Tea & drinks ── Nihoncha (Japanese tea)
Ise-cha
Ise-cha — Mie's top producer of kabusecha
A Mie Prefecture tea region said to rank among the country's largest in both growing area and production. Kabusecha in particular, centered on the northern Hokusei area, is said to lead the nation in output, prized for its rich umami and sweetness.
- Origin: Mie
- By growing region
- About 300 km west of Tokyo
What it's made of
In the Hokusei area centered on Yokkaichi, Suzuka, Kameyama, and Inabe cities, kabusecha — shaded from direct sunlight for a set period before picking — is said to be the mainstay. Mie is said to lead the country in kabusecha production, known for a vivid green color and mellow taste, and the prefecture as a whole ranks among the largest nationally in both growing area and output. Ise's kabusecha brews into a vivid green liquor, carrying the shaded aroma and a mellow sweetness while keeping a refreshing finish closer to sencha.
How it's made
The tea goes through the same steaming process as sencha, but is finished as kabusecha by adding a set period of shading before picking. The length of shading and the materials used are said to vary by producing area, aiming to draw out umami and sweetness while keeping some of sencha's brightness. Shading runs roughly a week as a guide, and the area's abundant groundwater flowing down from the Suzuka mountains is said to have supported cultivation.
Why it took this shape
Situated near the traditional major regions of Kyoto and Shizuoka, Mie is said to have built its own distinct standing by focusing on kabusecha specifically. The Hokusei area's climate and soil being well suited to kabusecha cultivation is said to be what led to its position as the nation's top producer. The Hokusei area is a plain stretching between the Suzuka mountains and Ise Bay, and water from the mountains together with a mild, sea-adjacent climate are said to have made it well suited to kabusecha.
Before you go
- How to shop in a depachika (department store food hall)A guide to browsing prepared foods and bento, choosing wagashi as a gift with a good shelf life, sampling etiquette, end-of-day discounts, asking for cold packs and wrapping, and finding your way around a depachika floor.
- Enjoying a bussanten (regional products fair)A guide to what's sold at a bussanten (regional products fair), how to find one, when it gets crowded, shelf life and taking food home, and how to fit one around a trip.
- How to use an antenna shopA guide to what's sold at an antenna shop, its restaurant or eat-in counters, its tourist-information role, the cluster of shops around Ginza and Yurakucho, and how to use one before a trip or for last-minute souvenirs.
Dishes in the same style
- Kagoshima-chaA Kagoshima tea region said to lead the country in raw tea (aracha) production. While the yabukita cultivar dominates nationwide, Kagoshima grows a wider range of varieties, said to allow tea-making tailored to different regions and demands.
- Kagoshima no TenchaKagoshima's tencha — the raw material for matcha — is said to have recently overtaken every other prefecture in production. Output has expanded rapidly amid rising global demand for matcha, putting Kagoshima alongside the long-established producing areas of Uji and Aichi.
Ingredients and dishes from this land
Also from Mie
- AhodakiOld takuan pickle, once its flavor and aroma have faded, is desalted and simmered again in soy sauce, a pantry staple from the Hokusei area. Its name — playfully self-deprecating, roughly "doing a foolish thing" — nods to eating it well past its prime, a frugal way to waste nothing.
- Arame MakiRehydrated arame, a brown seaweed once offered to Ise Shrine, is wrapped several times around sardine or saury and simmered in soy sauce and sugar. The choice of fish shifts by locality along the Toba coast.
- Bon JiruA miso soup packed with seasonal vegetables such as burdock, eggplant, and pumpkin. Following Zen Buddhist practice of avoiding killing during Obon, it skips bonito or dried-fish stock, relying instead on fried tofu and a generous mix of vegetables for its savor.
- ChagayuRice is cooked in water steeped with a bag of roasted tea leaves. Born in Iga, where farmland was scarce and rice precious, the extra water was a way to stretch the grain further; in summer some households chill the porridge before eating.
- ChatsuJulienned daikon, carrot, lotus root, kelp, and fried tofu are simmered in vinegar and sugar, a dish from Asahi town. Its name is said to come from "chatsu," the red-lacquered vessel once used to serve vegetarian temple food, and soy sauce is deliberately left out to keep the dish pale.
- Fuki DawaraRice cooked with soybeans is wrapped in butterbur leaves into a small rice-bale shape, an Iga-area harvest offering. It is set before the rice-paddy deity at planting time to pray for a good crop, and doubles as a portable snack for breaks between farm work.