Wazuka Saemidori Matcha
Azuma ChaenSmooth, bright, and slightly nutty, this Saemidori matcha from Wazuka was grown without the use of herbicides or pesticides, representing the true flavour of the terroir.
While Uji may be the most famous tea region in Kyoto, most tea sold as “Ujicha” is actually grown in the neighbouring town of Wazuka, located to the southeast, which produces almost 50% of Uji tea. Dating back to the Kamakura era, tea production in Wazuka has enjoyed an 800-year history.
The tea plantations in Wazuka are located on the steep slopes of misty hills and mountains—an environment suitable for high-quality tea leaves, with cool air, short daylight hours, temperature differences between day and night, and well-drained soil. Cultivation of tea plants in such an environment takes a lot of time and effort, making it unsuitable for the methods of mass production employed in the flatlands.
Saemidori was registered in 1990, 21 years after it was first bred from a cross between Asatsuyu and Yabukita. With the intent of combining the high-quality taste of Asatsuyu with the high yield and frost resistance of Yabukita, Saemidori is a popular cultivar for sencha, fukamushicha, and gyokuro in the more southern tea producing regions, such as Kagoshima and Fukuoka. With a name meaning ‘clear green’, Saemidori is known for is vibrant colour, high umami, and low astringency
Brewing Instructions
Usucha
Thin Tea
Heat water to 70º C (158º F)
Add 70 ml (2.4 oz) of water to 2 g (2 tea scoops) of sifted matcha
Whisk briskly in a back and forth motion for about 20 seconds
Hot Matcha Latte
Tea and Milk
Mix 4 g (2 tsp) of sifted matcha with 40 ml (1.4 oz) of 70° C (158° F) water
Heat or steam 180 ml (6 oz) of your preferred milk
Pour milk into matcha base
Iced Matcha Latte
Cold and Refreshing
Mix 4 g (2 tsp) of sifted matcha with 40 ml (1.4 oz) of 70° C (158° F) water
Pour 180 ml (6 oz) of your milk of choice into a ice-filled 10-12oz (300-350 ml) glass. Optionally, add ~5ml of syrup to add texture and sweetness to the milk
Pour the matcha base over the ice
Azuma Chaen (東茶園)
The family business is currently managed by fourth generation Teruko Azuma (東 てる子) who has been involved in her family’s tea production for over 12 years. Now a certified Nihoncha Instructor, she is excited to share the delicious and natural taste of her family’s tea.
Nestled in the hills of eastern Wazuka, Azuma Chaen is a family owned tea farm founded in the late 1800s during the Meiji era. This area of Wazuka is far from any train tracks or major roads, and its scenery of endless rolling hills of tea fields has been designated a cultural landscape of Kyoto.
Azuma Chaen specialises in the production of low-pesticide tencha, the raw material used to produce matcha. Today, around 90% of their 5 hectares of tea fields is dedicated to tencha production and is harvested only once a year, which means they can avoid using pesticides as all of the tea is picked before the arrival of insects. While all of their tea fields make use of lower amounts of pesticides or even none at all, some of their tea fields are already certified JAS organic, with others in the process of conversion.
In addition to tencha, they also produce small amounts of sencha, houjicha, wakoucha, kyobancha, and oolong. As they primarily produce tencha, most of the cultivars that htye grow are well suited for shaded teas, such as Okumidori, Samidori, Asahi, Gokou. They also grow Yabukita and Zairai among others.