Hokodo

Hokodo traces its origins back to the Edo period as a tea producer in Kyoto, specializing in Uji tea. When Kobe Port opened in the Meiji era, the company expanded to Kobe in 1874 to export tea. On their return trips from India, they filled their empty tea jars with coffee beans, becoming the first shop in Japan to serve coffee to Japanese customers. In an era without coffee mills, they used stone mills originally meant for matcha. Today, Hokodo continues to grind deeply roasted beans with their unique stone mill, offering coffee brewed in traditional style. During the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake, they provided warm tea to Kobe residents from their private storage tanks. Hokodo also owns tea farms in Wazuka, Kyoto, Japan’s premier tea-growing region, producing teas crafted by Japan’s top tea masters, which are available for sampling. With nearly 200 years of history, Hokodo remains a beacon of tea culture, serving clients such as the Imperial Palace and Kyoto Imperial Gardens.