Every bottle of Minami Sayaka begins with a place.
High in the mountains of Gokase, in the interior of Kyushu, the Miyazaki family have been caring for their tea garden, Miyazaki Sabou, since 1930. Across generations, they have learned the rhythms of the land: its seasons, its weather, its plants and the subtle changes that shape the tea from one harvest to the next.
The story of Minami Sayaka begins there.
A Garden in the Mountains
More than 140 small plots make up the Miyazaki garden, rising above 600 metres through the mountainous landscape.
This is not an easy environment for tea. Wide changes in temperature, morning mist and occasional winter snow slow the growth of the plants.
But it is precisely this slow growth that gives the garden its character. The tea plants develop deep roots in the region's rich volcanic soils, taking their time to grow and allowing flavour to concentrate in the leaf.
Surrounding the garden are mature forests and mountains steeped in Japanese mythology and tradition.
The Family Tea
Minami Sayaka, loosely translated as Southern Clarity, is the signature tea of the Miyazaki family.
They were among the first to cultivate this rare variety commercially, carefully nurturing it until it became an expression of their garden.
At the centre of this work is Akira Miyazaki, a tea master whose knowledge extends across more than thirty varieties of tea. Akira believed the leaf had more to give.
Four Years to Find It
The tea was traditionally processed as a green tea. Yet Akira recognised that its delicate floral freshness had not been fully realised.
What followed was four years of patient experimentation. Rather than changing the character of the leaf, he worked gently with it, developing a light oxidation technique that brought its natural qualities into focus.
The result is a rare oolong with a fresh white-flower nose of gardenia and magnolia. White peach and crisp nashi pear follow, giving way to marzipan and a long, subtle finish of almond blossom.
It is expressive without being loud, and the character of the garden remains in the glass.
The Bird of the Mountain
There is another presence in the landscape around the Miyazaki garden.
Near Takachiho, a place deeply connected to Japanese mythology, the mountains rise into mature forests where the Kumataka, or Mountain Hawk-Eagle, can be found.
Rare and protected, the Kumataka is an apex predator. Its survival depends on an intact, balanced natural habitat.
Its presence offers another glimpse into the world surrounding the tea garden: a landscape where the tea, the forest and the wildlife exist within the same delicate ecosystem.
From Leaf to Table
By the time Minami Sayaka reaches the table, it has travelled a long way from the mountains of Gokase.
It carries the character of its season, its region and the family who have cultivated it. It carries Akira Miyazaki’s years of experimentation and the decisions made by hand along the way.
At Saicho, we preserve that sense of place and bring it into a new setting: the table.
Sparkling and served chilled, Minami Sayaka opens gently in the glass. Its floral freshness and bright fruit make a natural companion to oysters, scallops and langoustines, while its softer notes lend themselves to fresh goat’s cheese and pear tart.
From mountain garden to table, the journey remains connected to its beginning.
