Arigato Japan Food Tours, as the name implies, is a food tour company in Japan. Because of the pandemic, they started offering virtual food tours as well. I was...
Matcha Moto Ceremonial Matcha
After recording the podcast, I received a sample from Matcha Moto. It’s an organic, ceremonial matcha from the Uji region. This looks like a good way to start my...
Podcast 048: Matcha Moto
In this episode I interview Nicholas Leo, the founder of Matcha Moto. This store offers ceremonial grade matcha at an affordable price. I’m interested in trying it. I’ll post...
Matcha Mojito Recipe
I used to enjoy preparing cocktails for friends when I was younger. Now I only do so occasionally. One that I like very much is the mojito. It is...
Sugimoto Tea Sencha Tsuyuhikari
Today I continue my exploration of single cultivar sencha with this Tsuyuhikari tea. It is an organic sencha from Kawane, Shizuoka prefecture. Although this tea isn’t so rare in...
Podcast 047: Professional Japanese Tea Tasting
In this episode I interview Oscar Brekell. He explains how professional tea tasting is done in Japan and why its goal is not the same as that of a...
Drinking Tea from a Wine Glass
I’m not sure if it’s the same all around the world, but in Japan it happens occasionally. I rarely drink it this way, however. This is done with cold...
California Tea House Stone Ground Ceremonial Matcha
I received this sample from California Tea House. It’s the first time that I taste one of their teas. The website doesn’t offer much information about this matcha, such...
The Concept of Balance in the Taste of Japanese Tea
How can you tell if a tea has a balanced taste? It’s not easy to understand if you’re a beginner in Japanese tea, because you might not know what...
About the Steaming Time of Sencha
The steaming process is crucial because it stops the oxidation of the tea leaves. That’s how most Japanese green teas are made. Different lengths of steaming time make notable...
Naoki Matcha Ujitawara Special Blend
This tea is the latest addition to the masters collection of Naoki Matcha. It consists of a blend of cultivars from Uji: Samidori and Ujihikari. A matcha from this...
Bitterness in Green Tea
A common misconception about green tea is that it always has a bitter taste. While green tea contains bitter compounds, it shouldn’t taste very bitter once it’s served. A...