Think back to the week before Christmas – do hectic malls, bumper-to-bumper traffic, and never-ending Christmas shopping lists sound familiar?  With a perfectly timed invitation from fellow JET alum Ian Chun, JETAA Hawaii members and friends had the opportunity to take a breather and taste a variety of tea grown and prepared by the president and founder of Kyoto Obubu Tea, Akihiro “Akky” Kita.  Joined by Ian Chun and Colin who handle the overseas marketing for Kyoto Obubu, the three-man team put on a great presentation, introducing the origins of Kyoto Obubu, the methods of growing the tea plants, the different types of tea that they sell, along with a soothing taste of each type of tea.

Within the intimate atmosphere of Aki-no-no, JETAA members got to know the Kyoto Obubu team quite well.  Interestingly, the young Kyoto Obubu founder Akky originally fell in love with the art of making tea during his college years while doing a part-time job and as a result, is a first-generation farmer.  As a result, when you order tea from Kyoto Obubu Tea, you know that the tea you drink will be shipped to you directly from the farmer himself!

Kyoto Obubu Tea has a diverse array of teas in its store, including numerous types of green teas (mostly differentiated by the time of the year that they are grown and harvested), roasted teas, as well as maccha for baking!  A personal favorite of JETAA Hawaii Vice President Darryl Toma’s was the Taiyou Sencha (Sencha of the Spring Sun) that happened to be mixed with some Iichiko during the nomikai that followed the tea tasting.

A big thanks to Ian Chun for initiating the gathering, to Akky for his expertise, and of course, the Kyoto Obubu Tea team for sharing their time and passion with us!  Also thanks to the JETAA members (and parents!) who were able to make it.

And just in case you didn’t know, “bubu” is the Kyoto slang word for tea!

For Kyoto Obubu Tea’s website:
http://www.obubutea.com/

To learn about the Kyoto Obubu Tea team:
http://www.obubutea.com/about/teamobubu/

They’re also on Facebook!
http://www.facebook.com/ObubuTea