Kawakami Naoya
 | The topic of this article may not meet Wikitia's general notability guideline. |
Kawakami Naoya | |
|---|---|
川上 直也 | |
| Add a Photo | |
| Born | January 5, 1974 Osaka, Japan |
| Nationality | Japanese |
| Occupation | Tea master, tea evaluator (8th Dan), educator, professional mahjong player |
| Organization | Japan Professional Mahjong League (JPML) Kansai HQ / Zencharen (National Federation of Tea Industry Youth Associations) |
| Known for | 59th National Tea Appraisal Technical Competition (2012) – Individual Runner-up & Team Champion; founder of Chasoujin |
Kawakami Naoya (川上 直也, born 5 January 1974) is a Japanese tea master and evaluator ranked 8th Dan in Japan’s national tea-appraisal system.
He is recognized for his achievements in tea-tasting competitions and for promoting Japanese tea culture through his company Chasoujin.
He is also a member of the National Federation of Tea Industry Youth Associations and a professional mahjong player affiliated with the Japan Professional Mahjong League (JPML) Kansai Headquarters (29th class).[1]
Early life and career
Kawakami was born in Osaka on 5 January 1974 and is said to have had an exceptional sense of taste and memory from early childhood, recalling events from as young as one year old.
While still a student, he worked part-time at a Japanese tea company founded during the Edo period.
There he became fascinated by the depth of Japanese tea, and the managing director recognized his talent for smell, taste and memory essential to tea appraisal, scouting him to train as a tea master.
To study Japanese tea in depth, he visited tea wholesalers in each production area and learned green-tea processing including tencha and matcha.
Through these experiences he developed the ability to identify the flavor, origin and variety of tea leaves.[2]
Tea appraisal and competition results
Japan’s National Tea Appraisal Technical Competition (全国茶審査技術競技大会) is the country’s highest-level tea-tasting contest, testing competitors’ ability to identify tea by flavor, aroma and region through blind tasting.
At the Kyoto Tea Association’s 59th National Competition (2012, Osaka), Kawakami placed second individually and his team won the team championship.[3]
Selected results
- 2012 – 59th National Tea Appraisal Technical Competition (Osaka): Individual Runner-up; Team Champion[3]
- 2011 – Kyoto Prefecture Tea Appraisal Council: Team Champion[3]
- 2013 – Kyoto City Tea Appraisal Competition: Runner-up[3]
8th Dan rank
Kawakami is listed by the NHK Culture Center Kobe as “Japanese Tea Instructor / National Tea Appraisal Technician, 8th Dan (全国茶審査技術八段位)”.[4]
The 8th Dan represents one of the highest qualifications in Japan’s tea industry, held by fewer than one percent of certified evaluators.
He is also credited as “茶師八段 (Tea Master 8th Dan)” on product pages such as e-ocha.com.[5]
Teaching and outreach
Through Chasoujin, Kawakami produces and curates premium Japanese teas and teaches tea brewing and sensory evaluation to consumers.[2]
He emphasizes the philosophy of Ichiban Isshin (一碗一心) – “one bowl, one heart,” linking tea practice to mindfulness and natural harmony.
Mahjong
Kawakami is a registered professional with the Japan Professional Mahjong League (JPML) Kansai Headquarters (29th class).
His official profile lists Osaka Prefecture as his home region.
He appeared in the Mahjong Saikyō-sen 2024 All-Japan Pro Championship, where Kinma Web featured him as “Tea Master 8th Dan Kawakami Naoya.”[6]
Affiliations
- Member – National Federation of Tea Industry Youth Associations ( Zencharen )[1]
- Instructor – NHK Culture Center Kobe[4]
- Registered Professional – Japan Professional Mahjong League (JPML)[6]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "全国茶業連合青年団（Zencharen）公式サイト". Zencharen (in 日本語). Retrieved 2025-10-26.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "茶創人 (Chasoujin) Official Shop". BASE (in 日本語). Retrieved 2025-10-26.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 "59th National Tea Appraisal Technical Competition Results (2012)". Kyoto Tea Association (in 日本語). Retrieved 2025-10-26.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "NHK Culture Center Kobe – Japanese Tea Instructor Course". NHK Culture Center Kobe (in 日本語). Retrieved 2025-10-26.
- ↑ "特選緑茶 八段監修 (Tea supervised by 8th Dan Kawakami Naoya)". e-ocha.com (in 日本語). Retrieved 2025-10-26.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 "茶師八段・川上直也が用意した、最強戦で勝つための戦略". Kinma Web (in 日本語). 2024-10-13. Retrieved 2025-10-26.
External links
This article "Kawakami Naoya" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical. Articles taken from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be accessed on Wikipedia's Draft Namespace.