Description
Shizuoka Genmaicha, Sencha + Roasted Brown Rice, Naturally grown - 2026 Shincha (New Harvest Tea)
Origin: Sencha and roasted brown rice both from Fujieda, Shizuoka Prefecture. Tea and rice naturally grown with no synthetic pesticides or fertilizers.
Cultivar: Yabukita (Tea), Kinuhikari (Rice)
This Genmaicha uses first harvest (shincha) Sencha, along with locally-grown rice, which are somewhat luxuries among more common supermarket Genmaicha which use later harvest teas and lower cost rice imported from outside of the base tea's region. Both ingredients being naturally grown is also relatively uncommon in the Japanese market. The Kinuhikari rice cultivar is also a rare variety. A genetic descendant of the famed Koshihikari cultivar, Kinuhikari has a slightly firmer and less sticky texture than Koshihikari, making it well-suited for this roasted application.
The tea has a lovely yellow-green color and the warm and toasty aroma of Genmai. The sweetness of the rice really comes through in this tea, but not in a sugar sweet way. It's the nutty sweetness of good rice, and lingers through three or four good infusions. This first harvest tea adds the perfect balance of umami to the genmai flavor, with virtually no astringency. It is a very smooth and fragrant tea.
Our Shizuoka Genmaicha from Fujieda City comes to us from the same farming group that provides our Yamakai Sencha, and Setoya Momji WaKoucha. The Kinezuka Family were pioneers in the naturally farming tea before it was more widely accepted in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan's largest producer of tea for decades (surpassed in volume by Kagoshima for the first time in 2024.)
Tenth-generation tea farmer Toshiaki Kinezuka was a pioneer of organic tea farming in Shizuoka Prefecture, which has the largest prefectural share of tea farmland in Japan. Starting natural farming methods in 1976, his dedication and practices have continued with his family, and have spread to other farmers and consumers in the region. From the family's website, "It took three years of hard work before finally getting a harvest that met his standards for quality, but thanks to a dedicated group of consumers and collaborators, he was able to persevere through the first few years and to fulfill his dream of creating an entirely organic tea company. In the time since, he has continued to study how to maintain the highest standards of environmental stewardship while producing great tea. He has drawn other local farmers into the organic tea cooperative, and actively pursued the spread of sustainable tea production in Shizuoka, Japan, and the entire world. This practice now continues with his children and grandchildren."
**Do you like "Matcha-iri Genmaicha" (Genmaicha with Matcha added)? Just a pinch of our Charaku Premium Matcha in a pot or cup of Genmaicha takes the flavor to another level. And, making your own Matcha-iri Genmaicha ensures using good quality Matcha in your drink, something that is not always the case with pre-mixed supermarket varieties of Matcha-iri Genmaicha.