Details

H18.5 x W1.2cm

White bamboo; harvested in the winter after 2-3 years of growth, boiled to remove oil in the plant, dried in the cold winter air, then aged for another 2-3 years. During this process the green color of the bamboo fades into the "white" color of bamboo.

Story

Recently when we got to visit Japan, we were lucky enough to meet Yasaburo Tanimura, the master chasen maker. It takes 15 years to become a high level maker and Yasaburo Tanimura is the 25th generational descendant of a family who has been producing chasen for over 530 years.

Every one is individually hand made from bamboo that is dried in the snowy winter air of Japan for over three years. Each step to transform the dried bamboo into a working chasen is incredibly intricate and takes a long while to complete. When cut to size the maker will slice into one hollow end of the cylinder to divide the the sections into thinner and thinner bristles. They then will shave said bristles to make them thinner still as well as to produce the desired curl. The bristles are threaded to seperate and shape them into the matcha whisk shape you know and love.