In the history of Japanese tea, I learned that the first tea to be drunk in Japan was Dancha.
And now, there seems to be little custom of drinking Dancha in Japan.
日本語は下記
I was curious, so I looked up what Dancha was.
It is said that Dancha, which was brought from the Tang Dynasty, is made by steaming tea, mashing it, and drying it in a mold. There are many kinds, and some of them are fermented.
It seems that the tea that was introduced to Japan was fermented Dancha.
According to Hiraku Ogura, a fermentation designer, Dancha is a strange fermented food in the world where tea leaves are covered with a mold like malted rice and aged for a long time. It tastes like a thicker version of pu’erh tea, which is drunk in Yunnan Province, China. The tea leaves have been drained of their water content, and then hardened into a block shape. It looks completely different from the tea we drink nowadays.
Dancha was treasured as a tribute during the Tang Dynasty. There is a reason for this, too, as it was fermented and matured to keep it from deteriorating during the guests’ long journey back to their homeland.
Mr. Hiraku Ogura’s impression of tasting the dancha tea was, “I was frightened by the texture that was a step ahead of humus and the overpowering aroma, but when I took the plunge and took a sip, I remember being awakened as if I had been hit on the head, my heart racing, and sweat pouring out of my body. I remember my heart racing and sweat pouring out of my body. It was not an everyday food, but probably used as a medicine. And the price was eye-poppingly high.”
So it seems that it is not a familiar drink.
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団茶とは
お茶の歴史で、最初に日本で飲まれたお茶は団茶だと知りました。
そして今、日本では団茶を飲む習慣はほとんどないようです。
興味があるので、団茶とは何か調べてみました。
唐からもたらされた団茶(だんちゃ)は、つみとった茶を蒸し、すりつぶして型に入れ乾燥させたものだそうです。いろんな種類があるらしく、発酵させたものもありました。
調べていくと、日本に伝わったお茶は、発酵した団茶だったようです。
発酵デザイナーの小倉ヒラク氏によると、団茶は、茶葉に麹のようなカビをつけて長期間熟成させた世にも不思議な発酵食品です。中国雲南省で飲まれているプーアル茶をさらに濃厚にしたような味わい。茶葉の水分をカラカラに抜いたうえでギュッと固めたブロックの形をしています。今飲まれているお茶とは見た目も全然違うようです。
団茶は、唐の時代には貢物として重宝されていました。それも理由があって、ゲストが祖国に帰る長旅のあいだにも発酵熟成が進んで劣化しないとのこと。
小倉ヒラク氏の団茶試飲の感想は「腐葉土一歩手前のテクスチャー、かぐわしすぎる香りに怯みつつ、思い切ってひとくち飲んでみたらば、ガツンと頭と殴られたように覚醒し、心臓バクバク、身体中から汗が吹き出た記憶があります。日常食ではなく、恐らく薬のように使われていたのでしょう」ということです。そして「その値段は目が飛び出るぐらい高かった。」ということで、やはり身近な飲み物ではなさそうです。
田原ナチュラル・ファームの茶畑は、農薬も化学肥料も一切使わずできるだけ自然に近い環境で野菜を育てる自然農法です。