Although the appearance of each matcha is similar, the color, taste and price can vary greatly. First of all, you need to know that there are several flavors of matcha:
* Bitter - just like the taste of bitter gourd that you will feel in the first second / mouthful, it is the taste that many people think tea should have, but green tea is not necessarily bitter. Bitter taste is easy to leave when baking (especially at high temperature)
* Astringent - It has the same mouth-drying feeling as red wine, which is the astringent taste. It is also the feeling of tea flavor in baking and drinks, and it will stay in the mouth for a while (it is also the difference from bitterness)
* Gan (or back sweet) - has a sweet taste like American ginseng and a sweet aftertaste that comes out after a second or two after tasting. The sweetness is relatively clear and easily covered by other flavors
* Purpose (or umami taste) - Some people say that the fresh and sweet taste of seaweed is the most special feature of Japanese tea, which is usually only felt in drinks. For example, there is a chance that the soufflé on latte is stronger Cover up this smell
* Green - This refers to whether the green will be tinged with yellow. Many friends think that the more expensive matcha will be greener, but the truth is that general food matcha (gentian, wakatake) is mixed with other green teas, so there is a chance that it will be yellower, and pure matcha such as Qinglan or above will have a shade of green.
These five types of matcha: Gentian, Wakatake, Qinglan, Isuzu and Matagen are famous teas used for baking/desserts in Marukyu Oyamaen, but their tastes are actually quite different. We rated the taste of these tea powders, with 5 being the highest among the five teas and 0 being the lowest.
Gentian Rindou |
Wakatake Wakatake |
Qing Lan Aoarashi |
Isuzu |
Yugen |
Matcha looks almost the same for all, but if we put them together, you’ll see the colour, aroma, and most importantly taste, are fairly diverse. Let’s understand them:
* 苦 Bitterness - it taste as if bitter melon is eate, the bitterness is sharp and first noticed when swallowed. Many thought bitterness is a must for matcha and is apparent in bakery but it isn’t the case: some may show little or even no bitterness.
* 澀 Astrigent - similar to tannin in red wines, the astrigent creates a dryness in one’s mouth and is a character of matcha in general. They usually last longer in mouth than bitterness and is apparent in bakery or dessert / drinks.
* 甘 Sweetness or aftertaste - a long sweet feeling that comes after astrigent taste that may last longer. Sweetness from matcha may not be apparent after baked.
* 旨 Umami - some may find it taste like seaweed where its umami / savoury flavour is strong. Umami is usually apparent in drinks but sometimes with cream if tea umami is strong enough.
* 綠 Green colour - it indicates how green it is. Less scores mean more yellowish green. Once the matcha hits ceremonial grade (ex. Aoarashi, not purely for baking), matcha can have different green colour tones.
The 5 popular matcha: Rindou, Wakatake, Aoarashi, Suzuki, Yugen from Marukyu Koyamaen shows a wide differences of the flavour explained. We give them a subjective score so you can visualise their differences.