TeaHQ

Sakimidori

An early cultivar planted principally in Kyushu, where the mild climate lets growers exploit its bud-break date to reach the shincha market first. It gives a soft, sweet, low-astringency tea and is one of several cultivars that make Kyushu’s season structurally different from Shizuoka’s rather than merely earlier.

さきみどりCamellia sinensis var. sinensisJapan

Where it sits in the botany

Sakimidori is recorded under Camellia sinensis var. sinensis, the variety group one level above cultivar. It is associated with Japan, which is where it was selected or is most widely planted rather than the only place it grows.

Also transliterated as: sakimidori, saki midori.

Where it came from

An early-season selection propagated in western Kyushu.

How firm this is: Inferred rather than taken from a primary breeding or registration record. Date and parentage were not verified against a primary source.

What the plant is like

Early, soft and sweet, with low bitterness and a bright green infusion.

What it is usually made into

The categories this cultivar is typically processed into. It is a statement about common practice, not a limit — processing decides the category, and a cultivar can be taken down more than one route.

  • Green tea — Tea whose oxidation is halted early by heat, keeping the leaf green and the cup fresh, vegetal or marine in character.

Teas in the catalogue made from Sakimidori

Other cultivars in Camellia sinensis var. sinensis

Sources

  • TeaHQ editorial synthesis — TeaHQ

This page is TeaHQ’s own synthesis throughout. No breeding register or institutional record stands behind the account above, which is why the origin note carries its confidence in the open rather than reading as a citation.

How TeaHQ handles sources