In Japan, watermelon is the quintessential summer fruit, the fruit of festival evenings and warm nights. Mariage Frères has made it, together with yuzu, the theme of Tokyo Summer, a chilled green tea from its French Summer Tea collection, created to evoke the carefree pleasure of Japanese summer nights.

The green tea is enriched with real pieces of Japanese yuzu and natural notes of lemon and watermelon. The declared ingredients are Japanese yuzu tea and flavouring; the blend may contain traces of nuts. The bottle is made of black glossy blown glass, 175 mm high, decorated with a kawaii-style label; it contains 160 g of tea and a 10 g measuring cap, with a supply of filter pouches, enough to prepare up to 24 litres of iced tea.

Preparation is cold and takes three steps: a measuring cap of tea into a filter pouch, the flaps closed, and the pouch placed in 1 to 1.5 litres of pure water, in the fridge, for at least one hour. Cold infusion extracts little tannin and little bitterness, and keeps the aroma and freshness.

The liquor is clear, fruity and refreshing. The watermelon gives a watery, sweet softness, the yuzu sparkles, the lemon adds a tangy edge, and the green tea remains light in the background. Served well chilled, with a few cubes of watermelon and ice, it accompanies a summer lunch, a picnic, or an evening on the terrace.

Allow 10 g per 1 to 1.5 litres of water and at least one hour in the fridge; the iced tea keeps for two days in a cool place. The bottle, tightly closed, protects the dry leaf all summer. La Boutique du Thé is the official Mariage Frères stockist since 1999.