one". Soon, green tea became a staple among cultured people in Japan—a brew for the gentry and the Buddhist priesthood alike. Production grew and tea became increasingly accessible, though still a privilege enjoyed mostly by the upper classes. Medieval tea culture Tea competitions In the 14th century, emerged as a popular pastime. Unlike tea competitions in China, the object of tōcha was to distinguish between tea grown in different regions, in particular between and . These events were known for their extravagant betting. Samurai Sasaki Dōyō was particularly famed for hosting such competitions, with lavish decoration, large quantities of food and sake, and dancing. This taste for the extravagant and the vulgar was known as and was the cause of some moral outrage among writers of the time. Also popular during this period was a passion for , such as paintings, ceramics, and calligraphy. Tea rooms and early chanoyu In the 15th century, Shōgun Ashikaga Yoshimasa constructed the first tea room in the shoin chanoyu (reception room tea ceremony) style. This simple room in his retirement villa at Ginkaku-ji allowed the shōgun to display his karamono objects when holding tea ceremonies. The shoin style room developed from the study rooms of Zen monks. They featured wall-to-wall tatami covering in contrast to earlier plain wooden floors, and a shoin desk (writing desk) built into the wall. These rooms were the predecessors of modern Japanese living rooms. The austerity of this new style of is thought to have been a step towards the formal chanoyu tea ceremony that emerged later. It is said that Yoshimasa's tea master was Murata Shukō, also known as Murata Jukō. Shukō is credited with developing the muted, "cold and withered" motifs of the Japanese tea ceremony. He advocated combining imported Chinese wares with rough ceramics made in Japan, in an effort to "harmonize Japanese and Chinese tastes". This intentional usage of simple or flawed utensils with a wabi aesthetic came to be referred to as wabicha. Shukō, however, did not embrace the idea of a fully wabi approach to chanoyu. By contrast, Takeno Jōō, who studied under one of Shukō's disciples, was dedicated to the elaboration of the wabi style in tea utensils as well as the decor of the tea room. The Japanese tea ceremony Sen no Rikyū The historical figure considered most influential in the development of the Japanese tea ceremony was Sen no Rikyū.