Hakkōcha Tea

Fermented teas from Japan are an absolute rarity, whose recognition is largely confined to their regions of cultivation even within Japan itself. For Kancha (寒茶), literally “cold tea” or “winter tea”, entire tea branches are steamed in a wooden vat over a wood fire and then dried in the cool winter air. Kurocha (黒茶), Awabancha (阿波晩茶), and Goishicha (碁石茶) are unique tea rarities from Ehime and Shikoku, which undergo double fermentation after harvesting, developing distinctively woody-sweet, slightly tart flavour profiles.