Collection: Traditional Flavor KAORU

Shirakawa-cha KAORU - 

Sencha “Kaoru” was developed by 17 tea masters and 10 tea factories together over three years in order to preserve a 450-year history*, traditional skill and deep flavor of Shirakawa-Cha. (*It is said that Shirakawa-Cha was brought to Hakusan Shrine in Shirakawa-town and Gokabanryu Temple in Higashi-shirakawa-village 450 years ago.)

"Kaoru" has a mix of traditional and modern taste, and has become popular as a local specialty.

How "Kaoru" was born.

How has tea nowadays become different from the past?

One of the answers is “scent”. In the past, the tea factories and their surroundings were filled with the scent of tea. But it isn't so any more.

They reviewed all tea processes and realized that the wilting process was missing.

At the present, the picked tea leaves are immediately processed by machinery in order not to spoil the flavor, as freshness is important for Sencha to maintain its fresh scent.

In the past, the picked tea leaves were spread out on the floor of the farm houses, then sorted and brought to the tea factory.

As it sometimes took a day for small factories to get to the processing stage, they wilted slightly and got their distinctive scent.

Black tea and wine get their scent by aging for a certain period. But aging is not good for Sencha, whose freshness is important.

For this reason, they spread out tea leaves indoors for a while to get them slightly fermented by internal oxidase and to develop its flavor. They turn the tea leaves over, checking its development, for about 15 hours.

It is a long process, which requires time and effort, but this is how the distinct scent of "Kaoru" was born.