Kawane Tsuchiya Tea Farm, Japan
Yesterday, I had the privilege of visiting Kawane Tsuchiya Tea Farm. It sits at an altitude of 600 metres, in a town called Orokubo, about 160 km southwest of Tokyo, in the mountains of Kawanehoncho, just inland from Shizuoka.
Kazuaki and Yuko received me very warmly. Kazuaki used to be a production director for a local television station, while his wife Yuko was his assistant. But they decided to abandon television for living and working on this remote tea farm owned by Yuko’s parents.
The road trip up to the farm was wonderful, winding its way up steep hills, through dense forests.
The farm itself spreads out over steep slopes overlooking the gorgeous nature, and is described as a “tea garden in the sky”. Kazuaki and Yuko invited me to taste tea from a terrace perched above the deep valley, from which I could gaze at the Southern Alps and listen to the sounds of deer.
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As we sipped tea and looked across the wondrous valley, Kazuaki and Yuko enchanted me with the history and stories of the tea farm. It has been in Yuko’s family for some 300 years.
The farm produces Kawane-cha, which is considered to be the highest quality premium tea in Japan. The high altitude enables the tea plants to grow more slowly so that they are harvested in the late spring.
Combined with clean water and rich soil, this produces very, high quality, award-winning teas with enhanced aroma and flavour. It is one of the highest certified producers within the “Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems” program, which was established to conserve and sustain traditional agriculture, cultures and landscapes.
This was truly a magical experience.