2

3

4

5

[Tocha]

"Tocha (tea-tasting contest)” is a type of tea ceremony that exploded in popularity from the Middle Ages to the early modern period, in which participants drink several kinds of tea and try to guess its place of origin by its aroma, taste, and preparation. Originally practiced in China during the Song dynasty, it is believed to have been introduced to Japan at the same time as the coffee culture.

During the Kamakura period, tea cultivation was started by Myoe, a monk of Kosanji temple, and tea was also cultivated in various regions, but the quality of tea varied depending on each production area. Toganoo tea produced in Toganoo, where Kosanji Temple is located, was considered the highest quality and was called "Honcha," while tea produced in other areas was called "Hicha." Therefore, tocha in Japan began as a simple game to separate the honcha from hicha.

Later, however, as the quality of Uji tea improved and it came to be treated as a main tea along with Toganoo tea, the rules became more complicated. The most popular practice was the "four kinds and ten cups" in which four kinds of tea were drunk ten times to identify them. Sometimes this was repeated many times, sometimes through the night.

In the Nanbokucho period, the popularity of the game reached its peak, but it escalated to the point where the decorations and implements became more ornate and people gambled enormous sums of money, leading the shogunate to issue a ban on the game. Gradually, it began to decline, and when wabicha was formed by Sen no Rikyu and others, tocha was eliminated from the tea ceremony.

On the other hand, it continued to be favored by Kabuki players as "chakabuki," and even those who favored wabicha began to reconsider tocha as a part of their training. It is also listed as one of the seven Zen spiritual practices in the "Shichijishiki" written by the Omotesenke and Urasenke tea masters.

In the section on chakabuki, it is written that instead of judging taste by the sensations on the tip of the tongue, such as sweet, spicy, hot, and cold, the true taste can only be found when the tongue is cut off. Although tocha has its origins in play, it is also connected to the spirit of Zen to concentrate the mind and body and to know the true taste of the tea.

Azmaya Kyusu and Yuzamashi
https://www.shokunin.com/en/azmaya/kyusu.html 
Watanabe Mokkogei's Chabon
https://www.shokunin.com/en/watanabe/chabon.html 
Azmaya's Copper Kettle
https://www.shokunin.com/en/azmaya/yakan.html 
Susumuya's Teacup
https://www.shokunin.com/en/susumuya/yunomi.html 
Fujiki Denshiro Shoten's Sokawa Tea Canister
https://www.shokunin.com/en/denshiro/ 

References
https://kotobank.jp/word/七事式-520801
https://hokkaidoblock.grupo.jp/free1306296
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/闘茶