Hi everyone, I recently bought a chasen but forgot to purchase a holder along with it. Is there a replacement or something makeshift I can use to dry off my chasen in the mean time as it is being shipped? Thanks

Today, I started my day with two distinct cups of Ippodo matcha: Unmon and Seiun. Each has its unique charm and flavor profile, making my morning ritual both soothing and invigorating.

Unmon: rich and robust flavor, with a deep umami taste balanced with a pleasant faint astringency. It's like a warm, embracing start to the day, full of vitality and a lingering sweet aftertaste.

Seiun: slightly lighter, with a round aftertaste and a sweet aroma. More of a gentle wake-up call that's smooth and welcoming.

Both cups were prepared traditionally using my personal usucha ratio, 1.6g to about 55ml water at 175 F (following Ippodo’s recipe of 2g:60ml). It's fascinating how each variety offers a different spectrum of flavors, yet both are equally delightful.

I received this as a gift from my boyfriend and he’s not sure what the name of the brand is. When I tried reverse image searching, I can’t seem to find it being sold anywhere. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

I’m so sorry I meant from greatest to least not from greatest to least , my mistake , my bad , sorry , about , that

Oatmilk: I just love it with oatmilk like it tastes so creamy and delicious

Almond milk: I really like this nutty flavored matcha

Coconut milk: I’m not really that big fan of coconut milk

Regular cow milk: I don’t really like it with cow milk milk at all like it tastes rather odd and stuff

Soy milk: not really a fan of soy milk like not at all

Chocolate milk: not that good with choccy milk or chocolate oatmilk in my opinion tho sorry

Which one do you agree and not agree the most and what are your opinions and thoughts on this

I was interviewed for a documentary back in 2018 I believe about matcha tea but maybe tea in general. Have never been able to find it though. I think it was done by a Japanese crew but sincerely don’t remember much.

If anyone has come across it though please lmk when I can watch!

I'm trying to get my matcha lattes to be more creamy. I don't have a milk frother, but was wondering if adding milk to my matcha+water mixture and then whisking them altogether would work. Has anyone tried this?

OK. Obsessed with this series!!! Anyone get super excited about the matcha scene between Buntaro and Mariko? Because I did! It was beautiful.

Does anyone keep multiple containers of matcha open? I'd love to have more than one type of matcha open to choose from but I am the only matcha drinker in my house.

Hi, I'm new to matcha and am hoping to learn about how the environment impacts flavor. I made myself an iced latte from a brand new bag and it was delicious to start. There was a little left in my glass after at least 30 minutes and when I drank it, it had the same fishy taste I experienced when drinking the Starbucks version I got where I live in a high humid climate. I've read humidity can cause this fishy taste.

I'm wondering if over time the latte's exposure to humidity made the taste go off. Do I have to drink it quickly for the taste to stay good? This may sound like a silly question, thanks in advance for your help.

I usually just add room temp water and 1/2 teaspoon of matcha in a bottle then shake it vigorously. For some reason I just like the taste better. Is there anyone else that also does this? Also, is there a difference health/taste wise between hot and cold water? Would the caffeine be more potent with room temp water? I’m going to guess it isn’t, but you never know.

The community threads are a place where you can:

• Ask for recommendations.
• Introduce yourself to the community.
• Share your favorite latte/blended-drink recipe of the moment.
• Find other matcha people in your city or country.
• Tell us what's in your chawan.

I have a family member who really wants the benefits of matcha and the convenience of a quick drink, but doesn’t want the taste of matcha. Do you know of any drink recipes where you wouldn’t taste the matcha?

Please don’t light me up for this question. Being sincere.

So, as the title suggests, before buying matcha I read a moderate amount and some different opinions etc online, a lot of people were saying the cheaper powders were bitter.

I bought Twinings matcha powder, it was £15 or $19.21 for our friends across the pond, for 30g or just over an ounce. As I understand, this is cheap for matcha, well, mid to low range.

It’s not bright green, it’s somewhat in between dull and light. What I’ve read is the worse the quality of the matcha/the closer you get to culinary grade, the more bitter it is.

I was fully prepared for quite a bitter experience, however, it never came. I tried half a teaspoon in a mug of hot water earlier, it was completely fine. I just tried a full teaspoon with half a mug of hot water and half milk with two teaspoons of Demerara sugar.

Both times it wasn’t bitter at all, on first contact it tastes a bit like seaweed, the aftertaste tastes a bit like weed lol, but it’s completely manageable.

I’m a bit confused, any ideas? But I like it, enough to keep drinking it! I wanted to get cheaper stuff first to make sure I liked the taste, when I come close to running out of what I have now, I’m going to order some Ikuyo no Mukashi from a Japanese website as apparently it’s really good!

But yeah, just wanted to share my experience as I’m rather confused.

The community threads are a place where you can:

• Ask for recommendations.
• Introduce yourself to the community.
• Share your favorite latte/blended-drink recipe of the moment.
• Find other matcha people in your city or country.
• Tell us what's in your chawan.

I accidentally purchased Imperial Grade Chinese Matcha powder, rather than the Ceremonial Grade Japanese Matcha I normally order. What is the difference between the two?

I love matcha – I usually have around 2-3 cups a day, using around 2 grams of high quality matcha for each. However, I am forced to stop once the hour grows later, due to the caffeine. I didn't think that decaffeinated matcha was possible due to the inherent lack of processing matcha usually goes through, but I have found conflicting info online with some companies even selling the product.

This company has one, but I have never ordered from them so I'm unsure about quality – especially at this price ($1/g), which is comparable to some of the highest quality matcha prices.

This company has a decaf matcha that got lots of good reviews, but is out of stock, and i'm not sure its being produced anymore. Again, the price is higher than most of my favorite matcha.

This Article goes into some more specifics, and gives some interesting insight into how or why the product might be so hard to make & get ahold of, and about how the processing impacts color, flavor, and ultimately the end product when you drink.

Anyone here ever had experience with a decaf branded matcha? I don't want an alternative tea – I have Mugicha Barley teabags from Ippodo that don't have caffeine for evening tea, but it obviously tastes nothing like matcha.

Thanks in advance, sorry if this has already been answered

Well, okay, almost every matcha I have had since getting into traditional-style preparation in August 2023!

In order from first tin to currently-drinking, left-to-right top-to-bottom:

Maruyasu Jiko, MK Eiju, MK Ittekisui Kin, HS Nishiki no Mukashi, MK Tsubokiri, Hibiki-An Kuradashi Pinnacle, Ippodo Tsukikage

Ooika Tsuji Shirakawa Gokou, Ippodo Ummon, Ooika Kurazumi Hoshino Okumidori, Maruyasu Tendo, Hokoen Shoukaku, Hekisuien Shien

Ippodo Tatsu no Mukashi, HS Obuku no Mukashi, MK Obukucha Kin

Not pictured: Some “culinary” matcha, most of which held up quite well in terms of taste/quality to what one would call these “ceremonial” tins or boxes. Blessed be the daily drinkers, whose only sin was lacking a pretty, collectible tin.

Thanks to you, r/Matcha and r/tea, whose search bars and history were valuable resources which provided context to reviews and tasting notes that really helped guide shopping, fine-tuning my technique, and avoiding dubious listings. Though I am not at all new to tea or even Japanese greens in general, traditionally-prepared matcha is certainly a world of its own.

(Oops, sorry about the long title of the initial post, mods, fixed!)

I've been drinking matcha (no-milk) for a while... but have recently started trying to push back my breakfast intake for more time fasted. I've noticed in drinking matcha without milk in the morning causes some stomach discomfort... and this is solved if I put a an oz or two of oatmilk in with it.

Has anyone else experienced this or found any other work arounds? I'd rather drink it straight... but the stomach thing isn't ideal.

The community threads are a place where you can:

• Ask for recommendations.
• Introduce yourself to the community.
• Share your favorite latte/blended-drink recipe of the moment.
• Find other matcha people in your city or country.
• Tell us what's in your chawan.

​

Vibrant Green Matcha

Judging matcha by color! Here's how.

Good matcha = bright green, like spring grass after rain. Think vibrant, almost electric green. This kind of green tells you the leaves were shaded just right and picked young, making it sweet and smooth.

Bad matcha = dull green, like old moss. Brown or yellow tinges are even worse. These colors mean the leaves were old or not shaded, so the matcha will be bitter and kinda bleh~.

Think of it like traffic lights:

Bright green = GO! Grab this matcha, it's gonna be delicious.

Dull green = CAUTION. Maybe okay for baking, but not for sipping.

Brown or yellow = STOP! Run away, this matcha needs to go in the bin, not a cup.

Bonus tip: The deeper the green, the fancier the matcha. Think emerald jewels, not pea soup.

Remember, color isn't everything, but it's a great first impression. So next time you're choosing matcha, give it a good glance before you take the plunge.

Online Shopping?

Shopping for matcha online is tough! You can't see it for yourself, unlike in a store. That makes it hard to know if it's the right color.

Even photos are tricky. Phones and cameras can mess up the true color of things. This picture I took? Phone camera, no flash because it made it look yellow.

I had to play with the brightness, colors, and light settings on my phone to get it closer to the real thing. I got it mostly right, but not perfect.

Judging matcha by color? In person, it's a good way to go, but not totally reliable. Videos and pictures? Forget it!?

The best way? Samples! Ask sellers for tiny amounts to try before you buy. That way, you can taste and see for yourself if it's the matcha you're looking for.

Happy judging!

I normally get the Sayaka or the Ikuyo and love them both, among others. But in between batches, I decided to pick up the Shimizu 400g, presweetened bag, and I gotta say, this stuff is quality, just like their other stuff. I'm just a casual latte drinker who's not so picky, but can't stand the typical garbage you may encounter in the states. I'm just making a latte in the morning and maybe another during they day. At 400g/$23, I expected a darker green to brownish color(idk y cas ippodo never disappoints my household), but surprisingly, it was bright green in color and not at all overly sweetened. I don't know all the correct adjectives in the matcha world so casually speaking, it's really a light, but pleasantly flavored taste.

I'm not sure that I prefer this to some of their others, but it definitely doesn't feel like much of a step down. I think I've finally found a solution to running out of the good stuff. I used to just go get a cheap pouch of jade leaf from the store, but this right here is 100x better. Hope this helps someone out there.

My mom and I made hot matcha lattes with each of these matchas. The left one is Chamberlain Coffee Matcha, and the right one is Aiya Matcha Ceremonial Grade. The Aiya brand one turned out much better, being less bitter and having overall a better flavor.

I'm a fan of Emma Chamberlain so I got her matcha to try, and I quite enjoy it when iced, so it was interesting comparing it to another brand. Disclaimer, my mom and I are not super knowledgeable about matcha, but we had a fun time trying the two kinds out. :)

Preparation process we followed for both matcha lattes:

• Bring 3/4 cup almond milk to low simmer over medium heat
• Place 1 tsp matcha powder at bottom of mug
• ⁠Whisk 1/4 boiling water into mug
• Add warm milk
• ⁠Sweeten with maple syrup

2-3g (added until desired taste reached) of Ippodo Ikuyo mixed with a spoon in a bowl then replaced for refreezing. 😋

I have occasionally sifted my matcha, but I find that some of the powder sticks to the strainer despite my efforts to shake it out. Seeing as the matcha I buy is pretty expensive I will usually just try to declump the powder in my chawan as opposed to sifting to use all of my powder, but I always end up with a bunch of lumps doing it this way :(

Have anyone else faced this dilemma? Im just trying to get every ounce out of my matcha bags, do I have to live with the lumps?

I posted a few days ago - this is my attempt after reading through the comments. I whisked vigorously for 15 seconds. Does this look better? This is Ippodo - Sayaka