Kei Nishida's Blog, page 30

The Romance and History of Green Tea

In 1986, or thirty-four years ago today, fans were treated to the Karate Kid Part II with actor Ralph Macchio playing the now iconic character of Daniel LaRusso. In one memorable scene, Daniel is seen with the beautiful Kumiko (played by Tamilyn Tomita) inside a home in the middle of the Okinawan countryside. By the window, wearing her "yukata" or summer kimono, Kumiko performs cha-no-yu, or a traditional tea ceremony.

Ever so gracefully, Kumiko wipes each bamboo implement with a red triangular ...

Everything you need to know about Matcha Chasyaku (茶杓)

Are you the type of person who likes to measure all things in everything that needs to be measured? Unless you are the salt bae type of person who could just dash a proximate amount of salt on his steak, most of us want to have the exact amount or measurement in what we are doing to have the perfect experience, be it cooking, art, music and in fact, in almost everything that we do.

What is Chasaku (茶杓)?

Especially in what we consume, we try to be as accurate as possible on what we put in our f...

Everything you need to know about Matcha Chasyaku

Are you the type of person who likes to measure all things in everything that needs to be measured? Unless you are the salt bae type of person who could just dash a proximate amount of salt on his steak, most of us want to have the exact amount or measurement in what we are doing to have the perfect experience, be it cooking, art, music and in fact, in almost everything that we do.

What is Chasaku (茶杓)?

Especially in what we consume, we try to be as accurate as possible on what we put in our f...

What is single origin cultivar?

In some respects, it is easy to understand that tea cultivar selection is not the biggest consideration when buying tea. Chances are yourself or perhaps those you know can share very few details about cultivars in agriculture let alone tea. In fact, it is a surprising element in the tea market that continues to flourish and expand. Regardless of how complicated the topic of cultivars can be it is possible to break down the topic into several key components. As market demand continues to develop ...

Stinging nettle tea (イラクサ) vs benifuki

About Stinging Nettle Tea

Stinging nettle tea comes from nettle shrubs that are native to Eurasia but was widely distributed throughout all the temperate regions of the world. The benefits of stinging nettle tea have been known as early as ancient times, when ancient Egyptians reportedly used the infusion for the relief of arthritis and lumbago, while the Roman troops and English were said to wash themselves with stinging nettle to keep themselves warm.

To make a stinging nettle tea, the leaves...

Everything You Need To Know About Aracha

What is Aracha Tea

Aracha is an unfinished Japanese green tea, and literally translated as “raw tea”. Ara means crude, rough, or raw in Japanese, while cha is the Japanese translation of tea, which means that this type of tea is not processed yet, unsorted or the harvested green tea leaves, unrefined, unblinded, and coming from the same field. That is why some would call it farmer’s tea leaves. Aracha is simply a Japanese green tea that has been freshly picked and steamed immediately to prevent ...

What is Japanese Diet Pu-erh Tea? Explained in One Minute

Click here to jump to the Youtube Video

Video Length: 1 minute 09 seconds 

Video Transcript

Transcript in different languages:

El té Pu-Erh de dieta japonesa, Saryu Soso (Click here for Spanish Translation)
日本瘦身普洱茶 茶流瘦瘦 (Click here for Chinese Translation)

Transcript in English:

Video Transcript

Did you know that there’s tea that can help you diet?

Japanese Diet Pu-Erh Tea - Saryu Soso, is a national award-winning tea that is good for dieting and skin.

Pu-Erh Tea is Chinese, but this Japane...

Tea vs. Coffee Quiz - 5 Quiz Challenges for you

There are two main breakfast drinks around the world: tea and coffee. Do you know how they compare? Try out this quick little quiz and see what you know when it comes to comparing these two perennial morning favorites.

1. Which is Older?

Tea is undoubtedly the elder of the two beverages. Indeed, tea is thought to be even older than wine! Tea has been accompanying meals for almost 5,000 years, which is most of humanity’s documented history.

Coffee, on the other hand, only entered the arena in th...

VA Pfau Thompson - Featured Tea Artist

I love and respect artists. 

Thanks to having this blog and tea-loving communities such as Green Tea Club Private Facebook Group, I often have the opportunity to meet with great tea artists. I always wanted to use my blog to showcase my personal favorite tea artists who are in the Japanese tea industry. 

This is my first attempt to do this.

Let me introduce VA Pfau Thompson who lives in the USA but lived in Japan.  Here are her great tea artworks and scroll down to her bio and message about her ...

Japanese Green Tea vs. Turmeric Tea - 10 battles you don't want to miss

Japanese Green Tea and Turmeric Tea have risen to popularity thanks to its miraculous health benefits which help to boost our immune system. During this time of the pandemic, Japanese Green Tea and Turmeric have earned a loyal following, however, which drink suits our needs and lifestyle better?

1. Powerful Medicinal Compounds: Both Japanese Green Tea and Turmeric Tea contain enzymes that are found to aid health issues. But, who will reign supreme?

Green Tea is rich in minerals and antioxidant...