Tsuji-san creates a very small micro-lot of tencha leaves for submission to tea competitions each year. This limited edition version is grown under the same shading as the main batch of leaves, but is a careful hand picking of just a few kilograms of the very best of the best of these leaves while they are still young, then carefully processed and stone mill ground into matcha. 2024’s batch is a very delicate, strongly sweet cup of ambrosia, a light white wine vs the bold umami taste of many other high grade matcha A post shared by 製茶 辻喜 (@tsujiki_uji.shirakawa) Best in Japan: Award-Winning Matcha World renowned farmer Kiyoharu Tsuji’s tencha (the green tea used for matcha) has won numerous awards at the Kyoto, West Japan (Kansai), and National levels. A careful selection and processing of this Asahi cultivar is generally used for these competitions. In recent years.... Asahi cultivar won the top Minister's Award at the 2022 National Tea Competition in the tencha category (this batch was harvested at a similar time as the winning competition batch, but submitted to regional tea competitions). In 2023 and 2024, the Asahi cultivar won 3rd place at the National Tea Competition. Ingredients: Green tea Cultivation: Cultivated using centuries-old traditional methods including shading under a canopy of reeds and straw adjusted according to the sunlight and increasing until 95% of sunlight is cut. Tsuji-san also conducts soil analysis monthly and analysis of amino acid content in the leaf (which forms the umami flavor) annually to craft the best leaf year after year. Harvest: May. Carefully handpicked for maximum quality. Processing: Steamed and dried in a traditional tencha oven. Carefully refined — removing stems, veins — before stone mill grinding. Net weight: 20g Region: Uji, Kyoto About the Farmer Tsuji-sensei, a fifth generation tea farmer, is one of Japan’s top cultivators and producers of tencha, and his Asahi cultivar tea field has helped him win dozens awards over the years at the regional and national level. The accumulation of accolades have led to the prestigious Prime Minister’s Award for agriculture in 2017, and most recently the Minister of Agriculture's Award for tencha at the 2022 National Tea Competition, the top award for the leaves that are used for matcha.
