Jeju Island, South Korea

Elevated by nature.

SHADO, said “shadow”, is named for the cycle of light and dark. In Korea, the way of tea is called dado (다도). Our name pays homage to these two concepts.

01The Island

Korean matcha, from Jeju.

Most matcha comes from Japan. Ours comes from Jeju, a volcanic island off South Korea's southern coast, sitting at the same latitude as Yame, one of Japan's renowned tea regions. Korea has a long, quiet tradition of fine tea. Our matcha is grown by a single small farm at the foot of Hallasan, tended with the care only a dedicated grower can give.

Open countryside on Jeju Island with mountains on the horizon

SHADO matcha pouches standing on black volcanic rock

02The Practice

Not all matcha is made equal.

Ceremonial grade is not a purity test. Where and how it grows is the difference.

Our partner farm sits on Jeju's volcanic slopes, far from roads and traffic. The leaves grow in mineral-rich lava soil and are watered by spring water filtered through rock. Single-origin, from first flush.

Whisked matcha in a stone bowl beside a bamboo whisk

03The Leaf

Among the finest grades Jeju grows.

Only the young first-flush leaves are picked, then cut, trimmed of stem and vein, and milled to a fine powder. The result is top ceremonial grade, made to stand beside Japan's finest in colour, taste and texture.

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Grown by nature

Four elements, shaped by the island.

Earth, water, light and magnetism: the conditions on one volcanic island that every leaf starts with.

01Volcanic soil

Earth

Volcanic ash over porous basalt. The soil drains fast but holds moisture deep, so roots reach down and the leaf grows slowly, with a rounded, savoury depth.

02Rock-filtered water

Water

Rain on Hallasan filters through basalt and scoria for years before it reaches the fields as spring water. It keeps the plants steadily watered through the season.

03Jeju Light

Light

Sea fog softens the sun before it reaches the rows, and the tea is shaded before harvest. Gentle light keeps the leaf tender, deep green, and sweet rather than bitter.

04Quiet Charge

Magnetism

The quiet, ever-present energy of the island. The pull you feel before you can name it. Jeju's black basalt is rich in iron, much of it still holds a faint magnetic charge from when it cooled. The same iron weathers into the soil and roots carry it up into every leaf. Part of the terroir matcha rarely talks about.

Farm practices

Matcha, as nature intended.

There is no road to our farm. A gravel track winds away from traffic, the car stays behind, and the last stretch is on foot, up into the tea. Hallasan rises behind the rows. A spring-fed reservoir, filled by water running off the mountain, waters everything and draws birds of every kind to its edge. It's a small, boutique farm, hand-tilled and never mass-produced.

01

Far from the road

No passing cars, no traffic. Just the tea, the sea air and the sound of birds.
02

Spring water

The reservoir gathers mountain spring water, and it feeds every row.
03

Wild by design

We don't chase a manicured look. Weeds are allowed to grow, and horses graze between the rows, keeping them down and returning their dung to the volcanic soil as it feeds the plants.
04

Shade and first harvest

The rows are shaded before harvest, and only the first harvest of the year is picked for 001.
05

In harmony

Every choice follows the land, not the other way round.

Tea fields in morning mist on Jeju Island, with Hallasan behind

Origin

Jeju, South Korea

A volcanic island off the southern coast, its tea fields set on lava slopes beneath Hallasan. Sea fog, mountain rain and island wind make a microclimate all its own, and give our matcha a terroir you can taste: buttery, sweet, and clean.