In this look at tea consumption in early America and the colonial period, I mentioned that significant quantities of Japanese green tea varieties historically exported to Western markets were shipped to the United States during the latter part of the 19th century. That observation led me to explore how Japanese tea history has intersected with the Western world.
Tea Growing Regions of Japan
While this is far from a comprehensive study, one early Western reference to Japanese tea culture comes from Russian naval officer Vasily Mikhailovich Golovnin. His book Captivity in Japan During the Years 1811, 1812, 1813 includes several observations about tea in Japan. He noted that tea was served in what he described as a uniquely Japanese style—cups partially filled, without saucers, and presented on varnished wooden trays.
In the decades that followed, publications such as The Asiatic Journal and Monthly Miscellany discussed tea cultivation across Asia. At the time, tea production was widespread in China and Japan, among other regions. Some reports even suggested that early tea cultivation practices in Japan may have originated from China, reflecting the historical exchange of agricultural knowledge.
By the late 19th century, Japan had become a significant tea exporter to the United States. An article titled “Report on Tea Culture in Japan,” published in Harper’s in 1873, noted that approximately 15 million pounds of tea were exported to the U.S. in the year ending May 31, 1872. Much of this tea was “refired” after processing to produce the toasty flavor and distinctive greenish color preferred by American consumers at the time. The same source observed that some of the finest tea in Japan was cultivated by priests, and that the earliest spring harvest remained the most highly anticipated.
Further insight can be found in early 20th-century agricultural publications. A 1907 article titled “Tea Culture in Japan,” published in The Tropical Agriculturist and Magazine of the Ceylon Agricultural Society, examined the topic in greater detail. It explored various tea-growing regions in Japan and provided extensive descriptions of cultivation and processing techniques for different types of tea.
As these historical accounts suggest, Japanese tea culture has long been shaped by both domestic tradition and international influence, with its relationship to Western markets playing a significant role in its development.
See more of William I. Lengeman’s articles in this archive of tea-related writing by the author.
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