Kettl Producer Series | Kiyoharu Tsuji
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Time to read 4 min
The story of Kettl is inseparable from the stories of the producers we work with. We see our role as stewards and partners in bringing their teas to a wider audience and celebrating the vast world of Japanese tea and all of its concentric circles—craft, cuisine, and community.
Each month, we will highlight a producer, the range of offerings we source from them, and tell the story of our collaboration through words and images. In addition to these deep dives on some of Japan’s most respected and emerging voices, we will be running a celebratory promotion to help share their incredible teas with our community. This month, we are highlighting Kiyoharu Tusuji and his family operation, which is now co-run with his son, Koki Tsuji. We are running a giveaway between April 10th at 12:00 am ET and April 17th at 11:59 pm ET—all orders that contain one matcha product from our catalog will receive a complimentary tin of Tsuji-san's Tsuji Family Blend Matcha. In addition, all orders that include two or more matcha products will receive a tin of Tsuji Family Blend matcha and a tin of Shirakawa Midori matcha (while supplies last).
There are certain relationships in tea that feel less like business and more like a long conversation—one that stretches across seasons and harvests. My connection with Kiyoharu Tsuji is one of those stories. It’s difficult to point to a single beginning, because in many ways our orbits overlapped for several years before the relationship gradually grew into something far more meaningful—for both of us, and for how Uji tea has come to be represented in the Kettl catalog.
I first met Tsuji-san at a time when I was still searching—not just for great tea, but for something truly distinctive within Uji. The region carries immense history and prestige, but that can make it difficult to navigate—large manufacturers, inherited reputations, and not always much transparency around what’s actually in the marketplace.
Tsuji-san stood apart almost immediately. What struck me was his clarity—about his craft, his land, and the kind of tea he wanted to make. He spoke in specifics, not generalities: cultivar choices, shading techniques, soil conditions. These weren’t talking points, they were his obsession. He was also remarkably generous with his knowledge—his phone constantly ringing with other farmers seeking advice on everything from pest identification to harvest timing and submissions to the national tea fair.I remember tasting his teas for the first time and feeling something shift. His flagship Asahi cultivar matcha floored me—rich, velvety, and unctuous in a way that felt completely singular, with gyokuro-level umami and a soft, delicate finish. It was a clear departure from the mass-produced blends I had encountered before.
At the time, bringing Tsuji-san into the Kettl catalog wasn’t just about adding another producer—it was about making a statement. Uji carries weight, and including a producer from that region comes with expectations. We were beginning to build a following among customers who demanded the best, and I felt a real responsibility to meet that moment. Tsuji-san became the second farmer to represent Uji in our lineup, offering a singular perspective that both aligned with what our customers were seeking and expanded their understanding of what matcha could be.
His teas opened a door for us. They allowed us to present Uji not as a monolith, but as a living, evolving place shaped by individual choices. Customers didn’t just taste “Uji”—they tasted Tsuji-san’s interpretation of it. And while a sense of place matters, my goal has always been to share what a specific farmer has to say.
In many ways, working with Tsuji-san helped redefine how we approach historically important regions. There’s always a hesitation—how do you engage with a place so established without reinforcing clichés? He showed us that the answer lies in finding individuals who are actively shaping both the place and their own voice. That idea has since become a guiding principle.
There was also an unexpected effect. Relationships in Japan move slowly, built on trust over time. Having Tsuji-san in the catalog signaled something—that we valued substance over scale, and were committed to long-term partnerships. His trust in us opened doors not only in Uji, but across Japan.Over time, our relationship shifted from understanding to collaboration. What began as learning how to present his teas evolved into deeper conversations—about harvest timing, how certain lots might best be expressed, and what to share or hold back. We came to understand not just the “what” of his teas, but the “why.”
One thing I’ve always appreciated is that Tsuji-san has never chased trends. Even as global interest in Japanese tea has grown, he has remained consistent—committed to an unmatched level of quality and an almost relentless pursuit of incremental improvement. He is in his fields every day, quite literally talking to his plants, listening, and refining.
I remember one visit when the conversation drifted away from tea. He spoke about time—not in terms of harvests or production, but continuity. What it means to do something well, repeatedly, over decades. The timescale of a great producer isn’t measured in years, but in decades—even centuries. That’s the scale he operates on.
Another time, while tasting through several lots, I found myself drawn to one he dismissed. When I asked why, he explained that it didn’t meet his standard—not in comparison to others, but to what he believed it could be. When I said I enjoyed it, he told me that we should always trust our own tastes—but still hold ourselves to the highest standard. That moment clarified something: for him, excellence is internal.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned from working with Tsuji-san, it’s that meaningful growth rarely looks dramatic from the outside. It’s incremental, often invisible, built on small, deliberate choices. His role in the Kettl catalog continues to evolve, just as his teas do. What hasn’t changed is the foundation—mutual respect, curiosity, and a shared belief that tea is as much about people as it is about place.
Looking back, what we recognized in each other wasn’t just professional alignment, but a shared way of seeing the work: as something to be done carefully, honestly, and over a long period of time. In the end, that’s what has made all the difference.
