The Tea Harvest Seasons of Uji

Like Toku said,the first harvest season of Japanese tea is beginning.The tea plant is very vigorous.If you pick tea leaves off the tea plant, the new sprout appears in the plant soon after picking.So tea is picked about three-four times a year in Japan.

The first season is from early-April to late-May.The tea harvested this season is called Ichiban-Cha or Shincha(first picked tea) and tastes even better than other harvest seasons.Because it contains a lot of nourishment saved from autumn(last harvest season) to spring in tea plant. Ichiban-Cha is rich in taste and flavor.

The second harvest season is from mid-June to late-July and the third harvest season is from early-August to early September.The tea quality is getting worse as fall approaches.Sweetness and taste decreases , and bitterness and astringency increase.

In Uji, tea is picked only two times a year.Uji tea made of only first picked tea and second picked tea.So the annual harvest of tea in Uji(Kyoto) is only 3% of Japan’s total harvest but Uji tea has a lot of confidence in the taste.

Table.The annual harvest of Japanese tea by prefecture of Japan in 2008

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