Hekien Ocha-no-Junpei
In order to make good tea, human hands are essential.
First comes the soil in which the tea will grow. At the Hekien tea farm, we create an environment that allows our tea plants to thrive, using good, old-fashioned natural fertilizer.
What's important in the next step is the hands of a master. Hekien’s fine tea leaves are all picked and sorted by human hands. The hands of a master— that’s what makes good tea.
Our quality tea leaves are refrigerated after picking, and processed by hand, the traditional way.
Each and every leaf is carefully inspected by human eyes, and only the best are selected.
For the 148 years since our founding, we have passed down traditional techniques from parent to child to grandchild, along with a deep understanding of tea.
For five generations since our farm’s founding in 1870, we have provided our customers with good tea that we grow, process, and sell ourselves.
Since the times of our second-generation owner, our goal has been high-quality tea. Our tea has been lauded at tea fairs and exhibitions generation after generation. Most notably, we received the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Award at the National Tea Fair, the top prize in the world of tea, in 2003 and 2004—the highest honor in Japan, two years in a row. Following that, at the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Fair, the most prestigious agricultural fair in Japan, we became the first tea producer in Aichi Prefecture to receive the Prime Minister’s Award, one of the top three agricultural awards in Japan. More recently, in recognition of our achievements in the tea industry, our fifth-generation owner received a Medal with Yellow Ribbon from the national government, making him the youngest in the Tokai region to ever receive the honor. His father, our fourth-generation owner, also received a Medal with Yellow Ribbon from His Majesty the Emperor in 1993. It is an exceptionally rare case that a parent and child both receive this honor.
Basic Information
| Address | 〒473-0916 38 Yashikibata, Yoshiwara-cho, Toyota City |
|---|---|
| Cost | - Product name: Award-Winning Kabusecha Ten-no-Shizuku (Limited quantities) Price: 50 g \1,250 (before tax) - Product name: Hand-Picked Matcha Yutaka-no-Shiro (A favorite tea of the Grand Master of Urasenke, a major school of tea ceremony) Price: 40 g \1,000 (before tax) This tea farm won the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Award two years in a row. Tea masters pick each leaf carefully and put their heart and soul into their tea. |
| Business hours | 9:00-18:00 |
| Phone number | TEL 0565-52-3119 FAX 0565-53-5037 |
| Closed | Wednesday |
| Retailers | Hekien Ocha-no-Junpei Store: Enjoy conversation as you pick out the perfect tea for you. The store also hosts lectures on how to brew tea. Note: Visit our official website for information on stores that carry our products in Toyota City. |
| Directions by public transportation | 14 min. (1.2km) southwards walk from Wakabayashi Station of the Meitetsu Mikawa Line. |
| Related links |
Hekien Ocha-no-Junpei Official Website (Japanese)
Hekien Ocha-no-Junpei 5th Gen. Tea-Maker Blog (Japanese) Hekien Ocha-no-Junpei Yumenote Online Store (Japanese) |
Area Information
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Kokaen
Toyota-Area
Yoshiwara-cho, Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture has been a tea-producing region since the Edo period. At the Kokaen tea plantation, tea plants are left to the wisdom of nature. They are not pruned by human hands. The master of Kokaen is a winner of the National Tea Appraisal Skill Competition held in Kyoto—the only winner so far to come from Aichi Prefecture. In order to produce flavorful tea, he selects organic fertilizer, nourishes the earth, and oversees every process of tea production from planting to processing. In the plantation, the local tea pickers hand-pick the tea leaves for matcha and fukamushi-cha green teas, using the traditional shigoki-tsumi picking method unique to Aichi.
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Azuki-An Natural Sweets
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FUKU JU EN
Toyota-Area
FUKU JU EN is a Japanese sweets store established in 1970. The store sells seasonal confections made with dedication to the best texture and flavor, using only the finest ingredients.
