Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green (Matcha)
Where to Buy: DōMatcha
Tea Description:
Certified organic by JONA (Japan Organic and Natural Foods Association), this premium, organic ceremonial Matcha is the purest and most sustainable way to enjoy the ancient Matcha tradition. Our DoMatcha™ Ceremonial Organic Matcha is produced in Kagoshima, Japan.
Learn more about this Matcha here.
Taster’s Review:
One question I’m asked often by tea drinkers is: What is the best Matcha available? When I first started out as a tea reviewer, my answer to that question was always, immediately, unequivocally: DōMatcha.
Since that time, I have sampled MANY different Matcha teas, and I’ve enjoyed many of Matcha teas that I’ve tried. Like other products, I can say that I liked some more than others. And now, the aforementioned question regarding what Matcha is the best is a bit more difficult to answer because my experience has allowed me the unique opportunity to sample many amazing Matcha teas. But, DōMatcha remains right up there close to the top of the list. And this Organic Ceremonial Grade Matcha from DōMatcha is one of the best that you’ll ever taste.
It has a bright, fresh, and lively flavor to it. It tastes remarkably fresh. When prepared traditionally – scooped, sifted and then whisked with a chasen until completely incorporated – it becomes a frothy, bright green liquid that keeps its froth until you finish the bowl. (Not that finishing the bowl takes long with this stuff – it tastes so good that it’s difficult to stop sipping!)
I love that the powdered green tea stays sustained in the liquid until I take that last sip. I don’t get a gritty or chalky sort of texture from any sip. It stays smooth and sweet and delicious until I’ve finished the bowl.
It tastes sweet and vegetal. I experience a “bittersweet” sort of taste from it, similar to what I’d experience if I had bitten into a bar of high quality dark chocolate. It’s not “bitter” but there is contrast to the sweetness of the leaf. The palate feels enlivened as I sip it, and I can feel the liquid go to work and begin to invigorate me. This is the stuff!
I love that this is organic. I love that it’s a ceremonial grade Matcha so it works with a koicha preparation (thick soup) or usucha preparation (thin soup). I prefer somewhere in between, and I don’t usually do precise measurement when I prepare Matcha. I scoop some out, sift it, and then pour in hot water, whisking the mixture into a thick paste, and then add water until I’ve reached my desired consistency.
A really superb Matcha – this is one that I’d continue to recommend to those who are looking for a top-notch Matcha. It’s the good stuff!
Lucuma Flavored Matcha Green Tea from Red Leaf Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green (Matcha)
Where to Buy: Red Leaf Tea
Tea Description:
Lucuma powder comes from South America and especially the country of Peru. It has been used by the ancient civilizations of South America; in particular it has been a staple for the ancient Incas. The cream colored powder has a luxurious taste that borders on maple and makes it a fine treat for the whole family especially young children who have a love for all things sweet.
To add to the sweet taste of Lucuma, Matcha lends its velvety appeal. The resulting Lucuma Matcha makes an unforgettable beverage that can be taken with meals or in between meals as a delectable treat.
Learn more about this flavored matcha here.
Taster’s Review:
Pic from Wikipedia, click on the pic to go there.
Yum! To my knowledge, I’ve never tasted lucuma fruit or lucuma powder. Prior to ordering this tea from Red Leaf Tea, I didn’t even know there was such a thing as a “lucuma.” But now that I’m tasting this Lucuma Flavored Matcha Green Tea … I wish that I knew how to get my hands on some lucuma. This is tasty!
It’s very sweet. As the description above suggests, there are maple-y tones to this. It’s a mellow tasting fruit, at least, it is in Matcha form! Here I taste light, fruity notes with a maple sweet undertone. It is quite pleasant to sip.
I prepared this Matcha traditionally. First, I scooped out the Matcha and sifted it into my chawan. (By the way, Red Leaf Tea flavors their Matcha to order, and they sift each Matcha before they package it up and ship it out to their customers. I sift mine again, mostly out of habit. It’s not a habit I want to slip out of because not all vendors sift their Matcha!) Then I added the hot water (170°F), and whisked until the Matcha was completely incorporated and the surface of the Matcha was covered with a soft froth.
My specifications for this Matcha are my “usual” – a distinctive level of flavoring for the classic grade of green Matcha. The powder is dark green, and the liquid produced when the tea powder is whisked into water is a deep, dark green with a light, seafoam green froth on top. This Matcha frothed up pretty nicely, but the foam disappeared pretty quickly.
The flavor is very smooth and sweet. It’s a very gentle flavor. I think that my specifications were right on target for this particular flavor: I can still taste the sweet, buttery, creamy taste of the Matcha but I can also taste the notes of the unusual maple-sweet fruit. Because the lucuma fruit has such a mild flavor, you might want to bump the flavor level up to “Robust,” but I like this the way it is. I experience a lot of fruity notes dancing on my palate in the aftertaste. It’s really difficult to describe the flavor of the aftertaste in a way that would compare them to other fruits, because this aftertaste simply tastes “fruity.”
What I am also enjoying about this particular Matcha flavor is that I’m not experiencing any of that chemical-y taste that I sometimes notice with other flavored Matcha. Bonus! Overall, this is a very mild tasting Matcha – even the Matcha itself tastes mellower than Matcha usually tastes. This might be a good starter “flavored” Matcha for someone who is new to Matcha.
Butternut Pie Flavored Matcha from Red Leaf Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green (Matcha)
Where to Buy: Red Leaf Tea
Tea Description:
The full bodied and bold Butternut pie taste gets its true edge of excitement with the addition of oriental Matcha to turn it into a truly thrilling culinary delight. Nothing comes close to the sensation that creamy Butternut pie Matcha delivers to its many takers. This delectable delight can be wildly popular across any age groups because it distributes different unique benefits depending on who is enjoying it. To the young in age, this bold tasting treat delivers sweet satisfaction and a yearning for more. To the young at heart this cherished treat delivers youthful enjoyment and leaves an unforgettable aftertaste.
Learn more about this flavored matcha here.
Taster’s Review:
It’s Matcha Latte time, and for this afternoon’s Matcha Latte, I decided to go with a flavor that’s perfect for fall: Butternut Pie Flavored Matcha from Red Leaf Tea! Having previously tried Red Leaf Tea’s Pumpkin Pie flavored Matcha and reviewing it, I felt confident that I’d also enjoy this butternut squash variety. After all, butternut squash tastes very much like pumpkin.
And this is really good. In fact, I think that I might like this Butternut Pie Matcha better than the aforementioned Pumpkin Pie Matcha. I get a more clearly defined flavor of the butternut squash here than I recall tasting with the pumpkin pie – although in fairness to that flavored Matcha, it has been a while since I have tasted the Pumpkin Pie Matcha. But, I remember the Pumpkin Pie Matcha to have a bit more spice to it than this does … here, I taste a stronger note of butternut squash and not so much of a spice note.
Some of the more note-worthy flavors I’m tasting with every sip are the sweet notes of squash with hints of a nutty flavor, and a low note of a buttery, pastry-like flavor. I taste the sweet, vegetative note of Matcha and it melds beautifully with the squash notes. The sweetness of the squash seems to enhance the natural cacao notes of the Matcha, and you know I’m loving that!
This particular batch of flavored Matcha was crafted using the classic grade of Matcha from Red Leaf Tea, and a robust level of flavoring. My usual go to specifications are the classic grade of Matcha with a distinctive level of flavoring, however, I received a sampling from a friend who chose the robust level of flavoring, and I’m actually really glad that she did! I like how the butternut notes really shine through.
That said, I am finding that the robust level of flavoring does obscure the flavor of the Matcha just a wee bit. Not enough for me to really complain about because I can still taste the Matcha, and because the flavor of the Butternut Pie is just so tasty that it’s difficult to find fault with this chawan full of Matcha goodness.
As I mentioned above, I did prepare this as a latte, using mostly water to prepare the Matcha in the traditional way: first, I measure and sift the Matcha into my chawan, and then I pour in a small amount of hot water and whisk until the water is incorporated, then I add the rest of the water and whisk until the consistency is smooth. Then I added a small amount of warmed half & half to the chawan and stirred in the half & half with a fork. The Latte came out smooth, rich and creamy, with a nice amount of froth on top. The final ratio of water to half & half ended up being about 3 parts water to 1 part half & half.
This would be tasty prepared traditionally (without the half & half) but, I find that the addition of the dairy helps to bring out a sort of creamy, almost ‘whipped cream’ element to the drink and I really enjoyed that – it made for a delicious autumnal treat!
French Vanilla Flavored Matcha from Red Leaf Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green (Matcha)
Where to Buy: Red Leaf Tea
Tea Description:
When anyone wants to partake of a snack that is deliciously sweet, perfectly healthy and unique in flavor, French Vanilla Matcha becomes an obvious choice. This is because, unlike Madagascar Vanilla Matcha, it has a creamier look and texture and is very smooth on any palate.
Learn more about this flavored matcha here.
Taster’s Review:
Wow! This French Vanilla Flavored Matcha from Red Leaf Tea might just be my favorite flavored Matcha that I’ve yet to try! It is so creamy and delicious! And it makes a divine latte – we’re talking HEAVENLY!
By now, I’ve tried quite a few of the flavored Matcha selections from Red Leaf Tea – although there are still quite a few that I’ve yet to try! So much Matcha … not enough time to drink it all! Ha! And the truth is, I’ve enjoyed most of the ones that I’ve tried (although there have been a few that I haven’t really liked, and some that I just disliked). But every once in a while, I’ll try one that just knocks my socks off. OK, well, my socks are still on (they’re cozy, warm wool socks if you’re interested). But, this is really, really tasty.
I went with my “usual” specifications with this tea: the classic grade of Matcha with a distinctive level of of flavoring. More often than not, I find that these specifications work out well for me, I get enough of that Matcha flavor so that I know I’m drinking Matcha, and the flavoring is not so delicate. (Matcha can sometimes be a pretty strong flavor and a more delicate flavor level is sometimes too subtle for my liking. I want to taste the flavoring too!)
And with these specifications, I was able to taste both the slightly vegetative, creamy, fresh tasting Matcha with hints of cacao and butter, as well as the creamy, decadently sweet notes of French Vanilla. While the rest of my household is eating French Vanilla ice cream at the moment, I instead prepared myself a French Vanilla Matcha – Latte Style using milk instead of water to prepare it.
And the result is an absolute JOY to drink. I didn’t find myself wanting to even sneak a bite of the ice cream … I (and my sweet tooth!) was perfectly satisfied with this Matcha treat from Red Leaf Tea. In fact, I think that this chawan full of Matcha goodness is probably more satisfying than a bowl of ice cream because I don’t want cold ice cream on a chilly night like tonight. My warm latte was cozy and comforting as well as sweet and delicious.
I originally purchased this French Vanilla flavor of Matcha because I was thinking that it would be a good mixer or blender type of Matcha to go with some of my other flavored Matcha teas, but it’s quite good on it’s own. I have a feeling that this Matcha isn’t going to last long in this house!
Organic Genmaicha Powder with Matcha from Shi Zen
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Shi Zen
Tea Description:
Our organic genmaicha powder has a pleasant aroma of the roasted brown rice and the natural tea sweetness from the organic matcha.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The first thing that I noticed when I prepared this Organic Genmaicha Powder with Matcha from Shi Zen in my chawan is how much froth it produced. This is a rich, thick, fluffy froth!
I prepared this the way I’d normally prepare Matcha – in my chawan, whisking it in hot water. But as I was preparing it, a thought crossed my mind that this would also be delicious iced (just add some to a water bottle and give it a vigorous shake!) or … as a latte! The toasted rice notes and natural nutty flavors would meld with the creaminess of the milk in a really delicious way, I think! I shall have to try that tomorrow morning!
Prepared with just hot water, this is also very tasty. I get a lot of genmaicha flavor – it is sweet and warm from the roasty-toasty flavor. I am noticing some bitter tones to this which is kind of unusual for a Matcha, so, I’m guessing that the base for the genmaicha – possibly a bancha or sencha? – might have a tad of bitterness to its leaf. But it’s not an off-putting bitterness, rather, I’m enjoying the contrast between the sweet and bitter.
I love the creaminess of this. The froth is super creamy on top of the liquid, and then the liquid itself is smooth and creamy and the toasted nutty flavors complement the creaminess of the drink very well.
Another WIN from Shi Zen! I really like this.