{"product_id":"2026-tanegashima-hashiri-kabusecha-ozaki-shigehisa-yabukita-50g","title":"2026 Tanegashima Hashiri Kabusecha - Ozaki Shigehisa - Yabukita - 50g","description":"\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\" class=\"mt-3 -mb-1 text-[1.125rem] font-bold\"\u003eAbout\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eA kabusecha from Tanegashima, a small island south of Kyushu where the sea keeps the air mild and the tea year opens earlier than anywhere else in Japan.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eOzaki Shigehisa covered these Yabukita rows for two weeks before picking them on the sixteenth of April. Shaded through the final stretch of their growth, the leaves hold their sweetness rather than spending it, and the cup carries a depth that unshaded tea rarely reaches.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eHashiri\u003c\/em\u003e (走り) names the first arrivals of a season, gathered while the year is still opening. A hashiri tea is valued for lift and clarity rather than weight. The shading gives this one body underneath that brightness.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThe dry leaf smells of green apple and white grape. Warm water draws out something coastal, a clean saline note beneath a broad, savoury umami. The finish is long and quiet, with no astringency to clear.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eTwenty kilograms were made.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr class=\"border-border-200 border-t-0.5 my-3 mx-1.5\"\u003e\n\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\" class=\"mt-3 -mb-1 text-[1.125rem] font-bold\"\u003eThe Producer\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eOzaki Shigehisa farms organically on Tanegashima, in the island's volcanic kuroboku soil. His approach is to feed the ground and leave the surrounding ecosystem intact, allowing a field to express what it has rather than pushing it toward a flavour.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThe island shapes the work: ocean air, warm light, and a growing season that begins weeks ahead of the mainland.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr class=\"border-border-200 border-t-0.5 my-3 mx-1.5\"\u003e\n\u003ch2 dir=\"ltr\" class=\"mt-3 -mb-1 text-[1.125rem] font-bold\"\u003eAbout Kabusecha\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eKabuse\u003c\/em\u003e (被せ) means to cover. For the final ten to fourteen days before harvest, the field is shaded.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eWith less light, the plant slows its conversion of L-theanine, the amino acid behind umami, into the catechins that give green tea its astringency. The theanine remains in the leaf. Chlorophyll rises, and the leaf darkens toward emerald.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\" dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThe result sits between sencha and gyokuro. It keeps the freshness of a spring tea and gains the sweetness and weight of a shaded one.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Artisanal Japan","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45390425686131,"sku":null,"price":21.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0701\/2286\/4755\/files\/Hanzo-Vest-01-July2025-22copy.jpg?v=1787456524","url":"https:\/\/artisanaljapan.com\/products\/2026-tanegashima-hashiri-kabusecha-ozaki-shigehisa-yabukita-50g","provider":"Artisanal Japan","version":"1.0","type":"link"}