Wazuka Guricha

This tea comes from the Wazuka Valley in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan, and is made by Mr. Wataru. He is a promising young farmer in Wazuka, located on the opposite ridge from where Matsuda, another of our favorite Japanese tea growers, produces tea. Wataru-san is a college graduate that applies novel approaches to making tea, blending Japanese tradition with modern methods. This Guricha is made from the short-period shaded Saemidori cultivar, which has a strong umami. To preserve this feature, he’s opted to omit the last step in traditional sencha making, rolling, which can increase the body of the tea but reduce its umami. The recommendation from Mr. Wataru is to enjoy two steepings. The first is refreshing with vegetal notes, whereas the second will become much more bold. Guricha (steamed curly tea) is a kind of Japanese green tea found mainly in Kyushu, the southern island of Japan. Guricha follows a lot of the same processing that Sencha does, except for the last rolling, which is how most Senchas acquire their needle-like shape. This last rolling’s purpose is to damage the structure of the tea leaf, so without this process, Guricha has a lighter taste to it than standard Senchas.