Behind every bowl of matcha or sip of sencha lies a long and intricate journey — one that begins in the tea fields and ends in the stillness of the tea room. Understanding this journey is not only essential for any tea practitioner but also deepens your connection to each cup you prepare and serve.
Let’s follow the path of green tea from the earth to the ceremony.
The Birthplace: The Tea Fields
It all begins with the Camellia sinensis plant. In Japan, tea is often grown in foggy, mountainous regions where the climate and soil provide ideal growing conditions. Tea farmers tend to their crops with great care, pruning, shading, and harvesting by hand during specific seasons to ensure the best quality leaves.
For matcha, the leaves are shaded from sunlight for several weeks before harvest. This process increases chlorophyll levels and amino acids, resulting in that vivid green color and rich, umami flavor unique to high-grade matcha.
The Art of Processing
Once picked, the leaves are quickly steamed to prevent oxidation — this step preserves the tea’s green color and fresh aroma. After steaming, the leaves are dried and sorted. In the case of matcha, they are then ground into a fine powder using granite stone mills. This method is slow and meticulous, preserving the delicate flavors and texture.
Other types of green tea, like sencha or gyokuro, are rolled and shaped rather than powdered, offering a different drinking experience that is just as rooted in tradition.
The Final Destination: The Tea Room
When the tea reaches the practitioner’s hands, it carries with it the energy of the soil, the weather, the farmers, and the entire process. Preparing and serving it is not just an act of hospitality — it’s a way of honoring everything that came before.
At Tea Ceremony School, we guide our students to see this connection — from leaf to cup — not only as a technical understanding but as a spiritual one. When you prepare tea with awareness of its origins, every gesture becomes more meaningful. You begin to see the tea not as a drink, but as a story — one you are privileged to share.