Surugawase (するがわせ), is an unregistered cultivar named after Suruga province (駿河の国, suruga no kuni), which is today the central part of Shizuoka prefecture.
The “wase” part of the name means that is is an early budding cultivar.
History of Surugawase
In 1935, seeds from Yabukita plants were taken and planted in order to select the best one.
In 1949, the selected seedling was named Shizu-7109 (静7109).
Note that the 7000 series of tea plants all come from Yabukita as the mother plant.
This cultivar was tested in 1957 and named Surugawase in 1961, but it was never registered.
Characteristics of Surugawase
The yield at harvest is slightly higher than Yabukita.
As a sencha, it’s considered to be of medium quality.
The leaf color is a pale green with a yellow hue.
These leaves can be rolled into a good shape.
It has a sweet smell.
However, the taste has bitterness, a high astringency, and no umami taste.
From what I’ve seen online, it’s more suitable as an oolong than as a green tea.
