Posted by Tea Selector: Mr. Taro Ishihara on 23rd May 2017
We shall take joy in Japanese green tea
Why don't you drink and compare various green tea cultivars?
About 75% of tea drunk in Japan is the cultivar that is called
"Yabukita".
"Yabukita" is a honor of tea varieties spread widely throughout Japan
with not only a great taste but also fragrance and water color.
However, we would like to let you know that the tea cultivars are not
just "Yabukita".
Although it is rare, there are many individual varieties with that you
can not usually taste quite often.
Both in Japan and overseas, various cultivars other than "Yabukita"
have been drawing great attention recently as people are seeking for
various tea preferences.
At this time, TOKYO MATCHA SELECTION has prepared four different tea
cultivars as "Midori no Ocha green tea series" so you can
compare the variety of tea.
You can simply enjoy a single green tea cultivar as is without blending any other green tea cultivars, so please drink and enjoy the difference in taste, scent, water color of them.
CULTIVARS : Midori no Ocha green tea series
(FYI) YABUKITA
- It's the super cultivar that represents Japan that covers about 75% of Japanese tea plantation.
- It's widely used from Sencha to Gyokuro, we can say it's "The standard" of the flavor, fragrance and water color of Japanese tea.
- Based on the cultivar of this Yabukita, "the earliness of tea production" (*the length of cultivation period for each cultivars) is decided.
- Flowering: Medium / Nakate
ASATSUYU
- It's the cultivar for a superb Sencha that is called "Natural Gyokuro".
- It is characterized by the rich sweetness and umami like Gyokuro and the deep green water color. (less bitterness)
- Steamed: Deep steamed / Fukamushi
- Flowering: Medium / Nakate *equivalent to Yabukita
- Steeping: 70 degrees、1 min(60second)
SAE-MIDORI
- Popular among Japanese ladies. It's the cultivar that is easy to drink due to the refreshing taste.
- It is characterized by the elegant sweetness and aroma, and vibrant glossy beautiful water color. (less bitterness)
- Steamed: Standard / Chu-mushi
- Flowering: Early / Wase *4 days earlier than Yabukita
- Steeping: 80 degrees、1 min(60second)
YUTAKA-MIDORI
- A deep dark green light blue color, a bitter taste with some punchy
taste that a male may prefer, and you may feel a slight sweet potato
sweetness.
- The second largest cultivated area after Yabukita, the main producing
area is Kagoshima prefecture.
- Since the leaf meat is thick, it is often manufactured with middle
steaming to deep steaming.
- Steamed: Standard / Chu-mushi
- Flowering: Early / Wase *5 days earlier than Yabukita
- Steeping: 80 degrees、1 min(60second)
OKU-MIDORI
- A well-balanced taste, sweetness, and aroma, and it has a refreshing
taste with a clean but solid flavor.
- It's also used for high-end tea such as Matcha and Gyokuro and such.
- It is the excellent variety that has a large number of buds and is
expected to have multiple harvests.
- Steamed: Standard / Chu-mushi
- Flowering: Late / Okute *5 days later than Yabukita
- Steeping: 70 degrees、1 min(60second)
Chanoki Shrine (茶ノ木神社) * 茶 = Tea TOKYO MATCHA SELECTION's office is located in Nihonbashi area in Tokyo. (It's close to Ginza and Asakusa where are popular for tourists from abroad.) As it happens, there is the shrine neaby us called 'Chanoki Jinja'. In Edo era, there used to be the residence of Daimyo (feudal lord): the Hotta (堀田家) [...]