There is no definition for culinary / cooking grade Matcha. Conscientious tea companies are using low grade Tencha, which is not suitable for drinking, to make culinary grade Matcha by either stone mill or machine. Therefore, the price of the tea is much cheaper than authentic high grade Matcha. In Japan it is said that only one third of Matcha (including culinary / cooking grade Matcha) is made from Tencha. So what is the left of them? They are green tea powder made from Sencha (most common Japanese green tea). Therefore they are not Matcha technically.
What is Matcha?
To know about Matcha, it is essential to know about how to make ‘Sencha’ (cha means tea), the most common green tea in Japan.
After the young tea leaves are picked, they are steamed to prevent oxidization. Then they are pressed and left to dry. This process is repeated several times until finally they become Sencha. The reason why they are pressed is that by breaking up the structure of the tea leaves, the components of them are easily released when they are made into tea.
How about Matcha, then?
First of all, Matcha is defined as a stone-ground green tea powder made from Tencha. At present, machines are also regarded as an acceptable method of grinding Tencha to make Matcha. What is Tencha, then?
To make Tencha, young leaves are grown in the shade for about 20 days. Under these conditions, L-Theanie (the source of flavour), which is made at the roots then carried up to the leaves and stored there, is prevented from transforming into Catechin (the source of bitterness and harshness). Furthermore, this method makes tea leaves produce more chlorophyll, resulting in deep green-colored tea leaves. These tea leaves are picked, steamed, then dried in a special drying oven called a‘Tencha oven’ without any process of pressing the tea leaves. Then they undergo the final process to become Tencha.
Authentic Matcha is made from Tencha only!
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