2024 Saitama Samaya Takano En Smoked Okumidori Wakoucha

Most are familiar with matcha from Kyoto, but of the 47 prefectures of Japan, in fact 44 of them produce tea except for Hokkaido, Osaka and Yamagata. We learnt about Sayama teas when we held a tocha (斗茶) session during COVID together with NPO (Non Profit Organisation) Agriculture Support Team in Saitama. Sayama tea is produced in Saitama Prefecture and the western region of Tokyo adjacent to Saitama Prefecture, mainly at Sayama Hills region. It is a registered regional trademark. Always in the background of the tea industry and mostly unheard of outside Japan, Sayama had made a mark in Japanese tea in the early years of the 19th century by inventing a tea roasting technique known as Sayama Hiire (狭山火入) based on the Kyoto Uji technique. Despite its low profile, Sayama teas holds an honour as one of top three famous teas, the other two being Shizuoka teas and Kyoto teas. As the saying goes: The colour of Shizuoka teas, the aroma of Uji teas, the flavour of Sayama teas (“静冈の色，宇治の香，狭山の味”). 

Sayama teas are located in the northern tea production region of Japan. Having to always brave the cold climate including snow, the tea plants develop thicker leaves which accumulate more pectin and chemical compounds, giving richness of sweetness and a stronger flavour. For the same reason, its production is low and it can only manage two harvests a year - April/May and June/July. The low volume coupled with the existing tea lands located in expensive areas close to cities make high production cost. This explains why low volume cultivation like gyokuro and kabusesencha are avoided. The high intensity of population within Saitama and the greater Tokyo region are a natural market for the tea, making it unnecessary to market the teas elsewhere, hence explaining its low profile in the international tea market.

During our visit in May 2024, we visited Takano En (高野园, Takano is the family name of the producer and 'en' means tea garden). Takano En's wakoucha (和红茶, Japanese red tea) is crafted using 'Okumidori' variety. [The 'wa' in 'wakoucha' refers to the major Japanese ethnic group of the Yamato (大和).] This tea is smoked using the wood from the barrel of a Japanese craft whisky - Ichiro's Malt - a brand created in 2008 by Ichiro Akuto, founder of the Chichibu distillery in the same prefecture of Saitama.

We are brewing the red tea in our Parchmen Glass Gaiwan. The leaves look broad and short, with reddish or golden tips. The dry leaves are dominated by the smell of new furniture, almost like the feel of one walking into a teak furniture shop, with overtone of dried orange peels. We are brewing the tea at 3.5g to 120ml of 85°C water for 1 min. The smokiness is integrated into the other flavours to present a woody tone. The brewed leaves smell similarly but with sweet notes of dried longan or red dates. The tea colour is golden-orange, and the flavour is smooth and woody with hints of lemon acidity. There is low bitterness and low astringency. We brewed this tea a second time, to clearer orange and sweeter notes. The third brew is thinner in body, with slight bitterness. This tea is best enjoyed in two brews.

 

Savouring our world in a cup!
Enjoy!