Annual Ajimano Tea Harvest

Once-a-year opportunity at the Ajimano teahouse

Jerome Lee May 25, 2014 - 1 min read

<p>An elderly woman plucking tea leaves from the plantation.</p>

<p>The beautiful Ajimano garden, where 15 poems from the Manyōshū (万葉集) are inscribed into stone.</p>

<p>Visitors to the event emptying their collected tea leaves into a huge basket.</p>

<p>Visitors washing their hands after harvesting tea leaves.</p>

<p>Collecting charcoal to heat up the board for drying out tea leaves</p>

<p>A staff member from the teahouse showing visitors how to massage and dry out the tea leaves to ensure maximum flavour.</p>

<p>Singing the Ajimano Chamomi Uta (味真野茶揉み唄) with utmost pride in their voices</p>

<p>A staff member showing how to distribute the tea evenly.</p>

<p>Fragrant tea accompanied with delicious green tea azuki mochi and cake!</p>

Ajimano Park in Echizen city is said to house 15 poems from the Manyōshū (万葉集), the oldest existing collection of Japanese poetry, and not far away is a teahouse where visitors can experience making traditional Ajimano tea.

These series of photos are a collection of an annual event held at the teahouse where doors are opened free to visitors. They are able to experience every step of making Ajimano tea, beginning with the chatsumi (tea leaf picking), to drying it out and massaging it, and finally having an instructor explain the brewing process. In between drying the leaves, the staff sang the Ajimano Chamomi Uta, the song traditionally song while brewing the tea.

The event is limited to the first 40 people so be sure to get there early!

Jerome Lee @jerome.lee

Singaporean who lived in Melbourne, Australia for 3 years, and undertook a journalism degree. A lover of soul, funk music (Motown especially), and many other forms of music. Love meeting new people, and creative things (art, fashion, photography, design, films...). Currently working at JapanTrave...