In Japan, the Uji tea plantations of Kyoto Prefecture are believed to be the most famous areas of cultivation and production of the finest quality and varieties of “Gyokuro” and “Tencha” green teas. The Tencha tea harvest of Kyoto ranks first in the country. In the last few years there has been an increase of production due to the growing demand for matcha tea in the world market.
Tencha Tea is valuable because it is the basis for the production of powdered green tea called matcha. Here, in Uji, only the first young leaves of “ichibancha”, which is grown by the special method of “oishitaen ” (covering the bushes with sheets out of direct sunlight before harvest) are used to prepare the best Tencha. Picked up by hand, fresh leaves are steamed and dried whole, without twisting. Well dried leaves sieved, sorted and separated from fibers and stalks, cut up to 5 mm. in size. Then small cut Tencha leaves are milled to a fine powdered state using natural millstones by the old traditional way.
Millstones rotate at low speed, avoiding heating, which has no influence on the quality of the tea.
Therefore, productivity is only about 30-40 g. of powder per hour.
The powder is usually measured in microns (micrometers) – international : μm
Japanese manufacturers produce matcha powdered tea of a diameter average ranging between 1 to 20 microns.
It is said that the higher the quality of tea, the smaller the diameter of powder which is 1-5 microns for expensive matcha.
But the smaller diameter tea is not always suitable for the perfect product because extremely fine grinding may affect the color of the powder, which becomes faint or even white, in contrast to the beautiful bright green color.
Our Uji Matcha has an average particle size of 10-15 microns of measuring systems at the plant allow us to make size measurements of all types matcha teas for export.
These days, not all manufacturers use millstones, matcha grinding is also carried out by other modern machines such as : ball milled or air pressure milled, etc.
Very finely ground matcha makes this kind of tea very weak to moisture and oxygen, so the method of storage of this product is highly important. It is designed to be used over a short period.
Sweet in taste and rich in amino acids, protein and vitamins A, B1, matcha powdered tea is a widely used not only for drinking but also for cooking and food processing. There are different types of thick (Koicha) and thin (Usucha) matcha tea, culinary matcha and sterilized matcha for cold products.
Fine powdered matcha tea gained worldwide popularity as a dietary supplement due to it’s powerful antioxidant called Eepigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). Many people in different countries have increasingly stuck to a healthy diet of matcha.
A recipe of American actress Jessica Alba includes a vegan protein powder, matcha green tea, banana, coconut water and ice.