Tea & Matcha
Green tea is grown the length of Japan, but a handful of regions define it — the shaded matcha of Uji, the mountain gyokuro of Yame, the wide plantations under Mt Fuji. Here is where the country's finest tea is grown.
Uji Matcha
The birthplace of Japan's finest matcha, shaded and stone-ground here since the 12th century. The tea ceremony itself grew up around Uji's leaves and water.
Shizuoka Tea
The green heart of Japan — nearly half the nation's tea grows on these hillsides under the gaze of Mount Fuji. This is the everyday sencha of Japanese life.
Yame Gyokuro
Kyushu's misty valleys produce Japan's most celebrated gyokuro — shade-grown leaves so rich and sweet they are brewed almost cool, like a broth.
Nishio Matcha
A quiet town that grows a surprising share of Japan's matcha, shaded beneath the Aichi mist. Less famous than Uji, but the tencha stone-ground here fills tea bowls and desserts nationwide.