We are thrilled to announce the launch of our special dialogue series, "Insights from Wine into Matcha," featuring renowned top sommelier Koichi Tanabe. This series explores the fascinating intersection of wine culture and the rapidly evolving world of matcha.
In this first installment, we dive into the fundamental questions facing the global matcha movement, drawing powerful parallels from the established, world-class standards of the wine industry.
Itroducing Our Esteemed Speakers
Koichi Tanabe (田邉 公一)
CEO of WS Inc. / Top Sommelier
Mr. Tanabe is a leading figure in the Japanese beverage industry, with a sommelier career spanning 23 years and an instructor career of over 16 years.
He currently oversees and instructs beverage seminars for multiple companies across Tokyo, focusing on wine and sake (Japanese rice wine). Mr. Tanabe is highly active in disseminating information through various media, events, and SNS, traveling to wineries and sake breweries both domestically and internationally.
Affiliations: Instructor at Wine School L'École du Vin.
Awards: Winner of the 6th Cuvée Louise Pommery Sommelier Competition.
Publications: Author of “How to Enjoy Wine - Wine Selection Methods Taught by a Popular Sommelier.” He published his new book, “THE STUDY OF WINE,” in October 2025.
Media: Appeared as a sommelier in the film “Signature: Making Japan a World-Class Wine Region.”
Original Brand: Released his original sake brand, “几鏡 (Kikyo) by Koichi Tanabe,” starting in 2024.
Kensuke Suji (筋 健亮)
CEO of BLUEGON Inc. / Founder of Zenkyu Matcha
Mr. Suji spent 10.5 years in marketing at the major US consumer goods company P&G, where he held directorial and senior directorial positions for brands including Febreze and Braun.
Driven by his personal experiences, he became fascinated by the philosophies of the Chanoyu (Japanese Tea Ceremony) and Zen. He founded Zenkyu Matcha in 2025 with the mission to promote health and mindfulness through matcha.
Highlights from the Dialogue1
The conversation with Mr. Tanabe, a professional with 28 years in the industry, covered several critical topics that will shape the future of global matcha culture:
The Need for a Global Language: Unlike wine, which utilizes a universal language (vocabulary, qualifications) that allows professionals from diverse backgrounds to communicate precisely about taste and aroma, matcha currently lacks a unified system. We discuss how matcha can build this foundation to transition from a "niche fad" to a "global cultural staple."
Expressing Taste and Aroma:
We tackle the challenge of defining matcha's flavor profiles. Mr. Tanabe suggests establishing a basic "baseline standard" (like the categories of fruit, spice, and flower in wine) to create a shared vocabulary. Once this common ground is set, personal and poetic expressions will be even more valued.
The Sommelier's Role as a Bridge:
Mr. Tanabe emphasizes the sommelier's crucial function: acting as the indispensable bridge between the producer’s passion and the consumer’s experience. They are the ones who put the story, origin, and optimal serving process into words—elements that literally change the taste and increase the value of a luxury item.
Matcha’s Unique Emotional Value:
The discussion highlights matcha's inherent advantage over wine: its emotional and therapeutic value. While wine was historically used for meditation, modern matcha thrives in this role, offering a "Ritual for Mindfulness" that helps busy people pause and reconnect with the present moment.
Terroir and the Power of Context:
The depth of wine culture is anchored in concepts like Terroir (sense of place) and Vintage (year's quality). These established frameworks provide profound ways to appreciate variation. We explore how concepts like Vertical Tasting (comparing the same wine across different years) can inspire new ways for consumers to enjoy and understand the subtle differences in matcha.
We invite you to watch the first video to gain a new, international perspective on the world of matcha.
Watch the Full Video (Part 1) Here: https://youtu.be/nudNhwO545I
