Many people would actually be surprised to know that Japanese green tea actually originated from China. That’s right; it was their highly advanced neighbors who were making use of green tea well before the Japanese ever got exposed to it.

The Chinese had been making use of green tea since the ninth century. It was through the Buddhist monks of Japan who went to China to study and carried the tea back home on their return that green tea made its way into the Japanese tea cup.

During their study period in China the Japanese Buddhist monks discovered the wonderful shrub and its many benefits. The Japanese were marveled by the drink and immediately began making use of it for various purposes.

It became the most popular drink as it was heavily patronized. The Japanese were also fast to realize the medicinal benefits of green tea and got straight down to extracting the maximum benefits from green tea.

All the tests with the green tea were carried out in the temples of Buddhist monks, and because they were the first to use it they also made it their official drink. The reputation of green tea also made the nobility fall in love with this drink.

The Japanese green tea revolution

The popularity of green tea became so much in Japan, that for couple of centuries they had to import it from China. Then one day the Japanese decided to bring the seeds of green tea shrub from China in order to grow it in their own country. This started the green tea revolution in Japan.

The accessibility of green tea seeds made it possible for the Japanese masses to grow their own green tea. Thus Japan saw a great rise in the consumption of green tea amongst the Japanese people.

It became clear to the Japanese that green tea had tremendous health benefits as they started using it regularly. They were so influenced by the medical qualities as well as the well being of the body that they announced it to be their official drink.

The Japanese were growing green tea in the shade from the beginning. The difference between green tea and black tea is that the black tea leaves are fermented but the green tea leaves are steamed after they are collected.

The beneficial properties of green tea which it retains comes from the practice of steaming the leaves rather than fermenting them. Later they are dried up and powdered

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