Sugimoto Tea Company
Sugimoto Tea Company presentation
Sugimoto Tea Company has been producing authentic Japanese green teas from Shimada, Japan since 1946. This family-run operation brings nearly eight decades of tea-making expertise to every package, ensuring that each cup delivers the pure, traditional flavor that defines genuine Japanese tea culture.
A Legacy Rooted in Shizuoka’s Tea Country
Located in Shimada, one of Japan’s most renowned tea-growing regions, Sugimoto operates where ideal climate and soil conditions create exceptional tea leaves. The company’s commitment to traditional production methods preserves techniques passed down through generations. This geographical advantage, combined with decades of refinement, allows Sugimoto to source and process teas that reflect the authentic character of Japanese green tea.
Family ownership means quality decisions are never compromised by short-term pressures. Each generation has built upon the last, maintaining rigorous standards while adapting to serve modern tea enthusiasts.
From Everyday Sencha to Premium Matcha
Sugimoto’s product range spans the full spectrum of Japanese green tea experiences. Their offerings include:
- Matcha powder for traditional whisking and culinary applications
- Sencha and other loose leaf varieties for daily brewing
- Convenient tea bags without sacrificing quality
- Sugimoto Reserve collection featuring limited-edition selections
Beyond tea, Sugimoto provides authentic teaware like Takayama Chasen bamboo whisks, ensuring customers can prepare matcha using proper traditional tools.
Education Meets Authenticity
Sugimoto recognizes that great tea requires knowledge. The company shares detailed brewing guides, health information, and recipes that help both newcomers and experienced drinkers maximize their tea experience. This educational approach builds a community of informed enthusiasts who appreciate the nuances of Japanese green tea.
For businesses seeking reliable tea sources, Sugimoto offers wholesale accounts and private label services, extending their quality standards to partners who value authentic Japanese tea. This flexibility makes premium tea accessible whether you’re brewing a single cup at home or sourcing for a café menu.
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Matcha produced by Sugimoto Tea Company
Sugimoto Tea Company produces three distinct grades of matcha, each crafted for specific applications and flavor profiles. Their matcha production begins with carefully selected tea leaves from cultivars including Sae Midori, Asanoka, and Oku Midori, each contributing unique characteristics to the final product.
Matcha Product Range
Ceremonial Grade Matcha represents their highest quality offering, featuring a bright green color, smooth texture, and naturally sweet taste with fine powder consistency. Harvested during the spring first flush from late April to mid-May, this grade delivers a delicate, sweet, vegetal aroma profile perfect for traditional tea ceremonies and premium lattes.
Culinary Grade Matcha offers a slightly bitter, robust flavor with coarser powder texture, specifically designed for lattes, baking, smoothies, and various culinary applications. Sourced from later harvests during summer and autumn periods, it provides a strong, vegetal, slightly bitter aroma that complements milk-based beverages and cooking applications.
Daily Wellness Matcha strikes a balanced flavor profile suitable for everyday consumption. This grade blends first and second flush harvests to create a versatile matcha with balanced, vegetal, slightly sweet characteristics, ideal for daily matcha lattes, smoothies, and culinary creations. As noted in their product description, Organic Daily Matcha has a bold flavor that can match the richness of milk and sugar, making brilliantly green confections and velvety lattes.
Production Methods
Sugimoto employs traditional stone mills for grinding their matcha, utilizing a slow grinding process that minimizes heat and friction to preserve the tea’s delicate flavor and aroma. The company’s unique fukamushi (deep steaming) method involves steaming tea leaves for longer durations than conventional processing, creating a richer, more intense flavor profile. They also utilize a strong hi-ire process that breaks up the leaves further, resulting in tea with profound aroma and rich umami.
The crucial shading process involves covering tea plants for approximately 20-30 days before harvest, employing both traditional straw and modern synthetic materials to precisely control sunlight exposure. This shading increases chlorophyll content, resulting in vibrant green color and smoother, sweeter taste that distinguishes Sugimoto’s matcha from competitors.
History of Sugimoto Tea Company
Sugimoto Tea Company represents a remarkable journey of resilience, innovation, and dedication to authentic Japanese green tea that spans nearly eight decades. Founded in 1946 in the renowned tea-growing region of Shizuoka, Japan, the company emerged from the challenging post-war era through the vision of Zenichi Sugimoto.
In the difficult economic climate of post-war Japan, Zenichi Sugimoto embarked on a mission with simple yet profound motivations: to support his family and contribute to the revitalization of his community. Starting with limited resources, he began hand-making and delivering tea by bicycle throughout his local area. His focus on producing high-quality tea at fair prices established the ethical foundation that would define the company for generations.
The company’s philosophy took a pivotal turn under the second generation. Hiroyuki Sugimoto made a conscious decision that would reshape the company’s entire approach to tea production. Rather than focusing solely on winning competitions, he chose to create teas that were both beneficial and delicious for everyday tea enthusiasts. This philosophy is captured in his famous words: “Delicious tea over beautiful tea — just like people, it’s what’s on the inside that truly counts.”
Sugimoto Tea Company distinguishes itself through unique production methods, particularly their fukamushi (deep steaming) technique and strong hi-ire process. These methods create teas with profound aroma and rich umami, setting them apart from competitors who may prioritize aesthetic appearance over flavor quality.
Today, the third generation continues this legacy with Masaaki Sugimoto, a trained Tea Master who personally inspects and tastes harvests, and Kyohei Sugimoto. They maintain close collaborations with local tea farmers in Shizuoka, supporting sustainable practices through initiatives like the "Shizuoka Tea Project" and promoting organic, pesticide-free cultivation methods.
The company’s commitment extends beyond tea production to environmental stewardship. Both their production facilities in Japan and their US office operate on green energy, while they actively support eco-friendly initiatives such as Chagusaba farming and help farmers transition to organic methods.
4 events from Sugimoto Tea Company's history
January 1946
Company Foundation in Post-War Japan
Zenichi Sugimoto founded Sugimoto Tea Company in Shizuoka, Japan, during the challenging post-war era. Starting with limited resources, he began hand-making and delivering tea by bicycle to support his family and help revitalize his community, establishing the company’s foundation of ethical and sustainable practices.
January 1967
Second Generation Leadership Transition
Zenichi’s son Hiroyuki Sugimoto took over the family business, beginning a new chapter that would focus on expanding the company’s reach both domestically and internationally while maintaining the commitment to high-quality tea production.
January 1986
Prestigious Awards and Philosophy Shift
Hiroyuki Sugimoto began winning prestigious awards including the Shizuoka Prefectural Tea Competition and the National Blind Tea Tasting Championship. However, these accomplishments led to a crucial realization about the divide between competition teas and everyday enjoyment, prompting him to shift focus from winning competitions to creating beneficial and delicious teas for everyone.
January 2005
US Market Expansion
Sugimoto Tea Company established its presence in the United States, marking a significant milestone in expanding their reach to a global market eager to experience authentic Japanese green tea. This expansion brought their traditional Shizuoka tea craftsmanship to international consumers.
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