Tea culture in Japan

Tea (茶, cha) is an important part of Japanese culture. It first appeared in the Nara period (710–794), introduced to the archipelago by ambassadors returning from China, but its real development came later, from the end of the 12th century, when its consumption spread to Zen temples, also following China's example; it was then powdered tea that was drunk after being beaten (called matcha today). In the Middle Ages, tea became a common drink for the elite, and in the 16th century, the art of the "tea ceremony" was formalized. It is now one of the most emblematic elements of Japanese culture, whose influence extends beyond the simple context of tea drinking. Tea-growing developed in the pre-modern era, particularly during the Edo period (1603–1868), when tea became a popular beverage consumed by all strata of society. New ways of processing and consuming tea leaves were developed, starting with sencha, a steamed oxidation-stopped brew that became the most common.

Today a handful of prefectures share the cultivation of tea plantations (Shizuoka, Kagoshima, Mie), whose mostly mechanically picked leaves are used to produce green teas, primarily sencha, but also lesser-known varieties such as bancha, or more elaborate varieties like gyokuro. Certain terroirs have a long-standing reputation for producing quality teas, first and foremost Uji in the Kyoto Prefecture. With an annual production of around 80,000 tonnes, Japan is still not a major tea producer on a global scale, nor is it a major exporter or even importer, since it consumes most of its own production. Tea leaves are now mainly used to make tea drinks sold in plastic bottles, a fast-moving consumer product that has become popular in society in the 2010s and is available in many variants. From the mid-2000s onwards, tea consumption supplanted that of loose leaves, while at the same time, other beverages such as coffee and soft drinks have overtaken tea in Japanese household spending. Tea consumption is also being renewed by the development of new products and increased use of matcha tea powder in gastronomy.

Tea has long enjoyed great importance in Japanese culture, which has adopted many elements of Chinese tea culture, but has also added its own, starting with the tea ceremony, which conquered the milieu of the medieval elites, then was promoted in modern times as one of the characteristic elements of traditional Japanese culture, and is presented as such on tourist sites and at diplomatic events. It has given rise to a specific aesthetic, concerning both the places where the ceremony is held and the objects used, which are the object of great attention both in their design and in their use, thus contributing to the "cult of the object" typical of Japanese aesthetics.