Ukishima (浮島) is a Japanese traditional sweet (wagashi). It’s basically a two-layered steamed cake that has sweet bean paste (red or white) mixed into the batter. It shouldn’t be...
Chanpan
A Japanese friend told me about this innovative product. It’s a carbonated tea liquor called chanpan. Instead of being made with grapes like champagne, this drink has “cha” meaning...
Tezumi Asanagi Sencha
I’ve been worrying because tomorrow is an important day at work. It’s about possibly acquiring a big client and taking the business to the next level. But enough about...
The Yumekaori Tea Cultivar
Yumekaori (ゆめかおり) is the first Japanese cultivar that was specifically bred for the resistance to the white peach scale, a common pest for tea in Japan. When withered, this...
Chatsubo Kuchikiri no Gi
During the Tokugawa shogunate in the Edo period, a special tea procession was created. Tea leaves harvested in the spring were brought to the shogun every year. Nowadays, a...
Sugimoto Tea Organic Sencha Harumidori
Spring has begun. What a better way to celebrate it than by tasting a sencha from the Harumidori (spring green) cultivar. I received this interesting sample from Sugimoto Tea....
My Morning Tea Routine
Since last year, most of my tea drinking has happened at the office. This is where I spend most of my time. In this post, I’ll describe my morning...
Sakura Mochi
Sakura mochi (桜餅) is a wagashi (Japanese traditional sweet) that’s usually wrapped in a cherry blossom leaf. Basically, it’s a pink colored rice-based dessert with a sweet bean filling....
The Miyamakaori Tea Cultivar
Miyamakaori (みやまかおり) is a late budding cultivar used for sencha production. Its name means “deep mountain aroma”, 深山香. History of Miyamakaori In 1983 at the tea industry branch of...
Kagoshima Tea Organic Tencha
I haven’t tried a tencha in a long time. It’s an uncommon tea, because most of the tencha is ground to obtain matcha. This one is organic, and sold...
Obsidian Bowl
This is a product from a Kickstarter campaign by Sanko Matcha Products. It’s a matcha bowl that has been specifically designed to improve whisking. They call it “one-dimensional matcha...
Swapping Tea with Friends
Did you buy a tea that you just don’t enjoy as much? Or perhaps you bought too much of a single tea and now you worry that you’ll get...