What is Kamikatsu Awa Bancha?
This is lactic acid fermented Awa bancha tea produced in Kamikatsu Town.
A uniquely flavored tea made in mountainous areas that is boiled, steeped, and fermented with lactic acid bacteria.
When brewed, it has a golden color and a refreshing taste.
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Traditional Tokushima tea made by Awai Shoten
My first encounter with Kamikatsu Awabancha was four years ago, and I still remember it as a shocking and moving experience.
The scenery where the tea leaves grow was not as neatly arranged as I had imagined, but rather the trees were growing wildly, so naturally that an amateur like me would not know where they were. I was fascinated by the vitality of the evening tea buds, which were strong, sturdy, and trying their best to grow.
Kamikatsu Awabancha, which has a history of 800 years, is a tea that has influenced the culture of Kamikatsu Town and is deeply ingrained in people's lives; it has been cultivated locally as a part of their daily lives.
The method of post-fermenting tea leaves with lactic acid has been passed down through the generations, and it can be said that the transmission of the flavor has handed down the culture and life of Kamikatsu Town.
With the number of late-season tea farmers decreasing year by year, an initiative has been started to provide opportunities for people to experience tea making together with farmers and receive training.
This is our third year participating in the Bancha Owner Program to learn how to make Bancha. The Awabancha tea making method is a tradition that has been passed down from generation to generation, and the taste changes from household to household and year to year, giving it a deep, complex flavor.
Through the experience of the owner of Bancha, he has built deep connections with the local community and farmers, and every step of the tea-making process, from harvesting to boiling, rubbing, soaking, drying and sorting, is carried out by hand to create the ultimate product, packed full of the bounty of nature.
Please come and visit the Kamikatsu Awa Bancha site.
Until tea is made
Creating fields that are easy to harvest.
July to mid-August
Manually check for any mixtures.
The tea leaves are boiled in a boiling kettle to sterilize them.
It is crushed using a traditional tool called a fune.
The tea leaves are placed in a bucket and pounded with a pestle to remove the air.
Ferment and age for several weeks.
After being removed from the barrel, it is dried in the sun for 2-3 days.
After drying, the fruit are sorted and shipped.
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