Organic Kirishima Master Grand Reserve Matcha – Green Tea

Brew & Taste

This tea excels with its full, creamy taste where each note is perfectly balanced. It unfolds a strong umami flavor on the palate, naturally enhanced with its natural sweetness with mild notes of greenery and fresh foliage. Don’t expect any astringency or tannins; everything is smooth and fluid. The second and third sip will offer a new layer of flavor full of fresh sprouts with maybe a hint of grasses or nuts. It will help you focus and make your personal tea ritual into a meditative experience.

Origins

This tea comes from Japan, from the Kirishima region on the island of Kyushu, at an altitude of 400–600 meters. It’s here that the legend of the long-nosed Tengu demon, protector of the mountains and their secrets, has been told since time immemorial. But let's move from legend to reality.

The unique character of the local teas is mainly due to the clean air, refreshing fog, and rich volcanic soil. Kirishima is also one of the leaders in organic tea cultivation in Japan – farmers here continue traditions dating back to medieval monks and develop them using modern, certified methods.

Beyond geography, the history of this tea is also fascinating. The history of Kirishima's tea culture dates back to the 14th century, when Buddhist monks brought the first tea seeds here. For centuries, tea was grown traditionally, without chemical intervention and farmers thus laid the foundations for today's organic cultivation.

In the Hayashi family, one of the most famous in the region, this tradition has been cultivated for five generations: Mr. Kisuke Hayashi brought seeds from Shizuoka in 1897, laying the foundations for Kirishima's modern tea history. The matcha you have in front of you is produced by Nishi Tea, which has been growing tea plants organically for more than 20 years. Every morning, the company's president walks around the 60-hectare plantation, using all his senses to assess its current condition.

The trees growing around the gardens protect the bushes from wind and foreign influences, wild birds take care of pesky pests, and most of the fields are cultivated without the use of pesticides or chemical fertilizers. This way of working is demanding, but it produces tea of exceptional quality and the true taste of nature.

This matcha is made from the Saemidori cultivar, prized for its natural sweetness and high amino acid content. Workers cover the tea plants with special mats for more than 20 days to shade them from the sun and promote the rich green color and distinctive umami flavor of the leaves. After harvesting, they produce tencha – the leaves are steamed, dried, and stripped of their veins and stems. Only then does the traditional stone mill ‘chausu’ come into play: the workers use it to grind the de-veined tea leaves into a silky smooth powder. This process is extremely demanding, yields are low, and that is why organic matcha is so rare.

Every sip of Organic Kirishima Master Grand Reserve Matcha transports you to the mountains, where legends, traditions, and nature come together in one masterful experience.

Tea packaging preview

We pack our teas in a strong, zip-lock aluminum packet which allows you to easily re-seal its contents. This container protects the quality of the tea against humidity, light or foreign odors, all of which could noticeably affect the quality of the brew.