Matcha

Matcha begins in the tea field. Several weeks before the spring harvest, the bushes are covered to block most of the sunlight. Traditionally this was done with reed screens and straw on a framework (honzu), now often with synthetic cloth. Shading increases chlorophyll, which makes the leaves deep green, and the amino acid theanine, which gives a sweet, savoury taste, while reducing bitter catechins.

The picked leaves are steamed to stop oxidation and dried flat without rolling, unlike sencha. The dried leaf is broken up and the stems and veins removed, leaving tencha. Tencha is ground to a fine powder, traditionally in granite mills turning slowly so the tea does not heat up; a single stone mill produces only a few dozen grams an hour. Matcha is sensitive to light, heat and air, and is best kept sealed and cool and used soon after opening.

Matcha is sifted into a tea bowl, a little hot water (below boiling) is added, and it is whisked with a bamboo whisk. Usucha, thin tea, is whisked briskly into a light froth; koicha, thick tea, uses several times as much powder and little water and is kneaded slowly into a glossy paste. In the tea ceremony, koicha is shared from one bowl and usucha served individually. A sweet is eaten before drinking to balance the tea's bitterness.

Uji, south of Kyoto, is the historic home of matcha; in the Edo period its tea was carried in sealed jars to the shogun each year. Nishio in Aichi Prefecture is one of the largest tencha-growing areas, and Yame in Fukuoka, Kagoshima, Shizuoka and other regions also produce tencha.

There is no official grading system for matcha. Terms such as 'ceremonial grade' and 'culinary grade' are marketing categories used mainly outside Japan. In practice, matcha from young, first-harvest leaves is brighter green, smoother and more expensive, and is used for drinking; later harvests and lower grades, which are more bitter, are used for sweets and cooking. Tea schools and producers often give blends poetic names.

Matcha is a classic flavour in wagashi and has become one of Japan's most popular flavours for Western-style sweets and drinks: soft-serve ice cream, parfaits, cakes, chocolate, lattes and even noodles. Matcha salt is served with tempura in some restaurants. Because it is ground whole leaf, matcha contains more caffeine per serving than steeped green tea.