Nagasaki (Sonogi)
Centred on Higashisonogi, on Omura Bay. Nagasaki was one of the prefectures the national crop survey covered until the 2024 reporting change narrowed it to eight, so recent statistics no longer carry a figure for it. What it makes is mostly steamed tamaryokucha, which differs from sencha in both shape and mouthfeel.
Land and climate
Hills looking down over Omura Bay, worked by sea wind and morning mist. The ground is not especially high for Kyushu, so picking is early — first flush moves within April.
How it is made
Mostly steamed tamaryokucha. The industry labeling standard defines it as made like sencha except that the final shaping roll is replaced by a drier. Without that step the leaf is never straightened out, so it stays curled into comma shapes.
Cultivars
What to look for
'Tamaryokucha' or 'guricha' on the packet means this shape. Curled leaf takes a little longer to open than sencha, so cutting the steep as short as you would for sencha leaves the cup thin.