Kamairicha (釜炒り茶) is a Japanese green tea that does not undergo the usual steam treatments of Japanese tea and does not have the characteristic bitter taste of most Japanese tea.
Kamairicha
Brewing Process[]
After a short withering, they are fired in hot iron pans of up to 300°C with repeated agitation to prevent charring. The different rolling techniques used produce teas of different leaf form. Kamairicha is processed as a pelleted or flat leaf.
Cultivation[]
Several southern regions are known for making fine Kamairicha. Sechibaru in Nagasaki Prefecture and Ureshino in Saga Prefecture are two of the most respected for their pan-fried manufacturing process.
Availability[]
Kamairicha is generally not available in the West, however a few specialist tea merchants are making this tea more well known.
Flavor/Aroma[]
This Kamairi process develops sweet, mildly roasted flavors, which are very similar to the pan-fried teas produced in China today. It is sometimes referred to as ‘Chinese green tea’ by the Japanese owing to the pan-frying processing of this richly flavored tea.