Finding the Best Matcha | JAPAN TRIP

We travel around Japan to teach you the intricacies of matcha tea making and show you how to find the best matcha tea out there.

Matcha green tea is really popular throughout the West but finding the best matcha requires some knowledge. Ceremonial grade matcha sourcing for Mei Leaf is something that we do every year and this year we thought that we would bring you along to Japan to understand how matcha is made so that you can find the best tea for your chawan.

★ Try our different Matcha

★ Watch more videos about Matcha
* Iced Coconut Water MATCHA - Vegan Recipe

★ Table of contents to help you navigate through the video

1:35
We are at Gyokuro farm in Okabe checking the growing conditions of tea plants, talking about the proper shading and picking for tencha

3:23
Tasting of Yabukita Okabe Matcha and talking about the quality of Okabe tencha

5:12
We arrived in Kyoto prefecture in Japan, a famed area of Uji. Traditional way of cold storing of tencha and its effects on the flavor. Looking above the shoulder of tea pickers during the picking process.

8:00
Visiting aracha refining factory and looking at the process of preparing tencha

10:00
Behind the scene - we are taking you into the Matcha grinding room and explaining the grinding process in detail

11:21
Looking at different tenchas and tasting Uji Hikari Matcha

14:19
Blind tasting! Extensive tasting of 5 different Matchas back in London and choosing of the best Matcha teas to sell at the MeiLeaf teahouse. Diving deep into the flavor profiles and juicy tasting notes.

25:59
And the winners are... Revealing the names of different Matchas used in blind tasting and announcing the winners.

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[cmrd_hdcrb]

An ad for Starbucks in front of this. Now thats comedy Gold!

[Lankanqt]

I visited Uji, Kyoto few few months ago and I loved it. As soon as I got off the station and walked about 200m it was like really small village, that's when I felt like I was in Japan. Wherever I looked everything was so bright in green and they even had Matcha wine! Uji was highlight of my trip, so much cheaper than buying online and shop owners knew english and they were so helpful. Matcha dessert shops were everywhere and I really recommend going to Uji if you love Matcha, it will be like heaven for you like it was for me.

[empiricwisdom]

Your documentaries are getting better and better. Hope the channel grows faster. Cheers to Don and Celine.

[kevnotrite]

Tried a lot of different matchas over the past couple of years which were great in different ways but when I received the Uji Hikari, it was a step above with lots of umami. Really worth it at the price point. Great job sourcing it.

[FrenchGuyCooking]

17:41 "5 Shots of matcha". And here's my new morning routine right here. #caffeinerush

[MrClemmo]

This was so interesting. Absolutely love top grade ceremonial Matcha. Another great vlog.

[hertrisno]

Finally someone made a video of the best matcha, been waiting for this kind of review!

[devintran]

I loved this, guess I'm a tea snob.

[ryanmcclenahan]

Hi Don! The names Ryan, about a week or two ago i stumbled upon a gong fu brewing website when looking at steep times for my loose turkish tea ive put in a bag. I was so amazed by this, due to the fact of extreme boredome in life and how un tasteful and bitter i realized my tea was. Today i purchased a gaiwan and a few other teaware essential to do gong fu brewing. Along with some possibly good tea! (I would love to have some of your teas, and tea ware but unfortunately i live in the us, so shipping was too much at the time and im moving in a month) i was researching gong fu brewing i found your youtube channel. It is purely amazing the things ive learned. I just can't get enough of tea. I want to thank you for these videos and your devotion! I hope to come to London one day and visit your tea shop! Ive had quite the odd life, and quite a bad family accident happen to me a few years back.. and tea might just bring me the happiness ive been searching for for awhile.

[helpfulnatural]

Couldn't agree more about color and flavor. I started drinking matcha a year and a half ago and was hooked immediately! So I started buying and sampling all different brands and grades. One in particular which was not very expensive, had a beautiful bright vibrant green color. However it was one of the most bitter tasting matchas I've ever had. The company's website described it as ceremonial but it was worse than some culinary grades I've tasted. :-P I have a few favorites that I rotate through and one is labeled as universal. It's actually quite good. :) A little more robust in flavor but very smooth! :D I recently upgraded my tea kettle situation as well. I purchased one with a variable temperature feature that allows you to set it to the exact temperature you need for a particular brew, for both tea and coffee. I love it! It has taken my matcha experience to a whole new level. :)

[Komma]

Was lucky enough to take a business trip to Japan a few months ago and tested matcha for the first time at Ippodo Tea in Kyoto. Amazing experience.
I prefer coffee for my every day drink but when I need extra brain power, High grade matcha is simply amazing.

[jennyobiliseen]

Always so excited to see a new video, and a tea documentary! This morning is starting of well!
Best wishes on tea hunting Don and MeiLeaf team!

Jake

[smashexentertainment]

A huge matcha fan here. Agree, the color can be deceptive, a vibrant toxic green matcha may not be the best, but at the same time serious Japanese tea producers are trying to achieve both goals - the appearance and the flavor. Ofc this combination comes with a premium price. So for average Joe for daily matcha you just find something that you like at a price you like.

[almounasaddiyeh]

I really loved your video. I’m not a connoisseur but I love my morning matcha 🍵

[vinyleyezz]

Great videos Mei Leaf! Keep up the good work! :D

[DG-mvzw]

Another great video demonstrating so much knowledge and respect for matcha. Bottom line: How does this translate for us enthusiastic novices when it actually comes to buying matcha? It would be really useful if you could do a video review of what's on the market in terms of the top 5 cheaper brands, top 5 moderately priced and top 5 high end. (Or indeed, which brands to avoid!) How and where to access them etc. Love the way you show your expertise without being pretensious. You have a fantastic array of colourful adjectives to describe matcha. Thanks again, and keep those videos coming. 👍

[oneyoutea]

epic. Japan is the place for Matcha for sure. great vid, Thank you Don !

[euanshields]

could you make a video on tea storage on all types of tea especially ripe puerh

[mark]

As always fascinating. Please do a video about all the health benefits of green tea. Is matcha the best for health? Do different teas have different benefits? What's the best way to make tea for health, is there a best time of day to drink etc???? Thank for another great vid 🙏🏽

[Jamerton]

I love every single video you make! Thank you for all of your content and education.