Hanna Wood from Inori contacted me some time ago, her store has gyokuro and kabusecha from Uji. She and her husband Michael source the teas from Mr. Hattori, a...
The Gokou Tea Cultivar
What do Gokou, Asahi, Ujihikari, and Samidori cultivars have in common? First of all, they come from Kyoto prefecture. Second, they are used for gyokuro and tencha. Finally, they...
Kyoto Saryo
Kyoto Saryo (京都茶寮) is both a Japanese tea house and a gallery, located in the second floor of the Kyoto Station building. As soon as I saw it I...
Rishouen Tea Kaori Genmaicha
I enjoy genmaicha at least once every few days, it’s one of my favorite teas. It’s definitely the favorite tea of my wife. She likes to drink it after...
Rishouen Tea
After my trip sponsored by JETRO, I still had time for more tea tourism. I visited Rishouen Tea in Uji city. They were the first to invite me by...
Kanshundo
While I was in Kyoto, I visited the Kanshundo (甘春堂) wagashi store. It was founded all the way back in 1865, so they know quite a lot about making...
Marukyu Koyamaen Unkaku
This matcha is the first tea that I bought during my recent trip. I started drinking matcha every morning a few months ago, and I may have become addicted....
Tea: A User’s Guide (Book Review)
This book from Tony Gebely of World of Tea was one of the most anticipated books about tea this year. I bought it as soon as I found out...
Nagatani Soen: The Inventor of Sencha
Although sencha is one of the most famous Japanese teas, it wasn’t invented until the 18th century. It’s hard to imagine now, but loose leaf tea in Japan was...
Uji Press Tea Tour 2016 Part 3
This was the final day of the tea tour. Time flies when you’re having fun. I felt a bit sad because the time spent together with the other press...
Uji Press Tea Tour 2016 Part 2
On this day we had the opportunity to see tea fields and tea processing plants in the Uji region. The sky was cloudy and we did have some rain,...
Uji Press Tea Tour 2016
JETRO (Japan External Trade Organization) invited me to a press tour in Uji, Kyoto prefecture. I’m very thankful, I couldn’t have dreamed of a better tea tour. The other...