About Tea in Mie Prefecture
Mie Prefecture is renowned as one of Japan’s leading tea-producing regions, ranking third nationally in both cultivation area and rough tea production.
Records indicate tea plants were cultivated around the year 900 at Jōrinji Temple (now Ichijōji Temple) in Mizusawa-chō, Yokkaichi City, making it a region with a long history of tea cultivation, even by national standards.
Stretching north to south, Mie Prefecture is embraced by the Suzuka and Taikō mountain ranges to the west and Ise Bay and the Pacific Ocean to the east, creating a land where mountain and ocean climates converge. This environment provides the warm temperatures and ample rainfall ideal for tea cultivation.
The primary tea-producing areas are divided into the North and Central-South regions. The North region, centered around Suzuka City, Yokkaichi City, and Kameyama City, features tea gardens spread across the flat volcanic ash plains at the foot of the Suzuka Mountains. In the Central-South region, high-quality tea is cultivated on sloping valley terraces and along riverbanks. Odaicho’s sencha and Matsusaka City’s deep-steamed sencha are particularly renowned.
Tea from this region is called Isecha. Beyond standard sencha, it includes various types such as kabusecha, deep-steamed sencha, and tencha. During the Edo period, merchants from Ise widely distributed it, and from the late Edo period onward, it was also exported overseas.
Today, diverse tea production continues throughout the prefecture, allowing enthusiasts to enjoy Isecha with distinct characteristics from each producer.