The Magic green tea powder – Matcha, has taken over the world in the recent years. It is likely you have already tried Matcha latte, Matcha ice-cream, or any other tea-colored desert. There is a lot of fascination and excitement about this tea. But there is also a lot of confusion. What is Matcha? How […]
In the middle of November, the annual National Japanese Tea Hand-Rolling Competition took place in Yame, Fukuoka. It was 22nd time the competition was held and 31 team from different tea regions competed in it. Before the national competition each tea producing region usually hold a regional competition to select 1-3 teams to represent the region […]
In Japan green tea is the most popular, but some areas also make some unique regional teas. One such tea is Awabancha (阿波番茶) – a fermented tea from Tokushima prefecture. Little is known about its origins, but currently there are about 300 tea farmers who produce it (for commercial production there are just a few, though). […]
Puerh – a fermented Chinese tea, has grown really popular in recent years. It may be a surprise that Japan has some fermented teas too. One such tea is Goishicha – a fermented tea from Otoyo town, Kochi prefecture. Story says that Goishicha (碁石茶) may have been brought to Kochi from Yunan in China around […]
Nowadays in Japan tea is harvested and processed by machines. Just a few decades ago it was all still done by hand. The difference in productivity is stark. For example, one tea picker in Japan on average can pick around 20kg of fresh tea leaves per day. A man-held harvesting machine operated by two people can […]
You may have had a cup of tea already. Or you may later in the day. But have you thought what it takes for the tea to travel from the tree to your cup? In Japan nowadays tea is made with the help of machines, both on the farm and in the factory. But if […]