Growing conditions, harvest, processing, storage, brewing and culture all play a role in the quality of tea. Browse the following articles for more details on how to make a perfect cup of tea.
“Two leaves and a bud” is often a golden standard of tea picking and used as an indicator of tea quality, but there are so many ways you can look at two leaves and a bud. How do they affect aroma, flavor and quality? or two leaves and a bud actually better than three leaves […]
Theanine (or L-theanine), an amino acid found in green tea, is most commonly known for calming and meditative effect on body. Some people experience improved mental function and relaxation, and reduced anxiety level after drinking green tea. Theanine is typically found at higher concentration in early spring harvest than in summer and fall harvest. Many […]
Green tea is well known for its antioxidants and health benefits, but how can you tell how much antioxidants and polyphenols you are consuming from your cup of green tea? First, let’s define what all these terms are. Polyphenols, antioxidants, EGCg, flavonoids and catechins,. Antioxidants are molecules commonly found in many natural and synthetic sources. […]
Growing up, my grandmother frequently asked me to gather spring water in the coldest month each year. Replying to my complains, she told me that gathered in this way the water would taste good and stay fresh for a long time. The desolated mountain road was often covered in snow with very few people in […]
The First Flush The first flush is an exciting time for us in the tea fields. We love to witness the undeniable passing of winter’s quiet with the sudden burst of vitality indicative of spring. In Japan, this first tea is called shincha, or new tea crop. In Hawaii, we call it the ‘first flush’ […]
Create a less resistant path and make the habit stick Habit plays a critical role in tea drinking and health. Often an action is carried out because the situation makes it the least resistant path. Like muscle strength, will power is a limited and exhaustible resource. You can plow your way through, but will eventually […]
The flavor and aroma of green tea are most significantly affected by roasting. The roast is the last step of the production process, once the leaf is already dry. The tea leaves below are our Roasted Green Tea, which optimized for roast flavor. The flavor and aroma are created by the roast, which is dictated […]
If you have bitter tea, add sugar and milk. That is one simple solution. If you have no control over tea cultivation and processing, climate, leaf material and processing, there are still ways to make your tea less bitter. If you don’t know where to start…. Try this first. Put 3g of tea leaves into […]
There are many types of green tea out there in Japan and if you are trying to choose one without knowing what you are looking for, you might get lost. Most of Japanese green teas are steam processed. This makes richer flavor than Chinese or pan fired green tea. However, steaming process tends to bring […]
Many people store green tea at room temperature in a kitchen cabinet, but is it keeping your tea fresh? If you are to get the maximum health benefit, you ought to know a few things to keep your tea fresh. First, we need to know what fresh tea is and how tea is affected in […]