Established for fifteen generations since the Eiroku era (around 1560), the Kanbayashi Shunsho story began when its first generation, Kamon no Jo Hisashige, moved to Uji from the Kanbayashi Township in Tanba and became heavily involved in the tea industry, playing an important role in production and distribution as the leading tea master in the Uji tea industry.  During the Edo period (1603-1867), he was bestowed the title “Gomotsu Ochashi,” or the highest rank of tea master, and principally performed the role of tea provider to the shogunate and various feudal lords. 

But, with the changing of periods came a wind of change. The Meiji era marked a drastic upheaval for many tea masters, who were forced to change their business models as shogunate favoured tea master establishments to tea merchant establishments.  The Shunsho family adapted swiftly with the introduction of newly developed teas 'gyokuro' and 'sencha' , an absolute hit with tea lovers. And the company motto "learning from the past for the future" still holds true to this day. 

Not many can claim an ancestry linking back to Uji tea masters, but the Kanbayashi Shunsho family boasts of a legacy that spans 450 years, and have been purveyors of high quality teas for generations of tea lovers.