Tozaka Chaen

Tōzaka Kōichi 東坂幸一 is the third generation of tea farmers in his family and is the smallest tea farmer in Sonogi region as far as we know. When we meet him on the field, Tōzaka is usually accompanied by both his parents who still actively farm with him. With some two hectares of tea fields spread mainly throughout the highest region of Sonogi, he combines both traditional and innovative craftsmanship with an ever-growing natural vision of tea.

Tōzaka has started experimenting with his own natural vision of tea growing and has one trial tea field where he has added no pesticides or fertilisers since 2016. Over the past years, he has slowly decreased most of the pesticides in all his other fields, constantly monitoring their health, and adapting his farming practices as he keeps learning. Any fertilisers Tōzaka still uses are of natural origin: such as the pressed seeds left over from canola oil production.
Tōzaka’s natural style of tea farming has him constantly looking at seasonal cycles and lunar phases and Tōzaka times his harvest and other agricultural activities to those cycles.
Tōzaka wishes to bring out the ‘authentic taste’ in his teas, letting the character of the cultivar, the soil and environment shine through.

Whilst tamaryokucha and his unique hōjicha (roasted tea is his personal favourite) occupy the greater part of his production, Tōzaka takes time experimenting with different artisanal techniques (including hand-picked and hand-rolled tea batches!) and is constantly developing new ideas and honing his craft.

Tōzaka has built a strong community around him with like-minded farmers, artisans and tea lovers. He gladly welcomes help during farming and we often meet tea lovers from all over Japan who come to help out for a day.
Thanks to his open mind, Tōzaka gladly connects with people and keeps expanding his knowledge.