Matcha Sommeliers

Matcha is a family affair at the AOI Tea Company. The son of AOI’s president, Tadateru (Tad) Honda, and her son-in-law, Mr. Nakane (pictured) are two of the many matcha tea sommeliers that work for the AOI Tea Company. Both Mr. Nakane and Tad Honda grew up watching the farmers of Nishio carefully harvest the tea, and learned how AOI’s superior production leads to the company manufacturing some of the finest matcha in the world. Both Tad and Mr. Nakane spent their lives learning, training, and tasting green tea to develop a sophisticated palette, just like a wine sommelier. Both men can judge a tea’s location and quality with simply a taste, while caring for the tea within AOI’s warehouse just as a vineyard owner would care for their wine cellar.