Our Matcha Set gives you:
- Chasen – Carved from a single piece of bamboo. Our handmade whisk features 100 intricate prongs – that's the best number for making velvety froth. This tool is rightly regarded in Japan as the most important utensil in the preparation of matcha due to its ability to efficiently transform the powder into a creamy, frothy brew with that legendary umami taste. Watch your chasen 'bloom' as the bamboo tines bend outwards after repeated use.
- Chawan – Handcrafted individually (no two are the same), glazed matcha bowl. Not just any old bowl. This one is large enough for you to whip up as much froth as you like without making a mess. No need for cups or mugs – the chawan has always been designed for whisking AND drinking your freshly whisked matcha while the crema is still frothing. Drink from the bowl and feel the weight of your matcha tea as the warm liquid gently moves in your palms.
- Chashaku – Handmade from a single piece of bamboo and bent over steam to create the perfect scoop for your matcha powder. Traditionally used in the Japanese tea ceremony to measure precise amounts of precious matcha. This scoop will save you wasting your ceremonial grade matcha as you prepare the perfect amount of powder to whisk for yourself and your friends.
- Organic Ceremonial Matcha (30g) - Very high grade organic matcha sourced from Shizuoka in Japan. Extremely rich in antioxidants and free of radiation. Stone ground to under 10 microns. Lovely vegetal and umami richness (from the incredible L-Theanine content). A verdant start moving to an addictively astringent yet sweet finish.
- Presentation box with a magnetic closure – The sturdy packaging of our matcha set makes this an amazing gift of experience to your loved ones. As a box, this is also perfect for storing your matcha essentials.
About Matcha
Matcha is super finely ground (under 10 microns) green tea. It is made so fine using a stone grinder to prevent the addition of heat from machine grinding which reduces the nutrient content. The small particle size means that the tea leaf suspends in water and produces a smooth textured tea. This style of brewing tea is actually very ancient and the method used a few thousand years ago before tea production expanded to allow for brewing whole leaves.
Lovely vegetal and umami richness (from the incredible L-Theanine content). A verdant start moving to an addictively astringent yet sweet finish. The ultimate wake up drink!
The health advantage of drinking matcha is that you are actually consuming the whole leaf which means that the full therapeutic effects of tea are given to your body. Studies have shown that matcha provides between 3 to 137 times the amount of antioxidants (in the form of high potency catechins) compared with brewed green tea. These figures vary so widely depending on the tea and matcha chosen for the studies. It shows how much difference there is between high quality and poor quality tea. The 137 times figure comes from a study against Starbucks green tea. We think it is a conservative estimate that one shot of matcha gives the same amount of antioxidants as drinking 10-20 cups of high quality green tea. Antioxidants are fundamental to good health by soaking up the free radicals in your body which lead to ageing and ill health.
Our matcha is very high grade. It is sourced from ground Tencha grown at an altitude of 650m on an organic farm in Shizuoka. The farm uses natural predators to remove any insects which would eat the leaf such as Praying Mantis, ladybugs and spiders. The farm has been used to grow tea organically since 1824.
During the growing of the tea leaves the plants are shaded from the sun. This causes the leaf to increase chlorophyll production which gives you the bright green colour and associated health benefits. The Tencha is then stored for many months in a cool environment to age before grinding. If you miss out on this step then the matcha will be lightweight and pale instead of dark and robust.
This is premium ceremonial grade matcha green tea made from JONA certified organic green tea and compared with other matcha brands we are confident that there is no better matcha at this price. Each tin will provide a minimum of 30 shots of matcha which works out at about 60p per day for an immensely healthy habit. Matcha is a very affordable way to improve health easily.
Directions:
The most convenient way of drinking matcha is in the form of a tea 'shot'. We recommend using about half a teaspoon for 25-30ml of cold or hot water (between 70 and 80 degrees). Stir vigorously or whisk to make a smooth drink. Sip and enjoy the marine air and grass flavour or down it like a health shot. Drink one or two shots a day. We do not advise drinking before bed as it does contain caffeine.
Our Matcha is 100% Radiation Free
There is a little bit of concern that the fallout from the Fukushima nuclear disaster may affect Japanese tea. This is especially true of matcha since consuming matcha means eating the actual leaf instead of just brewing. It is therefore important to confirm that the matcha in your cup has been tested thoroughly.
At Mei Leaf we kindly ask our tea farmers to test every batch of matcha that we order to ensure that there is no radiation in the leaves. Once the leaves have been proven to be radiation free, they can be lovingly stone ground into the delicious matcha for our shelves.
