My name is Yamada Maki and I'm a girl who can do anything if I try.
I usually work as a sports day committee member, Monosasu site secretariat member, and web director.
I studied abroad in China for a year, I can speak Chinese, I like black tea and other teas, and I thought I was in a good environment to learn more about Chinese tea, so I decided to study it thoroughly. I also decided to get a qualification. Having gotten to that point, I felt a strong desire to speak to someone, so I sent the following message to the Monosus members.
From this winter to spring, I studied Chinese tea, which I had been interested in, and obtained the Chinese Tea Expert Junior qualification from the Japan Chinese Tea Association.
Since I have the opportunity, I would like to use what I have learned to hold a tea party where I can explain the tea we will be drinking and compare different types of tea!
I would be happy to spend time not only talking about tea but also having casual conversations.
Following this discussion about the research budget, we decided to hold a tea party at Monosas.
This time, with the motto of "easier and more casual," we decided not to use Chinese tea utensils, but to use a teapot and teacups and sake cups borrowed from Kimi's house.
The five types of tea we prepared are as follows:
1st and 2nd place is green tea, 3rd and 4th place is oolong tea, and 5th place is jasmine tea
- Xinchang Longjing
- Taiheikoukai
- Phoenix single-flowered duck stool fragrance (Hou-o-tansou-ya-shi-kou)
- Gancha Kiran
- Small Dragon Pearl Tea
And of course, snacks too!
This time, it was close to the Mid-Autumn Festival * , so I thought I might as well order some mooncakes.
*The Mid-Autumn Festival began in China during the Tang Dynasty, and is now the second largest national holiday after the Chinese New Year (Chinese New Year), an event celebrating spring. In China, the full moon is a symbol of harmony and togetherness, and it is customary to gather with family and spend time gazing at the moon.
I (Yamada Maki) was very enthusiastic and soon after the meeting started, I said, "Let's start with a lecture," and began talking about the differences between Japanese tea and Chinese tea, and within Chinese tea, the differences between green tea and oolong tea that we would be drinking this time, as well as what is popular and commonly drunk in China.
It went so smoothly that I wondered what I had been worried about before it started.
After talking for about 20 minutes, we decided to all drink some tea together and began comparing different types of green tea.
The teas we compared this time were all green teas that looked and tasted the same, but they were all completely different.
I'll skip the complicated details, but the sizes of the tea leaves used for these two types are quite different.
You might be wondering if the larger one has a bland taste.
However, this is not the case and you can feel the individuality of each one.
The next drink was oolong tea.
Even though it's called oolong tea, it's not the brown color you drink from a plastic bottle, and although it's tea, some have a milky, floral scent, while others have a spicy, roasted aroma.
The last drink was jasmine tea.
Perhaps it's because the scent is so familiar, but I felt it immediately captured everyone's hearts.
One of our members said, "I don't like drinking from plastic bottles, but I think this tastes good!" And although I'm not a producer, I was like, "I thought so, right?" and it made me really happy.
The reactions of the participants varied, and it was striking to see that each person liked a different type of tea.
Before the event started, some members expressed concern that they weren't used to drinking sake and wondered if they would be able to tell the difference, but after one sip, they said, "Yes, it's definitely different." It's precisely because they're comparing the different flavors, aromas, and appearances that they can notice the differences.
The members who said they wanted to participate in this tea party were almost all members of my generation who work in Yoyogi.
Miyagawa-san, who had been interested but couldn't find the time to drop by for a short while, couldn't bring himself to say hello after seeing her condition. (Sorry!)
In fact, whenever I wanted to do something with members of my company, I would always ask them individually. But this time, many members naturally came together, so I wasn't worried about whether people would show up until the event, and I was simply filled with excitement.
Even though I said I learned something, it had only just begun, and I was worried that I might not have much to say after receiving just under two hours of everyone's time, so I prepared various cheat sheets. But when I finally got around to it, I was able to speak naturally, and it made me realize that I was doing okay. I was learning properly. I felt a great sense of accomplishment in being able to output what I had learned.
I'm thinking that if we hold the next meeting in the morning, members who were unable to attend this time might be able to join.
If we could hold enough tea parties to become familiar with Monosus, I thought it would be interesting if this venue could become a new place for communication. For people who can't drink alcohol, or even in between work. Just as a tool for talking. Something like that.
I think that's still a long way off.
Please feel free to join us at least once more!
YAMADA Maki