No Ordinary Green Tea
The tea Mellow Monk sells is known as tamaryokucha, a type of sencha. (The word sencha refers to tea that is steeped or infused, as opposed to matcha, powdered green tea brewed by mixing directly into hot water.)
The word tamaryokucha means "curly green tea" and refers to the curled shape of the tea leaves (see the photo to the right) that results from the extra processing steps used in making tamaryokucha.
How Tamaryokucha Is Different
Tamaryokucha and other types of sencha are made in essentially the same way. Slight differences in processing, however, give tamaryokucha its characteristic fresh taste and reduced astringency.
Tamaryokucha can also be steeped more than once, each infusion producing a subtly different flavor and aroma. This type of tea also requires a slightly cooler water temperature to bring out the full flavor and avoid "cooking" the tea leaves.
Steaming Locks in the Flavor
Mellow Monk tea is made by steaming (mushisei in Japanese), instead of pan frying. Steaming is thought to preserve more of the disease-fighting antioxidants than frying, and to preserve the tea's natural earthy flavor.
The First Flush of Spring Leaves
A tea orchard's "first flush" is the very first harvest of tea in the spring. These are the branchtop leaves that have been growing since the second flush, which is harvested in the fall. These leaves avoided the baking heat of the summer sun, growing instead in the milder climate of the late fall, aged and mellowed in the chilly winter air, and then began growing anew in the spring. So what you get is the perfect balance beetween aged and fresh flavor and aroma. Top Leaf is made only from first-flush leaves. (Processed tea is stored at just the right temperature and humidity so that it tastes great all year long.) Shiraore is also a first-flush-only tea. So are Hojicha and Mizudashi.
Tea from Japan's Heartland
Tamaryokucha-style sencha is made primarily in Kyushu, the southernmost of Japan's four main islands. Mellow Monk tea is from the Aso region of Kyushu. Aso is a major farming region and produces some of the country's best tea, rice, and other crops.
What's so Special about the Aso Region?
It's the soil. And the climate. Just like the soil and climate of California's Napa Valley make for such sought-after wine, the soil and climate of Aso are eminently suited to growing green tea.
Our Growers
Our tea comes directly from a family-owned and -operated tea farm in Aso.
Read more about our growers here.
Harvesting the Choicest Leaves
Tea plants are shrubs around 3 feet tall. Tea leaves are harvested by clipping the uppermost leaves—the newest leaves, which not only taste better but also have more antioxidants than older leaves, simply because they haven't been baking in the sun as long.
Fast Processing Assures Quality
After harvest, the leaves are immediately taken to the processing plant for steaming, which prevents fermentation, thereby preserving the tea's green color, its grassy aroma, and—most importantly—the many antioxidants in the leaves. |
