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...
Podcast 046: Tea and Water
In this episode I interview Michael Hemling, a tea and water sommelier. I didn’t know that there was so much variety in the world of fine water. But the...
Sugimoto Tea Sencha Fujimidori
I received a sample of an organic sencha from the Fujimidori cultivar, courtesy of Sugimoto Tea. This tea is made in Kawane, Shizuoka prefecture. It’s an uncommon cultivar for...
MyTeaPal App
This new tea app is just what I was waiting for. It works as a tea journal, keeps tracks of teas, and it has an integrated timer. Plus, it’s...
The Fujimidori Tea Cultivar
Fujimidori (ふじみどり), meaning “Fuji green”, is an unregistered and one of the lesser grown Japanese tea cultivars. I didn’t find much information about it online. My main reason for...
Miyazaki Sabo Saemidori Oolong
Miyazaki Sabo has been growing tea without fertilizers or pesticides for over 30 years. I haven’t tasted their teas. They seem to be experts at making kamairicha. By the...
The Way of Tea: Reflections on a Life with Tea (Book Review)
This book was written by Aaron Fisher in 2010. He is one of the founders of Global Tea Hut. While most tea books focus on the history, types of...
Tea Towels
The English word “tea towel” is now pretty much a synonym for kitchen towel or dish towel. It is made of linen or cotton. Tea towels were invented in...
Ikkyu Ren
Ikkyu Tea has different types of sencha on their site. This is one of them. As with their other sencha, Ren is a Japanese first name. Tea farmer Shimono...