Tezumi Insights - Our Blog – Tagged "Tea"

In the past few years, matcha has had a massive surge in popularity in the West. While this has made it easier...

Close overhead view of wet, steeped bright-green sencha leaves in a pale ceramic vessel.

Japanese green teas, such as sencha and gyokuro, have a reputation for being finicky and difficult to brew properly. However, once you’ve mastered the basic brewing techniques, you can use these teas’ high sensitivity to minute changes in parameters to control different flavours and aspects of the resulting infusion. The three main brewing parameters–leaf/water ratio, temperature, and infusion time–each have their unique effect on flavour extraction and work together in tandem to brew the desired cup. Here, we’ll take a look at one of these variables, temperature, and its effect on taste, aroma, and flavour.

Close overhead view of a pale ceramic cup filled with pale yellow-green brewed tea showing fine foam on the surface.

How Tea Gets its Flavour

Tea comes in such a wide variety of tastes, aromas, and flavours–from sweet and vegetal, to fruity and floral. This amazing variety...

Close-up of an orange-and-blue drip-glazed bowl filled with freshly plucked bright-green tea leaves.

A Deep Dive into Shaded Teas Part 2: The Science

It’s no secret that shading tea plants has a drastic impact on the flavour of tea. After all, it’s what gives matcha and gyokuro their characteristic aromas, powerful umami, and vibrant green colour. But how does simply blocking sunlight, something that plants need to thrive, create such extreme (and delicious) changes?

A hand reaching over rows of bright-green tea bushes growing in a cultivated tea field.

A Deep Dive into Shaded Teas Part 1: History and Process

You may know that some Japanese teas, such as matcha and gyokuro, are ‘shade-grown’, but what exactly does this entail and how does it affect the taste of tea? In Part 1 of this deep dive into shaded teas, we’ll take a look at the history behind this uniquely Japanese cultivation technique and also break down the types and practices of shading that are used today. Then, in Part 2, we’ll explore the biochemical processes that are at work within the plant and how they are responsible for the characteristic tastes and aromas of shaded teas.

Overhead view of a red-clay matcha bowl whose surface is divided into four quadrants showing different usucha foam textures.

Is Foam Important? Comparing Styles of Usucha

I’m conducting a little experiment: comparing four bowls of matcha with varying levels of foam to see what impact it has on both the taste and texture of the tea, and also to find out which style works best with different types of matcha.

Overhead view of a dark ceramic teapot holding dry Japanese black tea leaves next to a white cup of brewed amber tea on a pale stone surface.

Japanese Black Tea: History and Revival

While you may not have heard of Japanese black tea, or wakoucha, it once accounted for around 60% of all Japanese tea exports. Now, it is undergoing a resurgence, but with an emphasis on quality rather than quantity.

A Beginner’s Guide to Making Tea

It’s no mystery that tea is delicious: it’s something you can relax with, develop a passion for, and always learn more about. However, don’t be intimidated by the complexity and intricacy of the teaware setups of ceremonial tea practitioners or hardcore tea enthusiasts—at its core, tea is simple. As Rikyu said: "The way of tea is nothing more than boiling water, making tea, and drinking it"

Overhead circular arrangement of small bowls of brewed Japanese teas ranging from pale green to deep amber and red, with a green tea in the center.

Types of Japanese Tea

While you may be familiar with matcha or sencha, Japan produces over 20 distinct types of tea, which are distinguished primarily by their processing after picking. Here, we’ll take a look at Japan’s most famous and popular tea styles, alongside some rare, unique, and newly-developed types