This documentary aired on February of 2023 in NHK World. Wagashi are traditional Japanese sweets. They are often enjoyed with green tea. Matsue city (松江市), is one of the...
Nio Teas Kasugaen Golden Sencha Yabukita
Today is Father’s Day. As a way to celebrate, I’ll review this organic sencha from Kagoshima prefecture. It’s sold by Nio Teas. The Yabukita cultivar is the most common...
Naoki Single Origin Mame Matcha
This is a limited edition tea from Naoki Matcha. It’s made from a single tea field in Shizuoka prefecture. While it doesn’t specify the cultivar, this matcha has a...
Tezumi Koushun Bihakkocha
This tea sold by Tezumi is a lightly oxidized oolong made with the Koushun cultivar. It comes from the Honyama region of Shizuoka prefecture. Since this cultivar’s strong point...
Ooika Tsuji’s Asahi Shirakawa Uji Matcha
Ooika specializes in single cultivar matcha. They import the tea leaves from Japan and grind them in the US. This matcha from the Asahi cultivar is made in the...
Maiko Tea Yashiki no Cha Gyokuro
I had the pleasure to try the best gyokuro from Maiko Tea: Yashiki no cha. Mr. Yamashita watches these tea plants daily. Only a few kilograms are made each...
A Bowl for a Coin: A Commodity History of Japanese Tea (Book Review)
This book written by William Wayne Farris is about 4 years old. It’s quite recent. While most books about tea include the history of Japanese tea in one way...
Nio Teas Gyokuro Kukicha
This is my first tea review of 2023. I chose a kukicha made from gyokuro stems because it’s not a tea that I drink often. This is an organic...
River & Stone Tea Asahi Matcha
River & Stone Tea mills their own matcha in the US. They import the tencha from Uji. I’ve tried freshly milled matcha at the World Tea Expo, but this...
Tezumi Takamura Kamairicha
It’s been years since I’ve tasted a kamairicha. This type of Japanese tea is uncommon. Thanks to Tezumi I’ll review this one from Kumamoto prefecture, one of the two...
Maiko Tea Takumi Gyokuro
Takumi means artisan in Japanese. This isn’t the highest grade gyokuro from Maiko Tea, but it’s up there with the best. There’s little information on the website regarding this...
Flowers + Tea (Book Review)
I’ve been under much stress this week. There are various reasons: problems with the economy that affect me directly, I’m moving to a new office, and a project’s progress...