Four Tea Masters, Seven Expressions of Japanese Tea 🍵
Behind every tea, there is a person, and behind every person, a story that often begins long before them.
We’re honored to welcome four tea Masters to Mohei Tea.
They are longtime friends of Mohei. Craftsmen who inherited knowledge from past generations and have continued to refine it through years of practice, experimentation, and countless cups tasted together.
Today, we introduce the tea Masters and the teas we selected from their work:
➡️ Hirosato Goto, 4th-generation tea Master from Toyohashi, Aichi. Revered by his peers as the “King of Wakoucha”. Sought after across Asia, we’re proud to share one of his finest Japanese black teas to date.
➡️ Suzuki Kenji, 2nd-generation tea Master from Kawane, Shizuoka. Renowned for his expertise in Kamairicha and his command of sencha’s core principles, we’ve chosen outstanding expressions of both styles.
➡️ Katahira Jiro, 6th-generation tea Master from Ryogochi, Shizuoka. A true cultivars expert, he has refined the art of mountain-grown tea over decades. For our first collection, we selected an exceptional Sencha and Wakoucha.
➡️ Amma Kosuke, 3rd-generation tea master from Fukuroi, Shizuoka. Often called a scientist of tea, constantly experimenting and pushing boundaries to create teas recognized by institutions and fellow producers alike.
These teas are the result of shared years, shared knowledge, and a deep respect for the craft.
In the time ahead, we’ll take the space to sit with them, in their fields, their workshops, and their everyday lives, to explore how their tea is shaped, cup after cup.
We’ll invite you to sit down with us as well, to enjoy these conversations slowly, a cup of tea in hand.
Which tea are you most curious to taste? 🍵
Let’s dive deeper into the world of Japanese tea—starting with its very own language 🌿
This is the first post in our 5-part carousel series, where we’ll explore Japanese tea culture one word at a time.
From essential terms to poetic concepts, each entry offers a glimpse into the spirit and philosophy behind tea in Japan.
Following the alphabet, today’s featured words include:
Amami, Asamushicha, Atama, Cha, Chadō/Sadō, Chanoyu, Chagama, Chasen, and Chasen Naoshi.
By sharing the meaning behind these key terms, we hope to enrich your experience and deepen your connection to Japanese tea.
Did you already know any of the words from today’s list? 🍵
As we continue to welcome more tea enthusiasts from around the globe, we felt it was the perfect time to shed light on three of the main challenges that causes the crisis thousands of local tea farmers are facing today.
With many local farmers closing their businesses every year and a rich culture slowly disappearing; Mohei Tea is determined to shift this narrative and offer long-term solutions to these problems.
What started as a dream is now becoming a reality, thanks to the steady growth of Mohei Tea and the support of our community.
Raising awareness of this crisis is already a part of the solution. We are grateful for the many supporters and tea-lovers who not only follow us here but also contribute to spread the beauty and wonders of Japanese Tea through their own appreciation.
We have a bold vision for the future, with many plans to bring it to life. While building a brand comes with its sets of challenges, we cherish every moment of this journey and are excited for what lies ahead. We hope that you are too 😊
Fresh leaves, warm water, a few minutes of stillness.
That's really all Shincha asks for.
What it gives back; the brightness, the soft sweetness, that quiet umami at the end, feels like more than the sum of its parts.
But maybe that's the point. Some things only show themselves when you slow down enough to meet them.
What is Shincha? The tea that everyone awaits each year 🍃
Shincha is often translated as “new tea” but in reality, it refers to the first tea released from Japan’s spring harvest.
After months of winter dormancy, the tea fields awaken, producing leaves rich in freshness, brightness, and natural sweetness.
Unlike other Japanese green teas like Sencha or Matcha, Shincha is not a category, but a seasonal moment. A tea experienced at its peak, when the new harvest first becomes available.
Its character is often described as vibrant and lively, with a fresh green aroma and a more immediate, expressive profile in the cup.
Let’s explore what makes Shincha unique, from its definition and harvest to its role in Japanese tea culture and seasonality.
For a deeper understanding, we’ve written a full article on Shincha, covering its origins, flavor profile, and how to enjoy it at its best. You can dive into it from our link in bio 📖
Our Shincha 2026 Nº0 Kochi is now complete 🍃
After weeks of careful work and dedication, we are happy to bring our freshest tea of the year, to you.
This year, it is crafted exclusively from the Sofu cultivar. Known for its bright sweetness and refined aromatic profile, Sofu brings a unique touch to this year’s Shincha.
Finished with a light firing, the tea preserves a vivid and unaltered impression of the season. In the cup, it reveals a gentle balance between fresh green vibrancy and soft, rounded sweetness, supported by delicate floral and fruity notes.
A light astringency brings structure and clarity, while a subtle umami lingers, creating a smooth and refreshing finish.
As you move through the second and third infusions, new aromatic layers begin to unfold. We encourage you to take your time with it 😊
A new year, captured in a single tea, finally available 🍵
Brewing Wakoucha is an invitation to slow down 🍵
Unlike green tea, Wakoucha unfolds through warmth and time.
Boiling water, longer infusions, and patience allow its full character to emerge; gentle, rounded, and deeply comforting.
Kurenai is a Japanese black tea crafted by Tea Master Honda Mohei, inspired by a revived production method dating back to the 1960s left by Takashi Honda (3rd-generation) and his wife.
Through careful withering, controlled oxidation, and a final light roasting, the leaves develop a natural sweetness and a distinctive aroma reminiscent of apple.
Made exclusively from tender summer buds, and aged for several years, Kurenai offers a smooth, scarlet-colored infusion with no bitterness, only a soft richness that lingers on the palate.
With each infusion, the tea evolves, revealing new layers of fragrance and depth.
In this step-by-step guide, we show you how to brew it perfectly at home. From leaf quantity to infusion time, each detail helps unlock the full warmth and elegance of this Wakoucha.
Swipe through to discover the method, refine your brewing, and enjoy Kurenai as it was meant to be.
Our new handmade Katakuchi Chawan is finally here 🍵
This Matcha bowl was created in Komatsu, Ishikawa, in collaboration with Taniguchi Clay Factory, a studio that has worked with Hanasaka ceramic stone for over 75 years.
In this piece, the form comes to life through the hands of Kazuhisa Higashi, 4th generation pottery master, whose gestures reflect both inherited knowledge and personal expression.
From the first extraction of the stone to the final shaping on the wheel, each step reveals a deep understanding of the material and the quiet discipline of craft.
Hanasaka stone, found only in limited quantities in this region, carries within it the memory of the land. Rich in iron and finely textured, it reveals a soft, nuanced surface when fired, a tone that shifts subtly with light and use.
Its natural plasticity allows the artisan to shape forms that are both precise and expressive, where every curve is intentional.
The glaze, made from recycled residual clay, adds a quiet warmth to the surface, a final layer that reflects both sustainability and care.
Each chawan is handmade, and no two are ever exactly alike; subtle variations in form, tone, and texture are part of its character.
We hope you’ll enjoy this piece born from collaboration, shaped by tradition, and guided by a shared respect for material, craft, and time.
Where does quality begin? 🍃 For Mohei, it does not start with technique, tools, or even experience.
It begins much earlier, in the way you approach your work.
Growing up, he watched his parents and grandparents in the fields. What stayed with him was not only what they did, but how they did it. There was no compromise. Not in the small gestures, not in the larger decisions.
That spirit became the foundation of his own path.
He often says that making tea is not only about being attentive, but about being sensitive; able to perceive the smallest changes, to feel what the tea requires at any given moment; tea demands a level of precision that leaves no room for approximation.
The quality of the tea is not something added at the end. It is decided from the very beginning, in the mindset of the person who makes it.
When you realize that what you do has become your life. 🍃
In this conversation, Tea Master Katahira Jiro reflects on a moment that changed everything for him.
More than ten years ago, following the Fukushima nuclear accident, tea produced across Japan was incinerated as a precaution.
Like many others, Jiro had to burn the tea he had cultivated. It was not something he questioned. It was necessary. But as he watched his tea disappear, something unexpected happened. He began to cry.
A reaction he had never experienced before.
In that moment, he understood something clearly: What he had been building all along was not only tea. It was his life.
A difficult memory, born from a tragic event, yet one that revealed something essential.
Perhaps, in different ways, we all encounter a moment like this.
Watch the full conversation with Tea Master Katahira Jiro on our YouTube channel.
Letting nature take the lead 🍃
About forty years ago, Goto’s father began a gradual shift in the way they cultivated their tea fields.
Little by little, they moved away from conventional agriculture and toward natural cultivation, allowing the plants to grow according to nature’s own rhythm.
Natural cultivation goes one step further than organic cultivation: no fertilizers and no pesticides. Instead, it relies on natural soil ecology, biodiversity, and the balance of the ecosystem to create a self-sustaining environment where tea plants absorb nutrients directly from the soil.
The beginning was difficult. Entire harvests could sometimes be devastated, and the results were unpredictable. But with patience and observation, the fields slowly began to stabilize.
Today, the tea trees have adapted to their environment. Even when a difficult year occurs, the plants often recover and offer beautiful buds in the years that follow.
After decades of learning, the Goto family now watches over their fields with a different mindset: less control, and greater trust in the natural cycle.
From this relationship with nature comes tea with remarkable depth and aroma.
Meet Hirosato Goto, 4th Generation Tea Master 🍃
Based in Toyohashi, Aichi, his family operates a factory primarily dedicated to Japanese green tea production. But over the years, Goto has chosen to pursue his own path within that tradition.
His personal specialty lies in hand-picked Wakoucha (Japanese black tea).
Rather than applying a single fixed method, he carefully observes each leaf, working with tender young buds and adapting his approach to bring out their best character. Each harvest, each leaf, asks for its own treatment.
For Goto, becoming a Tea Master means learning to understand the tea completely, so that every method, every gesture, serves one purpose:
To reveal the most beautiful flavor each leaf can offer.
This is the path he continues to pursue.
You can watch the full interview on our YouTube channel 🍵
