Pays : Japon – Discovering Tea

Matcha mania

6 June 2025

Matcha has taken social media influencers by storm. Until now, its following was limited to tea enthusiasts and connoisseurs of Japanese tea ceremonies, as well as a few pastry chefs who like to use this green powder in their recipes.
But matcha has suddenly shifted centre stage – or rather, centre screen. It may sometimes look strangely fluorescent, but in a world where the real and virtual are merging, does anyone care? Meanwhile, in Japan, the stones that grind the shade-grown tea leaves into a fine powder turn slowly. There is no guarantee that they will be able to meet this unexpected surge in demand.

Mechanised harvesting

16 June 2023

In Japan, the most prestigious harvest of the year takes place between late April and early May. This is when the famous Ichibancha, or first-flush teas, are made. The next plucking takes place in early June. This produces some interesting teas, but they aren’t up to the standard of the previous harvest. Here, on the outskirts of Shizuoka, I’m taking part in my own way, riding a Kawasaki that’s very different from the ones you see on our city streets. Because of the cost of labour, Japan is one of the few countries in the world that uses machines to pick its tea leaves.