Tea Focus: Go Ishi Cha

Go Ishi Cha is a type of old style Japanese bancha that is fermented by way of ancient techniques developed when tea was consumed by the people as a food and as a medicine . It is very similar to Miang or the pickled tea common in northern Thailand and Burma.

Goishi-cha goes through a two stage fermentation process. A very limited quantity of 3,400 pounds are made each year. The limited quantity is a result of the artistic know-how that is needed is becoming extinct. Very few families continue to make this tea and the price has become quite expensive. Today, the tea is limited but has a cult following for those interested in ancient forms of bancha, Puer tea and other fermented teas .

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The tea leaves are harvested by sickle on the branch once per year when the leaves are hardy and mature . The leaves area stripped from the branch, steamed and pressed to express the juice. The fresh pressed juice of the leaves are reserved for aiding the fermentation at a later stage of the Go Ishi Cha process.

After pressing the juice , the leaves are piled and covered with thatch in a wooden hut to warm up and oxidize. The piled tea transforms in a manner similar to Shu Puer. Once done fermenting,  the leaves are packed into cedar barrels, reminiscent of vats used in wine production. The reserved juice from the first pressing is added and the leaves are stored in their juices for about two weeks with a stone of equal weight placed upon the vat to seal the cover.

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After this second stage of fermentation, the packed tea reduced into a large round disc covering the bottom of the barrel like a huge cake of miso hard paste. The pressed leaves in the cake become soft and malleable. Knives are used to remove the pressed leaves from the barrel then further cut them into 1-2 inch squares wafer like pieces .The tea wafers are Laid out in the Sun on thatch drying platforms. they are flipped from time to time for about a week depending on the weather until the wafers become totally dried. Go Ishi Cha is finished and packaged for sale after the Sun drying process . It is recommended to age Go Ishi Cha 6-12 months to better harmonize the flavors and mellow the acidic profile before consumption. It can be aged, stored and brewed much like Pu’er tea.

Historically, this tea is not consumed in the growing region. Since the Edo Period (1603-1868 A.D.) Go Ishi cha has been made and used to trade for salt from the Inland Sea people who used it to make Cha-gayu (rice porridge made with tea). In modern times people brew and drink Go Ishi like other bancha. In addition to traditional rice porridge “Cha – Gayu,” Go Ishi Cha can be brewed or boiled and the strained infusion or brew can be used in a variety of culinary dishes including: tea mushroom cosume, porcini risotto, tea based dashi and broths for noodles and soup, Ochazuke, and in marinades and dinner or dessert sauces.

Source: https://t-tees.com
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