Bizenya: #07 2023 Shimizu Mukashi Blend – Handpicked Sayama Ichoucha Sencha 手摘み萎凋香煎茶 清水昔 Bizenya

Bizenya’s tea merchant Keiichiro Shimizu is proud of his Shimizu Mukashi blend, both for its flavor and its aroma that is incomparable to other teas. This shincha is handpicked primarily from his own Nogi-en tea farm, located in Takahagi, Hidaka city (Sayama region, well-known for their Sayamacha). The Nogi-en tea farm is cultivated without use of pesticides and leaves from this farm are only handpicked and only once a year. 

It takes Shimuzi-san and his staff 10 days to handpick the 20 acre Nogi-en for their “Shimizu Mukashi” aracha. Aracha is a type of traditional, unrefined tea in which stems and leaf fannings are not filtered out. For this special preparation, the freshly picked tea leaves will go through a carefully controlled shading process, termed ichoka (icho = withering, ka=aroma), which concentrates and preserves the subtle aromas.

Because it is handpicked, the rolled tea leaves will appear larger than what one may be used to seeing, perhaps giving a wild look, foreshadowing its ambition. As you begin the first sip, the alluring aroma slips past your tongue followed instantaneously by a sweet and refreshing taste. You may be surprised by the desire for time to stop and forever live in that perfect moment when aroma and taste both tantalize and satisfy. This is the magic of Bizenya’s Shimizu-mukashi shincha. One to look forward to every year!

Processing

1. Withering in the sun. After 30 minutes the leaf starts to blacken with enzymatic oxidization creating a floral aroma.
2. Sencha processing
3. Finishing – sorting out stems and fannings, including green-roasting using an old-style drying machine. The hot air used in to dry out the unrefined tea for long-term storage also adds a little toastiness to the fruity floral aroma.

Product Info

• Cultivars:
• Yabukita (Bizenya)
• Fukumidori (Bizenya & Yutaka Miyaoka) 
• Harvest: May
• Region: Takahagi, Hidetaka City, Saitama, Japan
• Production notes: Handpicked, grown without pesticides

Steeping Recommendation from Bizenya

• Tea: 5g
• Water: 150ml
• Water temperature / time
• First steeping: 70C (158F), 30 sec – Enjoy the fresh aroma and scent
• 2nd steeping: 70C (158F), 10 sec – Enjoy the unique taste
• 3rd steeping: 85C (185F), 30 sec  – Enjoy the refreshing taste and aroma