点评:I just finished my experience at Kyoto Obubu Tea Farms yesterday -- and while I had some challenges getting to Wazuka due to a soft launch of the typhoon season, this was such a strong highlight during my time in Japan! For anyone who is a casual tea enthusiast who wants to learn more about Japanese green teas in particular, this tour is an immersive and excellent introduction into the craft. Due to its small but mighty international staff, Kyoto Obubu Tea Farms is truly unique among Japanese tea farms in its talents, international presence, commitment to Wazuka, and even operations as a tea farm that has ownership over many, if not all, aspects of their tea production.
Even though I did not get to experience the entire tour as scheduled, Obubu was so kind and accommodating! I still got to see the tea fields and was very fortunate to not only get a solo crash course on Kyoto Obubu Tea's tea harvesting practices but also got 1-on-1 time to learn from Katerina and her wealth of tea knowledge accumulated from multiple years of working at Obubu! In addition to learning about Japanese tea, I also learned a lot about some of the questions and issues that is affecting both Wazuka and the Japanese tea industry as a whole. You can tell that the staff is truly passionate about what they do and engage with Japanese tea from different perspectives of expertise -- so if/when you come, please come curious!
On the tour as a whole (even if abridged):
My tour group was very small, but it made for a more interactive experience with the staff and could be much more adaptable if things were running ahead or behind schedule. I would actually recommend going with a smaller group, and if you can weather the summer heat, I would also recommend going in June or very early July before typhoon season.
I really enjoyed the many ways we got to interact with tea -- from the tea-infused lunch set (with GORGEOUS views of Wazuka's tea farms from their community cafe) to David's behind-the-scenes factory tour of sencha production to David and Marnie's joint interactive presentation on tea tasting and sampling different types of green tea. As someone who is in education, this was really thoughtful educational programming from start to finish!
Overall, an absolute gem! The ticket was well worth the price, even as a solo traveler on a budget. I came away from this experience excited to continue learning more about Japanese tea and experimenting with how I engage with it as a beverage and as a culinary ingredient!
翻译:昨天我刚结束在京都Obubu茶园的体验——虽然由于台风季刚刚开始,我在前往和束町的途中遇到了些小麻烦,但这段经历绝对是我日本之行中的亮点!对于任何对茶感兴趣的初学者,尤其是那些想深入了解日本绿茶的人而言,这次游览是一次绝佳且沉浸式的入门体验。得益于团队里那些虽人数不多却十分能干的国际化工作人员……在日本的茶园中,京都Obubu茶园绝对堪称独一无二——它拥有出色的人才队伍、广泛的国际影响力,对和束町也怀有深厚的责任感。更难得的是,作为一家茶园,它几乎掌控着茶叶生产的每一个环节。
虽然未能按计划完成整个参观流程,但Obubu方面依然十分友善且体贴入微!我仍然得以参观茶园,并且非常幸运:不仅单独接受了关于京都Obubu茶庄茶叶采摘方法的速成培训,还有机会与Katerina一对一交流,向她请教多年在Obubu工作所积累的丰富制茶知识!除了了解日本茶文化外,我还深入知晓了目前困扰和束町乃至整个日本茶产业的诸多问题与挑战。可以看出,工作人员对自己的工作充满热情,还从多个专业角度来介绍日本茶——所以,如果您前来参观,请带着好奇心来吧!
就整个游览过程而言(即便只是简短的参观):
我参加的游览团规模很小,但这反而促成了与工作人员的更佳互动,而且如果行程进度有所偏差,也能更灵活地调整。实际上我建议选择人数较少的团组前往;只要能忍受夏日的酷热的话。我还建议大家在6月或7月初,也就是台风季节来临之前去。
我非常喜欢这次活动中种种与茶互动的机会——从带有茶味的午餐套餐(在当地的社区咖啡馆里还能欣赏到和束町茶园的绝美景色),到大卫带我们参观煎茶制作的幕后过程,再到大卫和玛妮共同主持的品茶体验活动,让我们得以品尝各种绿茶。作为一名教育工作者,这真的是一场从始至终都极具用心与教育意义的节目!
总体而言,绝对堪称精品!哪怕作为预算有限的单独旅行者,这张门票也物超所值。这次体验让我兴致勃勃,决心继续深入了解日本茶文化,并尝试将茶作为饮品或烹饪原料来使用!