After salivating for weeks over the blends on Lupicia USA’s website, I finally had an opportunity to head into Kyoto due to being there for a business conference during the Thanksgiving holidays, and that meant I was on a mission:
To find the Lupicia storefront located in Kyoto.
Getting off at the Sanjo-Keihan station (which is a popular haunt of mine, however far away it is), I booked it up Sanjo Dori like a mad woman making a rush during the Black Friday sales at Wal-Mart. Only this was essentially my own personal Black Friday, and I wasn’t going to let the crowded streets of Sanjo on a Friday night prevent me from reaching my destination. Armed with my trust iPhone and Google Maps, I was glad it was largely a straight shot from the station, over the river, and through a shopping arcade. A quick turn to the right, and I was met with perhaps the most stylish storefront in my life.
Crisp lines, atmospheric lighting, and a fully bilingual staff (!), I ran in like a kid at a candy store to the left wall where tin, upon tin, upon tin of tea samples were laid out before me to pick up, smell, and find myself content to die right then and there in the store. They also greeted us with samples of their Kumquat flavored green tea, which was welcomed after the very blustery wind that chilled me and my cohort Allison to the bone.
Everything is organized by tea leaf (Black, Green, White, Oolong, Rooibos, Herbal, and Yerba) as well as type (Plantation, Flavored, Original Blend) and beneath the tins are 4×4 inch squares of paper that has an explanation of all the teas (in both Japanese and English), as well as the prices for them.
Right, pricing. At Lupicia, you can buy the tea loose (as I prefer) or in pyramid-shaped tea bags, which allow for better steeping and gives the leaves more space to expand. Some teas are bag only, others loose-leaf. Also, some teas have the option of coming in a special tin, while other blends come in the foil bags.
With over 100 teas to choose from, I had to restrict myself to a maximum of just three teas for this trip, and so I chose the following flavors:
- Tsugaru Apple (Green tea, described as an “apple tea using Aomori prefecture’s well-known “Santsugaru” apples.)
- Ume Vert (Green and White tea, described as “gently scented with Japanese apricot .”)
- and Tattoo (Specialty blend, described as a “bewitching green tea blend with jasmine flowers and longan fruit, inspired by decorative Japanese tattoos.”)
The Tsugaru Apple is a standard blend, and can be bought at any time, so it just came in the regular foil bag. But Ume Vert and Tattoo were both special blends that came in decorative tins:
Lupicia “Tattoo” (Kyoto Exclusive)
Lupicia “Ume Vert”
“Ume Vert” can be bought at all Lupicia locations, and from their online sites as well, even the decorative tin. “Tattoo”, however, cannot be bought online (neither Japanese nor the U.S. site), and can only be purchased at the Kyoto store.
All in all, my adventure to Lupicia was productive, and I expect many more trips down there in the future!
If you’re ever in the neighborhood of Kyoto, and wish to pick up some tea as a gift or perhaps acquire a new tea pot, some honey, or sugar, follow the link on Google Maps here.
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