Matcha

↑About Matcha

Matcha(抹茶), also less commonly called hikicha, is a finely-powdered Japanese green tea made out of the same leaves that gyokuro is made from. Matcha, however, is not just powdered gyokuro. To produce matcha, the same leaves used to produce gyokuro are dried by a different process, producing a type of tea called tencha(碾茶). Matcha is then produced by removing the stems and leaf veins of the tencha, and grinding the remainder of the leaf to a fine powder. The intermediate step, tencha, is not widely available outside of Japan.

Matcha is the type of tea used in the Japanese tea ceremony.

To prepare matcha, the powder is added directly to water and, unlike most other teas, is not filtered out. The powder can be filtered through a sieve before adding it to water, to break up clumps. The traditional method of brewing matcha involves mixing it with a bamboo whisk in a bowl. Brewed matcha has an opaque, bright-green color and strong flavor. Although the flavor of matcha closely resembles other green teas in many ways, the opacity and consistency of the brewed tea is unlike any other.

Because of its finely-powdered form, matcha is easily added to desserts, baked goods, and other foods in order to impart a strong green tea flavor. Because matcha is so expensive, companies sell special cooking grade matcha or kitchen grade matcha, also called culinary grade, for the purpose of adding to desserts or other foods. This matcha is usually more astringent than the matcha intended for drinking.

The finely-powdered state of matcha makes it lose its aroma quickly; once opened, it does not stay fresh as long as most green teas. Matcha is also sometimes added or blended into green teas, including those available in teabags. Matcha is often blended with genmaicha, resulting in a blend called Matcha-iri genmaicha(抹茶入り玄米茶).

Matcha is typically made in Japan, although it is also made in other regions as well, including in Kenya. In addition to the familiar style of matcha, Kenya also produces a matcha-like powdered white tea called white matcha. We do not classify this as matcha, but rather treat it as a style of white tea in its own category.

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