Our 2024 Ceremonial Matcha is, unexpectedly for us, made entirely out of the Yabukita variety. I usually do not select single Yabukita Matcha because it tends to be a little one-dimensional.
But in blind tastings, this Matcha soared out on top. It once again shows that pre-conceived ideas in tea almost always have exceptions. It also demonstrates the supremacy of experience over ideas and the importance of blind-tasting.
Our 2024 Matcha has glorious richness and creaminess with an enduring sweetness.
On the nose, there are hazelnut butters and creamy porridge warmth with top notes of icing sugar, melon and cake frosting.
The texture is soft and supple and the flavour fills the mouth with a vaporous hum of butter, almonds and milk. After swallowing you are met with those essential bitters - soft and herbal which immediately shift to a green melon and wild strawberry sweet juiciness.
Our matcha is the tip-top grade. It is sourced from Tencha grown in the most famed matcha producing area of Japan - Uji near Kyoto and stone ground to under 10 microns. We love Uji Hikari in our matcha but it is relatively low yield and much more expensive. If you would like to taste an even smaller batch then check out our Masters Matcha
NEW FOR 2024 - ALL 30g MATCHA COMES IN BEAUTIFUL PORCELAIN GREEN JARS WHICH ARE REUSABLE AND PERFECT FOR ANY TEA STORAGE.
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.
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 may be fundamental to good health by soaking up the free radicals in your body which lead to ageing and ill health.
During the growing of the tea leaves the plants are shaded from the sun for at least 20 days. This causes the leaf to increase chlorophyll production which gives you bright green colour and associated health benefits. The Tencha is then stored for 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.
Directions
For Usucha, we recommend using a teaspoon (or 2 Chashaku scoops) placed in a bowl or Chawan.for 60-70ml of cold or warm water (between 70 and 80 degrees). First, make a paste with a splash of warm water (between 70 and 80 degrees or 160-175F) with a Chasen whisk and then 50-60ml of warm water and whisk vigorously in a 'W' motion to make a smooth and frothy drink. Slurp and enjoy.
For Koicha (a much thicker and intense drink) you would use double the Matcha (2tsp or 4x Chashaku Scoops) with about 40ml of water and whisk slowly to make a smooth drink without froth.
We do not advise drinking before bed as it does contain caffeine.
