Ryogouchi is already a famed province for yamacha, the subcategory of Japanese green tea that is butter-thick and umami-rich thanks to pure river water and cool mountain fog. The farm of our dear friend, Mr. Katahira, spirals around its steep hills, tea bushes lined neatly between breathtaking views of Suruga Bay and Mount Fuji. With the additional aid of kabusecha’s week-long shade-covered process, this tea classically embodies the genre’s ooika, or the “covered aroma” shaded teas receive from an abundance in amino acids and theanine that plays well with a contrasting pineapple-like acidity.