Why Jyoraku Matcha Is the Heart of Flowering Waters
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When people ask me why I chose to build Flowering Waters around a single ceremonial matcha, my answer is surprisingly simple:
Because my family and I fell in love with this one.
Long before Flowering Waters existed, my parents were introducing Japanese green tea to communities throughout Hawaii and the Pacific Northwest via our old Tea shop name: My Green Tea.
Over the years we tasted many teas.
Some were excellent.
Some were memorable.
But one quietly remained at the center of our tea table, especially in my mom's Urasenkei tea practice:
Produced in Kyotanabe, Kyoto, the neighboring tea village of Uji. Known for some of Japan's most respected tea-growing regions, Jyoraku embodies the qualities I look for every single time I prepare a bowl.
Its color is vibrant yet natural.
Its aroma is fresh and inviting.
Its flavor offers a beautiful balance of deep umami, gentle sweetness, and an exceptionally creamy finish with very little bitterness.
It is a matcha that feels equally at home in a traditional bowl of usucha as it does in a thoughtfully prepared latte.
What I admire most, however, isn't simply the flavor.
It's the philosophy behind it.
Flowering Waters has never been about carrying dozens of teas simply for the sake of variety.
Instead, I wanted to become a careful steward of teas I genuinely believe deserve to be shared.
Jyoraku has been trusted by practitioners of Urasenkei tea ceremony in Washington and Hawaii for decades. It is the tea I use when introducing someone to Japanese tea for the very first time, and the tea I continue reaching for after all these years.
Choosing one remarkable tea allows me to spend less time chasing trends and more time teaching people how to prepare it beautifully, understand its history, and appreciate the craftsmanship behind every bowl.
In many ways, Jyoraku isn't simply a product.
It is the foundation upon which Flowering Waters was built.
And I feel incredibly grateful to share that story with you.
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