 |
| Competition Grade Tea |
|
| - Limited / Now Available! |
|
|
|
 |
|
| Main Topic |
 |
| Seasonal Topics & Items |
|
|
| Dear Sir and Madam, |
|
| We at Hibiki-an THANK YOU VERY MUCH for your continued patronage and support.
We are pleased to offer useful information for your healthy life and continued
enjoyment of Japanese green tea. In this issue, we talk about 'Tea Competition (Competition Grade Tea)'. |
|
|
Tea Competition (Competition Grade Tea)
|
|
Executives of the tea industry association serve as judges of the exclusive competition. They strictly judge and critique the contributed teas to provide feedback to tea farmers and producers in order to improve Japanese tea. Contributed teas are judged on appearance, aroma, flavor, color of the brewed tea infusion, used tea leaves, and so on for each category: Gyokuro, Sencha, and Matcha. In the case of Matcha, Tencha, which is the form before being ground into powder, is evaluated.
Toward the end of the competition, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries selects the most excellent tea in each category: Gyokuro, Sencha, and Matcha. All teas contributed to the exclusive competition are generally of premium quality. And, if the judges find any defect, imperfection, or area that needs improvement, this information is passed on to the tea farmers so that they can improve their agricultural techniques.
When the judges evaluate the tea's appearance, the tea leaves are checked for uniformity of shape and color: bright, deep green, etc. More healthy and vigorous tea leaves are bright and deep green. And the most unique feature of teas contributed to the competition is that they are quite short and fine, like tiny green needles, because they are harvested as very young tea sprouts and processed accordingly. Although generally the best time to gather tea leaves is when the tea tree has five sprouts, and three sprouts for even the highest grade tea, these tea leaves are picked when the tea tree has only one or two sprouts. It is quite different from general teas which are not so fine like needles. And farmers specially process the tea so the leaves retain their fine needle shape for the exclusive tea competition.
When the judges critique the color of the brewed tea infusion, teas are evaluated for color brightness and imperfections. Tea which is healthy and vigorous has a very bright color. If the tea leaves have any imperfections, even if quite small, the imperfection can be identified in the brewed tea infusion. Negative indications include a red or black tint to the brewed infusion or an infusion that is too yellow, along with turbidity, strength or intensity, deposition condition, and so on.
As for the aroma and flavor, teas are evaluated for generous, smooth, and mellow flavor and aroma, and various imperfections. Teas contributed to the National Tea Competition usually have a full and generous flavor that is smooth, mellow, and deep, along with the fresh aroma of young sprouts. Gyokuro and Matcha have an especially noble aroma created by shading the tea plants from sunlight for more than 20 days before harvest.
As above, teas contributed to the competition are harvested when the tea tree has only one or two sprouts. In general, the flavor of the tea becomes more intense when the tea tree produces two to five sprouts. When the tree has only one or two sprouts, the flavor is usually quite weak because the tea tree is unable to fully absorb nutrition from the soil. Therefore, to grow tea for the National Tea Competition, farmers must encourage the tea trees to absorb much more nutrition from fertilizer when the tea tree has only one or two sprouts. It is common for even the highest grade teas to be harvested when the tea tree has three to five sprouts. It is very difficult and requires knowledge and wisdom accumulated through time and tradition and daily great efforts. The knowledge accumulated through growing teas for the National Tea Competition not only helps to improve the farming and production of high grade tea, improved techniques learned through tea production can often be used in other areas of agriculture, all around Japan. |
|
|
 |
|
| The site of the national tea competition |
|
|
 |
|
| Evaluating the appearance of Gyokuro and Sencha |
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
| Evaluating the appearance of Matcha (Tencha) |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
| Evaluating water color |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
| Evaluated teas are sorted in descending order |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
| Evaluating aroma |
|
|
|
|
[Limited] Competition Grade Tea / Blended Sencha Items |
|
| Competition Grade Tea is limited edition of just 450 packages each and Blended Sencha is limited edition of just 600 packages each ONLY AVAILABLE this winter season.
|
|
Competition Grade Tea |
|
|
 |
|
[Limited] Competition Grade Gyokuro Pinnacle (30g/1.06oz): US$38.00
(Now Available: limited edition of 450 packages ONLY AVAILABLE this winter season)
This Competition Grade Gyokuro Pinnacle has an excellent, deeply mellow taste. The National Tea Competition is held in order to improve Japanese tea agricultural and manufacturing techniques, and to congratulate and encourage those that have produced outstanding tea... |
|
|
|
 |
|
[Limited] Competition Grade Sencha Pinnacle (40g/1.41oz): US$30.00
(Now Available: limited edition of 450 packages ONLY AVAILABLE this winter season)
Competition Grade Sencha Pinnacle is available only at the National Tea Fair, attended by tea connoisseurs and those within the Japanese green tea industry. This fine green tea has an excellent, deeply mellow taste... |
|
|
|
 |
|
[Limited] Competition Grade Matcha Pinnacle (20g/0.71oz): US$46.00
(Now Available: limited edition of 450 packages ONLY AVAILABLE this winter season)
This Competition Grade Matcha Pinnacle has an excellent, deeply mellow taste. The National Tea Competition is held several times a year in Japan. Sponsored by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, and attended by executives of the Japanese tea industry... |
|
|
|
 |
|
[Limited] Competition Grade Matcha Pinnacle Refill (60g/2.12oz): US$115.00
(Now Available: limited edition of 450 packages ONLY AVAILABLE this winter season)
This Competition Grade Matcha Premium Refill package is an excellent value. The price is actually discounted 17%. This has an excellent, deeply mellow taste. The National Tea Competition is held several times a year in Japan. Sponsored by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries... |
|
|
Blended Sencha |
|
|
 |
|
[Limited] Blended Sencha Premium (80g/2.82oz): US$20.00
(Now Available: limited edition of 850 packages ONLY AVAILABLE this autumn season)
Blended Sencha Premium is a blend of Sencha and Gyokuro. This tea is composed of four breeds of green tea: Kanayamidori, Sayamakaori, Yabukita, and Okumidori... |
|
|
|
| Are you enjoying your green moments? Hibiki-an encourages those who love to drink green tea. If you have any requests or questions regarding our teas or services, please don't hesitate to contact us. We sincerely hope that you enjoy genuine Hibiki-an Japanese green tea direct to you from Kyoto, Japan. |
|
| Sincerely yours, |
|
| Atsushi Yasui |
Seasonal Topics & Items
|
|
|
|
|
[New Year's Tea] Golden Celebration Tea |
|
The combination of green tea with gold flakes makes a beautiful presentation. Gold is an ancient symbol of prosperity, and adds significance to any special occasion.
At Hibiki-an, we offer Golden Celebration Gyokuro and also Golden Celebration Matcha. Golden Celebration teas are also a perfect gift for any special occasion. It is a special moment, full of happiness and hope for the future.
Please sprinkle the gold flakes over each cup of tea after brewing or each bowl of Matcha after preparing the Matcha. The smooth flavor of Gyokuro or Matcha creates a peaceful atmosphere, and the lovely glimmering gold flakes as they float on the surface of the tea delights and occupies the mind.
We hope you enjoy the beauty and flavor of this special blend of gold and our finest tea.
|
|
|
 |
|
| The sparkle of gold flakes which float on the surface of the tea delights and occupies the mind |
|
|
 |
| Gold is an ancient symbol of prosperity and welfare |
|
|
 |
|
| Three packages of gold flakes are attached separately |
|
|
|
|
Golden Celebration Gyokuro, Matcha and the Gift Set items |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
[Holiday Gift] FUROSHIKI Wrapping Fabric / FUROSHIKI Gift Items
|
|
We added some FUROSHIKI Wrapping Fabric Items to respond to customers' requests. They are suitable to wrap tea or snacks / candy purchased on our website for gift. It is of course reusable and perfect for wrapping anything from a gift to a Bento lunch box. It can also be used as a decorative wall hanging, table cloth, scarf, and so on. It depends on your idea.
FUROSHIKI Gift Items, which are carefully wrapped with the FUROSHIKI Japanese wrapping fabric, are available too.
Please take a look. These items would make perfect gifts for friends, family, and professional colleagues, or any special or romantic occasion! |
|
[New] FUROSHIKI Wrapping Fabric Items |
|
|
Japanese Snacks / Candy items |
|
Japanese "Amuse-Bouche" (Foods to Amuse the Mouth)
Traditional Japanese Snacks / Candy pair beautifully with any kind of Japanese tea. Like the French "Amuse-Bouche" their purpose is to amuse the mouth or palate, in this case, while drinking green tea. Since 16th century Japan, they have been refined and improved upon over hundreds of years to create absolute harmony of flavor between the green tea and the delicious sweet confection or savory snack. Such as the feeling you get when you have green tea and sushi together, your palate understands that this is an ideal match of flavor... (more info) |
|
|
 |
|
OHIGASHI (handmade confectionary): US$23.00
OHIGASHI is one of the most traditional Japanese confectionary which is often served at Japanese tea ceremony and pairs very well with Japanese green tea. At last, we added OHIGASHI which is made at Tsuboneya, a confectioner in Kyoto well-known for their beautiful confectionary made by hand with careful attention to quality and detail...
|
|
|
|
 |
|
YOHKAN (sweet bean jelly): US$16.50
YOHKAN sweet bean jelly is one of the most popular and classic confections in Japan. We developed YOHKAN with an established AN bean jam manufacturer located in Kyoto. Our four flavors of YOHKAN are manufactured with careful attention to quality and domestic ingredients...
|
|
|
|
 |
|
OKAKI (handmade rice cracker): US$23.00
OKAKI rice cracker is one of the most popular and classic snacks in Japan. At last, we added OKAKI which is made at Fujisawa Eiseido known for creating OKAKI using a traditional manufacturing process with careful attention to quality and natural ingredients. This OKAKI is traditionally-made by hand using only natural ingredients sourced only in Japan...
|
|
|
|
|
[New & Limited] Teapots / Cups, Matcha Bowls / Accessories |
|
| We have arranged for 20 limited edition and new teapots / cups, and 16 limited edition and new Matcha Bowls / Accessories. The 13
limited edition items are all available only this autumn and winter season. |
|
| Teapots / Cups shopping category: click here |
| Matcha Bowls / Accessories shopping category: click here |
|
|
|
(Notice 1) New Shopping Page Design
New shopping page design was recently implemented on our website. It enables you to change the shopping page to display our products as a vertical list of item details, or as horizontal rows of product image tiles, depending on how you prefer to shop. You also can sort our products by price, grade, popularity, and so on. We hope this will make your visit to our website even more enjoyable. Would you please try it and see? |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
(Notice 2) Price Reduction on All Merchandise (Sep. 5th)
We reduced our prices approximately 5% to 10%, averagely 8.5% on all merchandise on our website due to recent exchange rate fluctuation. The updated price
was effective on and after September 5, 2014. We will continuously make
efforts to provide genuine Japanese tea and culture to our customers. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Account info
You can view your account info, including your order history, as well as change your email, password, or home address or add a new shipping address to your address book by clicking here.
Or if you prefer, we are happy to update your account info for you. Just let us know. Please don't hesitate to contact us!
|
|
To unsubscribe from Hibiki-an Newsletters
You can remove your email address from the mailing list by clicking here.
Or if you prefer, email us with your FULL NAME and we will immediately remove your email address from the mailing list.
|
|
|
|
|
|
