Here comes the new tea! Shin-cha (新茶), this is how the first tea of the season is called.
Here is a tea field in the Shizuoka prefecture. The tea harvest usually starts from end April until mid June.
The tea crop is carried to the factory (see below), where it is progressively dried, sorted, tasted and packed, before being distributed. (Note that this factory is active only three months a year!)
And if you want to try it, you should know that some tea producers propose to those who want to participate to the harvest of the first tea. You’ll even be able to wear the traditional clothes that people used to wear in the old times for the harvest, and you will be allowed to go home with some freshly plucked tea leaves.
Tea amateurs will certainly appreciate the lovely flavor of shin-cha, which only awaits to be tasted.