Ocha & Co. Shizuoka Organic Matcha - Ceremonial Grade - ECO JAS Organic Certified - Japanese First-Harvest Matcha Green Tea Powder, Traditionally Stone-Milled, 100g.

This is a beautiful excellent quality matcha! I have unfortunately used it all up so I’ll have to buy more when I can. It is expensive stuff, but that is only because of the popularity of the drink itself and to ensure quality. I don’t personally find that matcha has differing tastes depending on the company (if it’s good matcha anyway) so this just has the usual beautiful earthy flavour. I like to use it to make iced matcha lattes and it of course blends very well when whisking properly, but I wouldn't know about how it performs for the matcha purists out there. I will definitely be buying again!

The balance of flavours, tones and textures just absolutely nails it for me, this is one of the best matchas I have tried for a fair price. Fresh deep intense matcha flavour with a bright dark green colour. Definitely recommended to all matcha lovers! Thank you Japan! x

This Matcha is quite bitter so bear that in mind, but the flavour is strong and lovely it’s quite floral and when you open the bag the smell of white chocolate is amazing, it feels fresh and lovely it’s a great quality for the price and it’s a beautiful green.

Edit: 27/1/26 Added my review of the Yabukita tin. This is an exceptionally well-made Shizuoka Yabukita. For context, Yabukita is the most common tea cultivar in Japan and is typically reserved for Sencha or lower-grade cooking matcha. The fact that Ocha & Co. has managed to wrestle a premium ceremonial offering out of it is impressive and fully justifies the price tag. Visuals: As you can see from my photo, the colour is incredibly vivid. It has those soft, fresh clumps in the powder that indicate high quality, which translates to a vibrant neon green suspension in the glass. Taste: I prepared this as usucha at 80C using an electric frother. It is starkly different from their Gokou tin! You get a highly toasted, nutty profile that sits on a surprisingly smooth and heavy texture. It has real weight on the palate but snaps shut with a super clean finish. You are definitely paying for the artisanal craftsmanship here rather than a rare plant breed. They have taken a workhorse cultivar and processed it into a luxury experience. A strong 4 stars. _____________________ Edit: 8/7/25 I've included my review of the Ocha & Co. Shizuoka Organic 100g matcha here, as Amazon's listing category prevents posting two separate reviews. Let's be clear: despite the initial price being higher than many £25 premium tins, the 100g bag is a clear signal that this is a value pack for daily use. Whilst still organic and high quality, it isn't meant to compete on the level of premium offerings like Ocha & Co.'s own Gokou tin, so keep that in mind. The powder, whilst still a solid, pleasant green, is definitely more muted when compared to top-tier ceremonial grades. It does have a fine texture with some soft clumps, which is good, and a noticeable nuttier, toasted smell upon opening. Prepping it as usucha at 80C, the experience is where the value proposition shows its limitations. The froth isn't as rich and the colour, while decent, lacks vibrancy. The opening sip has a strong nutty hint, followed by notes of astringency, which, at this price for such a large volume, is somewhat expected. This is followed by a quick flash of umami and light sweetness. However, my biggest issue is the finish. There are grainy, gritty bits left at the bottom, accompanied by more astringency. No matter what temperature I use or how well I whisk, this gritty texture is always there. To be fair, this matcha is likely intended for daily lattes, smoothies, and similar drinks. In that context, it's probably fantastic value for an organic, Japanese-sourced product. But as a traditional usucha, it falls short for me. For that reason, I'm giving it 3 stars. Funnily enough, the packaging even suggests preparing koicha with it. I'm sorry, Ocha, but no one is going to use this for koicha. ________________ Gokou Tin: Visually, it's spot on, brilliant green powder, super fine, clearly good quality. Making it as usucha (80C, electric frother), it's got all those high-quality hallmarks: very smooth, gentle, nicely balanced umami and sweetness, no bitterness. Definitely premium, but didn't seem any different from other high quality Uji matchas. After drinking it a few more times, I did start to notice something a bit different, a really nice, almost velvety creamy texture or layer to it. That was interesting and quite pleasant, not used to ' creaminess' in any of my tea. But here's the thing: even with that creaminess, the actual taste profile still felt very much in that classic, balanced Uji camp. For something labelled "Limited Production" and at this price, I guess I was hoping for a more distinct or complex flavour to really make it stand out. It’s very good, don't get me wrong, but it didn't quite deliver a unique punch that would clearly separate it from another really good, smooth Uji matcha like the Midori Matcha Superior Grade I also reviewed. Maybe it would be a different story as koicha, which would bring out more depth, but that's not really for casual drinking and too expensive to experiments with. Overall, it's a lovely, high-quality matcha if you want something extremely smooth, gentle, and with a nice touch of creaminess. But if you're shelling out hoping for a really standout or different flavour adventure, it might feel a tad too polite and familiar. For a similarly premium priced matcha with a distinct character to it, I would recommend trying the Somei-Yoshino from YEDOENSIS on Amazon, which I also reviewed.

Perfect aroma, lovely color, and amazing quality! Definitely organic! I love the taste, it’s completely different from the matcha you get at coffee shops. I am replacing coffee with matcha and I feel much better health-wise. It boosts my energy and concentration in a much smoother way. I highly recommend buying a matcha kit (specially a bamboo whisk and a strainer) as electric mixers don’t create a smooth homogeneous drink - you will end up with some small grains (not as pleasant to drink). Without the proper tools, it can be tricky to prepare a nice drink and you might waste some product.

the matcha itself is good, but I bought 100g and received only a pack of 50g luckily i managed to get a refund from amazon

rich and robust in taste. vibrant in green. absolutely worth your money for ceremonial matcha powder!

Great taste

I drink matcha 3 times a day, sometimes more. I have had some really good Matcha as well as some really bad Matcha that I wouldn't even bother baking with. I love it when I find a Matcha with awesome quality and flavor. This Matcha from Ocha & Co is an excellent quality Matcha as far as I'm concerned. The color is a vibrant beautiful green. It smells fresh and slightly toasted with hints of nori ( which I LOVE), tastes wonderful with fresh green vegetal notes present and NO bitterness what so ever. It's mellow and flavorful at the same time. It blends well with water and is smooth when you drink it...it can be made as a tea and sipped ( it's that good) or blended in a latte ( I've done both) you could bake with it BUT I won't with this one - it's to good to waste on baking in my opinion. This one is for drinking and enjoying ! This was shipped registered mail directly from Japan and got here surprisingly fast. The packaging is a foil type ziplock package that reseals really well. For the price I have to say that I think it's a deal with awesome value for an Organic High Quality Matcha! I believe Anyone who really loves Matcha will appreciate and love this one by Ocha & Co. I know that I will be ordering this as one of my regular keep in house Matcha. I have attached some pictures of the powder and also of the matcha after I added a little water so that you can see the first mark of great quality matcha ---COLOR. The powder is much more vibrant "in person".

Tè verde dal buon sapore delicato e dal colore verde smeraldo

Very good matcha! Taste great

Good tasting. Excellent Matcha. Bright, vibrant green colored and smooth powder. I bought from another brand that cost 50% less to compare, this is without a doubt the better matcha. The color of the powder of the cheaper matcha was more dull and it tasted weaker.

Un té buenísimo, suave y con buen sabor. Excelente relación calidad calidad precio.