to follow.
Originally “sencha” was only used to refer to the style of preparing the tea — briefly simmering the loose leaf in boiling water. However, in 1738 one of Baisao’s friends, Nagatani Soen (永谷宗円) invented the Uji Seihu (宇治製法) – method of steaming and rolling tea, creating the modern vibrant green Sencha (煎茶).
Shortly before his death, Baisao stopped selling tea and burned all his tea utensils. He did this as a protest against the pedestaled Chanoyu and fearing that Senchado might soon become the same, since in Chanoyu, the bowls and tools of praised tea masters were highly regarded and sold for somewhat unreasonable prices.
While Baisao is considered the spiritual father of Sencha, he explicitly rejected rules and formal titles, wishing only for a free and simple enjoyment of tea. It was his followers who later codified the practice into Sencha Do – the very kind of formal "Way" Baisao had tried to avoid.
Senchado Today
After Baisao's death, sencha’s popularity grew steadily. Copies of his teaware were recreated, and a book instructing the proper way of Senchado was written. Gradually, sencha came to replace matcha in Japan, and today, sencha remains the most popular tea, though it is drunk casually rather than in a “sencha ceremony”. Although today not many Japanese tea drinkers know of Baisao's name the way they know of Sen No Rikyu (the father of Chanoyu), nonetheless, he was able to promote a casual way of drinking tea in Japan.
Today, more formal sencha ceremonies are still held across Japan. The setting of the tea house is similar to that of Chanoyu teahouses. There are different schools of Senchado, just as in Chado, and tea utensils vary by school (some use Japanese pots, others Chinese ones). During Senchado, two steeps of sencha are served together with some light sweets. Talking is allowed, unlike Chado, and in general, a more relaxed atmosphere is promoted.