This product is Asahina Hon Gyokuro made from 100% Yabukita cultivar.
Asahina Hon Gyokuro tea garden
Yabukita Gyokuro is Asahina Gyokuro
Yabukita Gyokuro is Asahina Gyokuro made in the tea gardens along the Asahina River in Okabe Town, Fujieda City, Shizuoka Prefecture. Those who have been to the river at night may know from experience that the temperature drops rapidly around the river at night. During the day, tea plants absorb carbon dioxide and perform photosynthesis to produce energy, but at night, they absorb oxygen and engage in consumption activities. Therefore, in areas where the temperature is low at night, the consumption rate of tea is extremely slow, resulting in slow and steady growth over time. For this reason, tea gardens along the river often produce high-quality tea, and Asahina Gyokuro is no exception.
Asahina Gyokuro tea processing
What is Hon Gyokuro?
The tea leaves used to make Gyokuro are grown in the shade. The characteristic of shaded tea, not limited to Gyokuro, is that a large amount of chlorophyll is produced to perform photosynthesis more efficiently. Therefore, tea grown in the shade appears dark green. Generally, Gyokuro tea gardens are covered with black plastic mesh sheets called kanreisha for shading. Most Gyokuro tea gardens today are shaded with this kanreisha. On the other hand, Hon Gyokuro, also known as traditional Gyokuro, is shaded with straw. Hon Gyokuro is currently very rare, regardless of the region. The purpose of shading with straw is that when it rains, the water soaks into the straw, and the minerals from the straw drip onto the ground. The tea plants absorb these minerals, resulting in Hon Gyokuro having a richer aftertaste and longer-lasting flavor compared to Gyokuro shaded with kanreisha. However, the quality of the straw also affects the quality of the tea, so not only the tea garden but also the rice fields contribute to the quality.
Hon Gyokuro tea garden
The above is a Hon Gyokuro tea garden, and below is a Gyokuro tea garden shaded with kanreisha, which has become common in recent years.
Gyokuro tea garden shaded with kanreisha
Single Cultivar Gyokuro
Gyokuro is generally sold by producers or vendors by blending multiple cultivars. The purpose of blending is to balance the taste by mixing rich cultivars, cultivars with strong umami, and cultivars with a long aftertaste.
In contrast, this product, Yabukita Gyokuro, is a single-cultivar Gyokuro made exclusively from Yabukita. The characteristic of this tea is its long aftertaste and rich finish. Compared to typical Gyokuro, which has a unique seaweed-like flavor, this product has a distinctive floral flavor, reminiscent of flowers. By focusing on a single cultivar without blending, we aimed for a refreshing taste that is not found in Gyokuro, which emphasizes umami.
Single-cultivar Yabukita Gyokuro
