The Ryoufuu Tea Cultivar

Ryoufuu (りょうふう, 涼風) means “cool breeze”.

This cultivar was developed in Shizuoka prefecture for sencha production.

The name comes from the fact that it has a refreshing aroma and taste.

It makes one imagine this tea plant with its buds waving in the cool spring breeze.

History of Ryoufuu

In 1943, a cultivar named Houryoku (ほうりょく) was selected at the Shizuoka tea industry research station.

Houryoku is a descendant of the tea seeds that Tada Motokichi brought from Assam.

While it was never registered, if one searches hard enough online it is still possible to buy a tea made from this cultivar in Japan.

In 1972, Houryoku was crossed with Yabukita. Much later on in 1997, Ryoufuu was registered as Japanese tea cultivar #45.

Characteristics of Ryoufuu

This cultivar buds up to 4 days later than Yabukita. It’s yield at harvest is slightly higher too.

Ryoufuu is strong against cold weather and has vigorous growth. Its cuttings take root easily.

The leaf has a long oval shape, smaller than Yabukita, less serrated, and with less luster. It’s also a bit harder.

Regarding diseases, it has a strong resistance to the gray blight, medium resistance to anthracnose, and it is slightly weak against the blister blight.

It’s also weak against the white peach scale.

As a sencha it has a refreshing aroma and taste. Although the umami flavor is lighter than Yabukita.

It has a good valuation overall.

But I haven’t tried it yet, it’s on my wish list.