Journal

On ritual, ingredient, and the small ceremonies that punctuate a day. Notes from the soqi editors.

Yukiwa, a matcha bowl and whisk holder whose pale blue-grey crystals opened across a warm white glaze in the kiln

Craft · 4 min read

Hanakessho: the flower that blooms in the kiln.
A sealed tin of Hazuki first-harvest matcha

Craft · 4 min read

From leaf to powder.
Curving rows of vivid green tea bushes on the terraced hillsides above Uji in clear morning light

Origin · 4 min read

Why the tea grows better at Uji.
A bamboo chasen resting in a bowl of usucha whisked to a fine even foam, seen from above

Ritual · 3 min read

On the proper preparation of usucha.
Rows of tea bushes running to the hills at Uji shortly after sunrise, light haze lifting off the field

Origin · 4 min read

A morning at the Uji farms.
Woven bamboo shade screens raised over rows of tea bushes, daylight striping the leaves below

Ingredient · 3 min read

The science of shade-growing.
A bowl of bright green matcha beside a small cup of coffee on cream linen in morning window light

Ingredient · 3 min read

Matcha vs coffee, in the morning.
A pale oak counter by a bright window set with a matcha bowl, bamboo whisk, sieve and linen cloth

Ritual · 4 min read

How to prepare matcha at home.
A bowl of freshly whisked matcha on cream linen with fresh green tea leaves beside it

Ingredient · 3 min read

Seven benefits of drinking matcha daily.
An aged tea bowl and a folded indigo cloth on pale wood in bright daylight

Culture · 7 min read

The history of matcha in Japanese tea culture.