Coconut Matcha Green Tea from 3 Leaf Tea

by thelastdodo

coconutmatchaTea Information:

Leaf Type: Green.

Where to Buy: 3 Leaf Tea

Tea Description:

 We import our matcha directly from Shizuoka, Japan. Matcha is a high quality green tea with a unique taste. It is often described as a full bodied, vegetal sweetness. Unlike most tea where the leaves are discarded after use, matcha is the whole leaf ground into a fine powder.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

3 Leaf Tea is a newer company to come on to the scene. They offer both flavored matcha, as well as raw cacao hot chocolate (with or without sweetener). They piqued my interest, and the first thing I just had to try out their coconut matcha flavor. I am a coconut fiend! I will put coconut in everything if I could. I cook with it, I flavor desserts with it, I will drink it in many of it’s forms, it’s my main source of beauty needs, hell, I even clean with it! Seriously, I could write sonnet after sonnet of praises for the humble coconut, but this just simply is not the blog for it.

I had this tea in the modern method because I was being lazy today and wanted matcha NOW. I used my blender bottle thingie to whip it up in a jiffy. (Protip: if you have one of these things and you do use it, make sure you close the latch TIGHTLY. I got bright green almond milk everywhere.) I was so excited to use my own homemade almond milk in tandem with the matcha, it seemed like the perfect combination. Luckily for me, the combination was pretty much magical. Who knew that forgoing the overpriced cartons of blue diamond with ten plus ingredients and making my own would make everything it comes in contact with just that much better? All it is two ingredients, almonds and water. Yes, it does take a few hours to soak the nuts, but when I blend and strain, it turns into a delicious, fresh almond milky heaven.

The base match 3 Leaf Tea uses is excellent. I have had my fair share of bad matcha in my day, and I can just tell that by looking at this lush, blue-green powder that this will be a very good experience. The base by itself is very nice, it is vegetal and fresh. It’s really got that umami thing down. If I am not careful, I do get some clumping, but it is an easy fix. The taste is smooth, no graininess, and although the flavor is light, it is a creamy hint at the end of each sip that just feels so right. I really enjoyed the flavor, the texture, and the latte I made was gone before I knew it. Looks like I will have to make some more almond milk soon!

 

thelastdodo

I dream in tea. Hello! My name is Maddi and I love to gongfu and listen to good tunes. I live in Denver, CO with my big dumb malamute and three other people who are not bid dumb malamutes. I like to take boiling hot showers and meditate in my closet. I talk about tea so much that it has become a punch line of sorts with my family and coworkers. Besides my unhealthy obsession with the drink that gives me life, I do yoga frequently, watch Korean Dramas religiously, run as a form of moving meditation, make green smoothies out of any vegetables and fruits within the nearest vicinity, and play video games with my patient and forgiving boyfriend. I also cook for a living and have at least one waffle a day. Likes: Tea, Teaware, All forms of nature, Old movies, People with infectious laughs, Blankets Dislikes: Watching sports, People who don’t tip servers, Slipping on ice, drinking tea for the ‘health benefits’ I tend to only drink loose leaf, although I will have a bagged tea every once in a while in an emergency. I also never sweeten my tea because, ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!’ I like the following flavors: Smokey Floral Coconut Majority of chai Anything Tropical Vanilla Grassy/Vegetal Citrus Stone fruit/melon Earth/Wood I am not so fond of the following flavors: Hibscus Lavender Strong Bergamot Berries Chocolate Cloves/strong cinnamon

This post was posted in Green Tea, Matcha

Product Review: Genmai MatchaBooster from Maeda-en

by liberteas

matchabooster-genmai-roasted-rice-Product Information:

MatchaBooster is a ready-to-use matcha-based powder. It mixes easily in your favorite drink and can used as a cooking ingredient.

Boost up your lifestyle with Maeda-en MatchaBooster♪

Where to Buy:  Maeda-en

Description:

Genmai is roasted rice often used in tea. Its savory, toasted flavor goes nicely with matcha.

Learn more about this MatchaBooster here.

Taster’s Review:

I like!  I’ve tried at least one or two other powdered Genmaicha teas in the past and have enjoyed them.  I really like how well this MatchaBooster mixes in to the cold water in my water bottle!  It makes a really good drink to go!

For the purposes of this review, I grabbed my water bottle (which holds a little more than 16 ounces of water) and filled it about half way with water.  Then I added a level teaspoon of the Genmai MatchaBooster powder to the bottle and secured the lid and shook it until the powder was well-incorporated.  Then I topped it off the rest of the way with water and shook again.  Now it’s time to enjoy!

No lumps.  No unincorporated particles of tea.  It mixes thoroughly – quickly!  And it stays incorporated.  You don’t need to shake it every time you take a drink.  I did shake it a couple of times while I drank, but this wasn’t to incorporate the tea (I didn’t notice any settlement during the time that it took me to finish the bottle), it was to sort of aerate the tea and try to froth it.

Because that’s probably the only thing that I felt was missing.  When I drink Matcha, I do like that froth.  This doesn’t have a lot of it.

That said, this does have a really good flavor and the lack of froth isn’t keeping me from enjoying it.  Yeah, I miss the froth, but I like the energizing feeling I experience when I drink this, and I love the sweet, toasty flavor of the Genmai together with the light, grassy and buttery notes of the Matcha.  It’s a tasty drink!

It’s really good with just plain water, but if you’re looking to elevate it – try it with coconut water!  Wow!  I love the combination of this Genmai MatchaBooster with coconut water.  The coconut water adds another level of creamy sweetness!  It’s a very refreshing and rejuvenating beverage!

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Green Tea, Matcha

Product Review: Sweetened MatchaBooster from Maeda-en

by liberteas

matchabooster-sweetenedProduct Information:

MatchaBooster is a ready-to-use matcha-based powder. It mixes easily in your favorite drink and can used as a cooking ingredient.

Boost up your lifestyle with Maeda-en MatchaBooster♪

Where to Buy:  Maeda-en

Description:

Refreshing green tea flavor with a light sweet taste!

Learn more about this MatchaBooster here.

Taster’s Review:

Not long ago, I reviewed the Unflavored MatchaBooster.  Now, I’m going to try the sweetened version of this tea product from Maeda-en.  The sugar to sweeten this MatchaBooster adds 60 calories to each serving (a serving size is one tablespoon), whereas the unsweetened MatchaBooster has no calories per serving (a serving size of the unsweetened version is 1/2 teaspoon).

I outlined the versatility of this product in that previous review, so for the purposes of this review, I decided to start simple and add 2 tablespoons of product to my favorite water bottle (which holds 16 ounces of water) and give it a vigorous shake.

Even with the sugar addition to this product, it still mixes up easily.  But because you need to add a bit more of the powder to the water bottle, I recommend starting with half a bottle, pouring in the 2 tbsp. of MatchaBooster and then shaking it (this leaves plenty of room for the shake!) and adding more water after the powder is well-integrated.  I was actually surprised at how easily this amount of powder mixed into the water – I expected sediment to settle at the bottom of the bottle quickly but it didn’t.

Not surprisingly, it’s sweet.  The sweetness is a little jarring, really, because I think that there’s too much sweetener in this.  I’d be happy with about half the amount of sweetener used.  Then again, I have often said that I prefer to sweeten my tea – or not sweeten it, if I so choose – and on the rare occasion that I do sweeten my tea, I usually go with a light hand.  It almost reminds me of a cane sugar soda – it’s that kind of sweetness but without the fizzy bubbles.

But even though this is sweet and I can actually taste the flavor of “sugar” here, I can also taste the green tea goodness of Matcha.  It is light and vegetal, buttery with notes of cacao.  It’s an invigorating drink.

FrappeWhere this product would really excel – I think – is in recipes, like the Frappe.  This is going to be like the coffee shop’s Matcha blended ice drinks – only for a fraction of the price.  Really, the price of this package at $5.90 is probably about what you’d pay for a “tall” drink at the coffee shop.  (It’s been a really long time since I’ve bought one of those drinks so I really don’t remember how much they cost!)

In my opinion, this Sweetened MatchaBooster really is a little sweeter than I like my Matcha to taste, so, I recommend mixing this with the Unsweetened MatchaBooster to “boost” the sweetness of the unsweetened without going super sweet.  I prefer it with about 1 tbsp of this Sweetened MatchaBooster and 1 tsp of the Unsweetened MatchaBooster in my water bottle with 16 ounces of water.  This has been my favorite way to enjoy both of these products.  I like the combination of the two products better than I like either one on its own!  It’s sweet but not too sweet and I get more of the Matcha flavor that I adore.

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Green Tea, Matcha, Tea Products and Accessories

Product Review: Unsweetened MatchaBooster from Maeda-en

by liberteas

matchabooster-unsweetenedProduct Information:

MatchaBooster is a ready-to-use matcha-based powder. It mixes easily in your favorite drink and can used as a cooking ingredient.

Boost up your lifestyle with Maeda-en MatchaBooster♪

Where to Buy:  Maeda-en

Description:

Green tea’s smooth and fresh green flavor. Enjoy traditional Japanese green tea!

Learn more about this MatchaBooster here.

Taster’s Review:

I was very excited to receive my shipment of MatchaBooster products from Maeda-en.  I have all four “flavors” – Sweetened, Yuzu, GenMai and this Unsweetened – and I figured that I’d start off with the basic Unsweetened variety and go from there.

This is a very versatile product!  Unlike traditional Matcha, it requires no sifting.  Just add it to whatever you want to boost with Matcha!

For the purposes of this review, I started out simply.  I made it in my favorite water bottle that holds 16.9 ounces of water.

It was very easy to prepare.  To promote your humble bottle of water to a bottle of Matcha on-the-go, just add 1/2 teaspoon to each 8 ounces of water.  So, for the typical 16.9 ounce bottle of water, I took a swig of the water – it leaves enough “mixing” room that way – and then I add 1 teaspoon of this unsweetened MatchaBooster to the bottle and gave it a vigorous shake.  It mixes quickly and easily.  Instantly even!  There are no lumps and no sediment at the bottom.

It tastes a lot like I added Matcha to my water bottle.  Only I didn’t have to sift it, and when I add Matcha to my water bottle, inevitably … there are lumps.  Little ones, but still, there are lumps and/or sediment at the bottom of the bottle.  (Exception:  when I’m using a Matcha product like this that’s intended for cold water bottle mixing – no lumps!  That’s what makes this product great!)

It’s a little “lighter” in flavor than a traditional bowl of Matcha.  It doesn’t have quite as much of that thick, creamy texture that you’d experience with a chawan of Matcha.  It isn’t as dense or rich as that traditional Matcha would be.  Instead, this is light and very pleasantly sweet.  It’s a natural sweetness and unlike some Matcha, this isn’t “bittersweet”.  There is no bitterness at all.  It has a pleasant smoothness.  It has a light vegetal flavor.  It … well, it tastes like Matcha, except that it tastes and feels a little lighter, an extra thin Matcha.

It certainly makes that boring bottle of water taste a lot better!

So I decided to try this product in something else.  I grabbed a bottle of pomegranate juice and I took a drink of the juice (again, to make room for the powder and the shake) and then I added 1/2 teaspoon of MatchaBooster to the bottle and shook vigorously.  My thoughts:  I could taste the Matcha but it wasn’t a strong presence.  The flavor of the juice was strong and I could taste hints of the vegetal quality of the MatchaBooster.  If you want more Matcha flavor, you would want to add a little more than 1/2 teaspoon.

That said, I certainly felt the energizing quality of the Matcha in the juice!  I really felt invigorated after drinking the juice.

And from there, you can let your imagination be your guide.  Want to give your orange juice a boost?  Add 1/2 teaspoon or more of MatchaBooster powder to eight ounces of juice and stir.  Or add some to your coconut water.  Or your almond milk.  Or your breakfast smoothie.

There are some intriguing recipes on the Maeda-en website.  Already, I’m thinking that this would be really good in my tomato soup!  Or try stirring a scoop of it into your favorite hummus!  This is a great way to add the goodness of Matcha to your favorite foods.

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Green Tea, Matcha, Tea Products and Accessories

Matcha Green Tea Powder from Culinary Teas

by liberteas

MatchaTea Information:

Leaf Type:  Green

Where to Buy:  Culinary Teas

Tea Description:

Our Matcha is a thin Matcha called Usucha and best for the everyday Matcha drinker.  It is the perfect quality for enjoying the genuine taste of Matcha. Our Matcha is a light creamy liquid with a very sweet and mild flavor.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

I’ve tried quite a few different Matcha teas over the years.  And while I must admit that the best Matcha teas are those that come from companies that specialize in offering only the very best Japanese teas, I’ve quite enjoyed Matcha teas from other sources as well.  Like this Matcha from Culinary Teas.

To prepare this Matcha, I used my chashaku to scoop out three scoops of Matcha powder into my sifter (I just use a basic wire mesh sieve that I picked up in the grocery store in the kitchen utensil aisle for a couple of bucks.  It’s small enough to fit in my tea bowl and it’s got a couple of “feet” on it that hook onto the edge of the bowl, a plastic handle and a wire mesh “bowl”.)  I then sifted the powder.

Now, I don’t consider myself a Matcha expert by any stretch of the imagination, so I’ll just offer my opinion as to why Matcha is sifted.  I think that it not only eliminates clumps (clumps will turn into lumps of dry powder in the finished product and that doesn’t sound very yummy) but I believe it also aerates the powder a little bit – lightens it?  So that the proper flavor and texture is achieved in the final product.  That’s my opinion and not necessarily fact but I do know that I find that I prefer the Matcha when I sift it.

After I’ve sifted the powder, then I add hot water (160°F) and here’s where I become less useful to the beginner/novice Matcha drinker, because I don’t measure out the water.  I eyeball it.  Yeah, I told you that it wouldn’t be helpful, didn’t I?  I pour in about what I think is the right amount, aiming for “less” than “more” than the right amount, if you get what I’m saying, because you can always add a little more water but you can’t really take it away once it’s been poured into the bowl (chawan).

Then I whisk away.  I whisk with my chasen vigorously in a “W” motion until I’m confident that all the powder has been incorporated.  Then I give it a taste and see if it needs more water.  Usually, I need a little bit more because as I said, I tend to aim for “less” than I need than more than I need.  And I did today.  Now that I’ve added a final splash of water to the Matcha, I whisk again and then I enjoy!

The color of this Matcha is not quite as bright and vibrant as some of the pricier Matcha teas that I’ve tried.  But it does whisk up well and the powder stays incorporated until I’ve finished the last sip.  The tea froths up nicely with lots of bubbles.  It’s more of a bubbly, dry froth than it is a silky froth.  If you’ve consumed many different types of Matcha, you understand what I mean by that.  Some Matcha has a very fluffy, bubbly kind of froth, and some of it is a very silky froth with very fine bubbles.

The froth stays around for a little while and eventually disappears.  The flavor of this Matcha is nice.  It’s got a smooth, buttery flavor and a creamy smooth texture.  I notice notes of raw cacao, which I like Matcha to have.  Its sweet with some bittersweet notes.

Overall, I found this Matcha to be quite enjoyable and the price of this Matcha is extraordinarily affordable!  If you’re one who wants to drink Matcha everyday but find the prices of some Matcha offerings to be to excessive, you should give this Matcha a try!  You’ll get more Matcha bang for your buck!

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Green Tea, Matcha