Kai’s Kitchen Not Just for Brewing The world of tea is a deep and ancient one. Japanese tea stretches back to the 9th century when a Buddihist monk brought the tea plant (Camellia Sinensis) back from China and planted it in Kyoto, Uji. From that point, Japan has had tea ingrained into […]
Have you tried a Matcha ice cream, Matcha cookies or even a Matcha smoothie, yet? I bet you did! Matcha is going crazy all over the world in recent years. Not only because of the color of this famous tea powder, but also due to its many health benefits. What, if we told you that […]
Obubu organizes Tea Picking and Rolling Events 3 times a year to celebrate Japanese tea harvesting seasons. This event is one of popular activities for tea lovers from all over the world. We believe that is because we have welcomed over 90 interns who love Japan and Japanese tea; and who always warmly […]
Kyobancha is a green tea that is unique to the Kyoto region. I was fortunate enough able to experience this tea from farm to cup, and I wanted to share it! Kyobancha is a large leaf green tea that is roasted. The leaves are large because it is made from the leaves that survived during […]
For the last two weeks, I have talked about matcha tea ceremonies, matcha tea utensils, and now it is finally time to talk about matcha itself! In this post I want to break down how the tea is made. First and foremost, to create a baseline, it is important to first explain aracha and […]
Last week, I had a chance to see a tea ceremony and try portions of it out! This week, I thought that it would be interesting follow that post up with the teaware used during the ceremony, as well as give some tips on whisking matcha! As part of the tea ceremony event, we tried […]
As part of my trip to Japan, one thing I wanted to experience was a tea ceremony! Luck would have it that last Sunday in Wazuka, the town Kyoto Obubu Tea Farms is located in, had one! This will actually be part one of my three part mini-series on matcha. Matcha has become […]
Last week, I wrote about shaded (Kabuse) green teas and I said that I would talk about unshaded (Roji) teas this week. However, I realized that it actually might be more useful to talk about harvesting seasons and why they are important, purely because most plants around the world are left unshaded in order to […]
Last week, I started TEA 101, and the goal of the series is to share what I am learning about tea with you! In the first post, I broke down different common green teas in Japan. Now, I want to go into more detail about each one. This week will be about shaded teas! Shaded […]
Since I am living at Kyoto Obubu Tea Farms in Japan, it seemed most fitting to start a series focused on tea: TEA 101! The first post I wanted to write was a guide to common Japanese green teas. The concept behind TEA 101 is pretty loose but the main goal is to share what […]
Over the weekend, I was able to take part in a Chakabuki here in Wazuka! A chakabuki, in short, is a blind tea tasting game that is played in Japan. I’ve never been to one before, so I thought it would be fun to bring everyone along! Chakabuki was originally played by the aristocrats, but […]
Hi everyone! My name is Jessica, and I’m the author/illustrator for Adventures in Tea! Thank you to everyone for reading my mini-series! I spent a great time at Obubu learning about Japanese tea, and this mini-series was my way of showing people what I’ve been learning and giving everyone a little bit of cuteness and […]
Illustrated and written by Jessica Ye Japanese Version Here! 日本語版はこちらです！→ https://www.obubu.net/oblog/28650.html
Japanese Version Here 日本語版はこちら: https://www.obubu.net/oblog/28393.html
More and more individuals are becoming enchanted by the Japanese tea room and ceremony service. Chado (the Japanese tea ceremony) searches for finesse in simple movement, and showcases elegance and purity in form. When coming to Japan, it seems as if these qualities are inherently ingrained within the lifestyles of the people. Coming to Japan […]
There are many ways to make tea, and just as many kinds of teapots. Today we’re going to talk about the three types of Japanese tea ware we use most often at Obubu: the chawan, houhin, and kyusu. Chawan 茶碗 Chawan, or tea bowls, are used together with bamboo whisks for making matcha in the […]
Hachijuu-Hachiya, the 88th Day 八十八夜 The 88th day of traditional Japanese calendar, which falls right around May 1st or 2nd, is famous as an important date for farmers, and especially tea farmers. For several hundred years, the 88th day has been considered the best day to start the spring tea harvest. Those tender new shoots […]
During tea tours, we are often asked whether there are different types of plants for different teas. Read on for the answer! Tea Cultivars A cultivar is a group of plants that have been bred by farmers for desirable characteristics. Cultivars can be more or less suited to weather conditions (frost hardy or early […]
Shrines and temples are everywhere in Japan, from the huge buddha at Todaiji in Nara to tiny Jizo statues along roadsides, and Wazuka has its own collection of beautiful cultural sites, several of which are part of our hiking tea tours. Tenmangu Shrine The picture at the top of this page is of Tenmangu, the […]
As we’ve seen in the “What’s in a Name?” blog series, Japan is famous for producing green tea in great variety. There’s sencha, tencha, matcha, gyokuro, kukicha, bancha, genmaicha, and houjicha. These have been central to Japanese production for hundreds of years. However, if we look beyond green tea, there is even more delicious tea to […]
Are you ready for part 3?! Here come bancha and hojicha! Bancha 番茶 The character for ban includes the characters for rice and field, and refers to a turn or a number in a series. Bancha is usually translated as coarse or common tea, and is made from mature leaves picked in between the four main harvests […]
Welcome back to our blog series on tea names! Today, we’ll cover gyokuro and kukicha. Gyokuro 玉露 Gyokuro, meaning “jewel dew,” conjures up an image of morning dewdrops collected from rare jade, and the tea liquor is a vibrant green color to match. Gyokuro is famous as a luxury tea; it’s harvested just once […]
Hello everyone! This week’s post is the first section of a series on Japanese tea names. If you’ve ever been curious why a tea is called by a particular name, this is the post for you! Tea 茶 Perhaps the most important word on this list is cha, or tea. The Japanese character has its […]
Today’s post is about organic tea. What makes a tea organic? What are the implications for farmers and tea drinkers? Is organic tea better? What does “organic” mean? The term “organic”, referring to farming, came into use in the 1940s, referring to a balanced relationship between plants, soil, and nutrients. However, since the 1960s, the […]
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