“What is the difference between a single field tea and a Rishouen house blend?”

A new customer recently asked  this question after receiving information regarding our single field and house blend teas from Uji and we thought about sharing our answer here.

Definition of House blend for Rishouen Teas

A blend is a tea containing leaves from multiple origins.

Rishouen blends contain leaves sourced mostly from the spring Uji tea auction, where our tea masters carefully select lots of various cultivars grown by several different producers, in various fields of the Uji region.

These leaves are assembled in house by our tea masters to make Uji teas -Matcha, Sencha, Gyokuro, Kukicha,Hojicha, Genmaicha, etc.. – revealing a balanced flavor, a deep Umami and no displeasing bitterness or astringency.

As such, the flavor of the blends depend on our tea master’s ability to choose the right leaves and assemble them together in the right ratio to obtain refreshing and delicious teas representing the culture of Umami and refinement of Uji teas.

Definition of a Rishouen single field tea

A single field tea contains leaves of a single origin, sourced from one producer, in only one field.

“Single field”, the term that we have been using in English to describe our non blend teas from Uji, is a direct translation of the Japanese term 単一畑 or tan itsu batake. If translated word by word from Japanese to English we get “Only one” and “Field”.

Rishouen single field teas are small batch spring harvests sourced directly from excellent producers in prestigious Uji tea growing regions such as Wazuka, Harayama, Dosembo, Shirakawa or Kyotanabe.

As these teas contain leaves of a single cultivar, grown in a single field, by a single producer, they each have a unique character, and represent the rich terroir of the location they were grown on without dilution of the message of the soil, climate, rain and growing/ manufacturing of their producer.

Since single field teas are not blended, their defects cannot be concealed or improved by the addition of leaves produced in another location or by another producer.

Therefore, the quality of single field teas depends directly on the ability of the producer to read the climate and topography, choose the right location, the right cultivar, the right amount and timing of fertilization, the right timing for harvest as well as the right manufacturing methods after harvest.

As Japanese people drink less and less Japanese green tea, we, Rishouen Tea Co., are very grateful for the Uji single field teas we obtain each year from excellent, dedicated Uji producers. We hope to share delicious single field Uji teas with as many people as possible, as a way to thank the producers who made them and encourage them to continue their amazing work.

Our single field teas from Uji are not listed on our website yet, but please do not hesitate to contact us if you wish to obtain information regarding our range or shipping conditions.