Have you heard about single origin Matcha tea? Single origin is a single cultivate Matcha tea. Many well-known tea makers have been producing blended Matcha teas to produce a similar tasting tea each year, adjusting the blend with the different intake of each year’s crop. Single origin is not blended, so it is an entirely honest flavour. We cannot reproduce exactly the same character every year, however it does allow a fuller appreciation of the aroma and flavour of the single cultivate! Just like a superior single malt whisky instead of a more widely available blended whisky.
On my travels in Japan I was delighted to find wonderful top grade single origin and single estate Matcha tea farmers in Uji Kyoto. Remarkably only three people were working on their long-established tea farm – currently the 8th generation of the same family to be running the farm. Normally it would be the husband and wife, and one non-family member, who would be working. However, when the farm is so small, they have a different arrangement. It is obviously a good arrangement, as they have won many international tea competition gold medals! All the harvesting is hand-picked using a few seasonal volunteers, as well as their daughters.
These wonderful Matcha teas are available now, online and in store, and I would really encourage you to taste the results. Either one of our single origin Matcha teas or a special Kyoto blend of them! Honzu Asahi is the most elegant and noble cultivate, and Uji Hikari is the proper Kyoto origin and famously difficult to grow. Saemidori is rich in Umami, and Samidori is a popular cultivate from Uji Kyoto, growing wonderfully in Uji’s soil. Whichever one you would like to try, it will be a fantastic journey, finding your favourite cultivate!