What is Bancha?
Bancha (番茶) means ‘common tea’ or and is a type of Japanese tea that is popular for daily use. Depending on the specific kind of Bancha, the leaves for its production may originate from a spring, summer or autumn harvest. Bancha can be made from the leaves left-over from the first crop or from late summer growth. Taken from the lower part of the plant the leaves are slightly bigger and have a firmer structure than the ones used for Sencha. After the harvest and steaming, the whole leaves, including stems, go through the same rolling process as Sencha. The end product is slightly flatter needles due to of the different quality of leaves. As it is made from coarser leaves and contains stalks and stems, it is low in caffeine but at the same time it is full of nutrition. As the lower leaves are shielded from the sun by the upper ones fewer bitter compounds are produced, This and the large size of the leaves contributes to the tea’s mild and refreshing taste.
Akihiro “Akky” Kita is our president and lead farmer here at Obubu. His desire to make this tea available to the general public is the foundation of Kyoto Obubu Tea Farms. In college, Akky took up a part-time job as a farmhand in Wazuka, and fell in love with the tea of this region. He made the decision then to leave college and devote his time to mastering the art of tea farming. Recognizing the need for independent farmers like himself to spread the joy of drinking Japanese tea, he travels each year during the winter off-season to bring Japanese tea to people all over the world.