Matcha Pt.3: What is Matcha?

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 […]

Matcha Pt.2: Obon Temae Matcha Utensils

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 […]

Matcha Pt.1: Nodate Tea Ceremony in Wazuka

    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 […]

Comparing Seasonal Sencha Green Teas

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 […]

Comparaison des thés verts japonais nuancés

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 […]

Guide des thés verts japonais courants

Comme je vis à Kyoto Obubu Tea Farms au Japon, il m'a semblé tout à fait approprié de commencer une série sur le thé : TEA 101 ! Le premier article que je voulais écrire était un guide des thés verts japonais les plus courants. Le concept derrière TEA 101 est assez flou mais l'objectif principal est de partager ce que [...]

Tea Ware: Modern Western Tea Wares and Japanese Tea

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 […]

What About Aracha?

If you search how to assess tea quality, one of the criteria you will find is a uniform, deep green colour and a consistent leaf size. However, are this criteria inclusive enough to appreciate the wonderful thing that is Aracha?   What is it? Also called “farmer’s tea”, “raw tea”, or just unrefined tea, Aracha is the result […]

Matcha Chia Pudding

Matcha Chia Pudding (serves one or two people) Increase the benefitsthat Matcha is provides by combining the green gold with another super food. In recent years chia seeds from South America have found their way in to the kitchens of numerous health conscious people. Enjoy it as a dessert to round off your meal or […]

A New approach to Japanese Tea and a Chai Latte Recipe

The first thought that comes to everybody’ s mind when hearing ‘Japanese tea’ is an emerald green tea, natural in its flavour and filled full of umami flavours. Here is big news for everyone that didn’t know: some Japanese Farmers also produce black tea, known as Wakocha. Japan, a great green tea producing nation, opened […]

Hand Picking and Rolling Autumn Sencha

Last week, we held our tri-annual tea picking and rolling event at Obubu to celebrate the beginning of the autumn harvest. The history of hand picking tea in Japan stretches back around 800 years to the Kamakura period, when tea seeds were first brought to the Kyoto prefecture from China. Traditionally, women would wear beautiful, […]

First Shincha of the year

八十八夜  Hachijuhachiya is the 88th night since the beginning of spring, according to the traditional Japanese lunar calendar. It falls in the last days of April or first ones of May and it used to mark the start of harvesting shincha. Shincha 新茶 in Japanese literally means “new tea” and it refers to the new shoots picked and processed in early spring. Usually […]

Spring in bloom, time for sweet sakura cha

The blossom of cherry trees is the national flower of Japan and a symbol of the country’s uniqueness. The custom of admiring cherry trees in bloom is said to have started during the Nara Period (710–794) when the elite of the Imperial Court followed the Chinese custom of ume (plum) blossoms instead. But by the […]

Genmaicha- and Hojicha Pasta

for 4 portions 3 cups (approximately 400 g) of plain flour 1 cup (approximately 250 ml) of water 3 tbsp of Genmaicha Powder (15g) salt 1. Mix the flour together with the Genmaicha-or Hojicha powder and add a pinch of salt. 2. While stiring, add water slowly 3. Knead the dough until you get a […]

How is Japanese sencha tea hand-processed?

After Akkisan, Obubu’s President and farmer took part in the 宇治茶製法手もみ技術大会 ‘Uji Tea Tea Rolling Competition’ and became 2nd together with the Wazuka Team it is time to explain a little more in detail about the hand- processing of Sencha. There are two ways delicious sencha is produced: a hand rolling process (temomi) and a […]

Quick Intro to Japanese Tea Ceremony Utensils

The Tea Ceremony, or Chanoyu, is a Japanese cultural art as well as a philosophy and spiritual discipline. Chanoyu, literally translated, means “hot water for tea”. Today, tea ceremony is often referred to as chado or sado, meaning “the way of tea”. At first glance the tea ceremony may seem to be an overly formal […]

How to Store Tea Properly

Part of enjoying tea culture is the anticipation of opening a new packet of tea. With the opening of the seal, the delightful aroma is a delightful preface to the cup of tea you are about to enjoy. As we all have experienced, slowly over time, the opened loose tea seems to lose some of […]