Product Overview
Southern Kyushu city, with its climate characterized by large temperature differences and deep mists, is ideal for green tea cultivation. In fact, it is the top producer of green tea out of all of Japan's cities, towns, and villages. By prefecture, Kagoshima is the second-largest producer after Shizuoka.
Chiran uses land fertilized by accumulated volcanic ash, allowing for a wide variety of teas to be cultivated compared to other areas. Chiran tea is mostly what one would call a "deep steamed" tea. After being picked, normal Sencha (the most common type of green tea) is steamed for 30 to 40 seconds, but Chiran tea is steamed roughly twice as long as 60 to 80 seconds. The longer steaming time suppresses the astringency and brings out a mellow richness. Further, since the leaves become finer, they produce a deeper green color, making them suitable for cold brewing.
Chiran tea has the perfect balance and harmony of refreshing aroma, mellow flavor, and bitter taste. It has won a variety of awards, such as the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Award, or the National Tea Reviewers Japan Farmer's Central Chairperson Prize, with reviews of quality and taste continuing to rise.
The infusion isn’t overly cloudy, but it has enough tea particles to make it a rich, medium shade of green. The aroma is a pleasant bouquet of seaweed, grass, and slight honey notes. The taste is well defined, light, and refreshing. It is a clean, grassy flavor that leaves only a bit of astringency in the back of your throat. It is suitable for any situation and anytime, a quick eye-opener and energizer, great served with sushi or other Asian foods, after meals, teatime, and so on.
Brewing Guide: Brewing Chiran with different parameters can yield very different results. A low brewing temperature, as well as a short infusion time, can make it mellow. 70C (158F) is at the low end of the temperature scale for sencha, but it unlocks a mellow flavor profile in this tea.
