Hoshino seichaen - Ceremonial Matcha Hoshinotsuyu (星野製茶園 星の露) 40g

There are 47 prefecture in Japan, of which 44 makes tea. The highest ranked tea master is 10-dan. There are about fifteen 10-dan tea masters, shared amongst these 44 prefectures. Hoshino seichaen alone has two 10-dan tea masters. 

While a lot of tea shops and cafes around the world freely use the term "ceremonial grade matcha", it simply mean the best product of the farm made using prescribed methods (like shading for 20 days before harvest). It does not mean the matcha is truly used for authentic matcha ceremonies. For Hoshino seichaen, their ceremonial matcha is truly used by the matcha lineages and schools since the samurai times. In fact, these schools appoint Hoshino seichaen to make their specific matcha for their lineage's matcha ceremonies.

We obtain our matcha from Hoshino seichaen directly via wholesale. Their matcha is harvested only once a year, mid April. For dentou hon gyokuro (伝統本玉露) and ceremonial matcha like Hoshinotsuyu, the tea bushes grow under a wooden erected structure, covered with a black mat called kabuse, and with dried straw called semaki rolled out over the black mat for 20 days or more depending on weather. This reduces the sun exposure, retaining the amino acid called theanine which produces an umami flavour. For normal gyokuro and non-ceremonial matcha, the black mat is dragged across the tea shrubs without the wooden erected structure.

Due to limited stock, the matcha can only be purchased directly at Pacto by Parchmen (Lavender) and Pacto by Parchmen (Maxwell). Please buy only one per person.


More information about Hoshino seichaen: chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.hoshitea.com/assets/pdf/pamphlet202312_en.pdf

Information about the tea masters are at page 7 and information about the ceremonial matcha for the different tea lineages is at page 19.

(Shown in the photo is the 10-dan tea master and senior managing director Shinya Yamaguchi)