If you recently saw headlines saying Japanese tea sold for ¥1.18 million per kilogram, you might have wondered:
Is tea in Japan really that expensive?
The short answer is: not usually.
This price came from the first tea auction of the new season held in Shizuoka on April 20, 2026, where a tea produced in Shimizu Ward, Shizuoka City, received the top price of ¥1.18 million per kilogram. This event marks the beginning of the year’s new tea season in one of Japan’s most famous tea-producing regions. Reports also noted that this year’s tea developed well thanks to favorable spring rain conditions.
So why was it so expensive?
This kind of price is symbolic, not typical.
In Japan, the first tea trading event of the season is a special occasion. Buyers often pay unusually high prices for the very best lots as a way of recognizing quality, celebrating the season, and drawing attention to the year’s new harvest. In other words, it is closer to a ceremonial top price than an everyday market price. Similar high-profile prices have appeared in recent years as well, including ¥880,000/kg in 2025, ¥1,111,111/kg in 2024, and even ¥1,968,000/kg in 2022 at Shizuoka’s first tea trading events.
What this really tells us about Japanese tea
More than anything, this news shows how much value Japan places on seasonality, craftsmanship, and origin.
For many tea producers and tea lovers, the first flush of the year is not just another harvest. It represents freshness, care, and the beginning of a new season. The highest-priced teas are often selected for their aroma, appearance, and rarity, but they also carry something less measurable: the excitement of the very first tea of the year.
That is one of the beautiful things about Japanese tea culture.
Tea is not only about flavor. It is also about timing, place, and the people behind it.
Is this the kind of tea people drink every day?
No.
Most Japanese tea is sold at far more accessible prices. A headline like this can make tea sound impossibly luxurious, but the reality is that there is a wide world of Japanese tea to enjoy, from everyday sencha to special seasonal lots.
What makes stories like this meaningful is not that everyone should drink million-yen tea. It is that they remind us how deeply tea is appreciated in Japan — as an agricultural product, a craft, and a cultural experience.
A note from Shizu Tea
At Shizu Tea, we love stories like this because they shine a light on the care and pride behind Japanese tea.
While auction-record teas are extraordinary and rare, the heart of Japanese tea culture can also be found in a well-made cup shared at home: clean sweetness, fresh aroma, and a sense of place in every sip.
That is the world of tea we hope to share.
