Ujido The Path of Zen Japanese Matcha Green Tea Powder Ceremonial Blend (2 oz)

This is like my favorite matcha powder for formal matcha drinking all the time. After trying tons to find a good daily use affordable matcha powder in the USA, this is the one. Again, It’s affordable and smells great for matcha at this price! The taste is great too! But the price is now rising, which is sad🥲

First of all, I do not know anything about matcha tea. All I know is what I discovered from research I did on line and from reading reviews. I understand that pure ceremonial matcha is 100% 1st harvest leaves which are deeper green and offer higher concentrations of L-Theanine and offers focus and a calm energy boost with pretty high caffeine content and a smooth taste. And in Japan, they'd probably have apoplexy if this (or any) blend was served, but I have never been to Japan to taste the "real deal", so I won't weigh in on that at all. All said, on to blends, which I have tried - Ceremonial Blends include 1st and 2nd harvest leaves... I have not tasted other brands and this blend does not disclose the percentages of each harvest, but to me the flavor is quite nice. So far, I have not sensed a bitter taste, but maybe batches are not consistent - that I cannot say. I bought this brand based on reviews and value for price point. The reviews with photos are accurate regarding color and the texture is a fine powder which mixes well. And since I am a novice, I do not want to "waste" the money on inexperienced tastebuds - you know, first car is something economical and later on move up to a BMW. I like it well enough to have ordered it more than once and may stay committed to the brand if it remains consistently good. Also, to add to the earlier comment about 100% Ceremonial, even though the 2 concentrations noted are higher in that grade, the 2nd harvest leaves in blends offer some of their own added benefits such as higher concentrations of antioxidants and catechins and fiber. In summary, I do not think anyone with an average palate would find this tea less than good as long as you like green tea. I have used it many ways - even with carbonated water - and sometimes with sweetener, "depending on the mood". I use it sparingly, 1/2 tsp to about 8 oz of water. That's all I've got! Good luck and enjoy your choice!

Delicious. A good amount of matcha. And very healthy.

It's very good, it tastes very good, it's delicious, it comes as specified, it's a little bit this very small size, but it is delicious.

This matcha is delicious, perfect texture, blendability

- Introduction - To be honest, I wasn’t that keen on buying this Matcha powder as I’ve had bad experiences with other bagged Matcha powders 😭 the serving suggestion is around a quarter to half a teaspoon of the powder, with no suggested amount of water or fluid with the serving size. - Serving suggestions - According to the nutrition facts, there are about 46 servings if you use a quarter teaspoon per serving in the bag. - Color + taste - The color I’ll say impressed me, as it was deeper than I expected it to be, and not as muddy in a way. The taste is pretty good I’ll say, and has a strong earthy flavor. As someone who is an avid cafe Matcha latte enjoyer, this powder is a pretty decent beginner Matcha to start with if you want to begin to make DIY Matcha lattes. **note that this Matcha has no added sweeteners to it. It is just the Matcha powder!* - Cost breakdown - In addition, the cost per serving is not that bad either. As of the time I bought it it was $17.99 so around $18. If I stick to the quarter teaspoon serving size suggestion, my cost per serving breakdown would be around $.39-$.40. Personally, since I like my Matcha lattes to be on the stronger side I use half a teaspoon worth, which is around $.80 for me per serving. Adding in the cost of my milk of choice (oat), creamer, and any other items that I want to add to my lattes (ie sweeteners, syrups, etc.), my cost per latte is probably around $2.70-$3.40. Compared to the average 12-16oz Matcha latte in my area, which runs me about $6-$7 dollars per cup with tax (and not including tip), this is a very good deal for me. However, I am not trying to bash on any café enjoyers. I still love a good latte and cafe study session and supporting businesses and my towns lovely baristas! - Overall - For me this Matcha is a solid 9/10, I’m not too sure if I should rate it a 10 yet since this is like the second bag of Matcha I’ve tried so far ☠️ - Picture - I took a picture of what my half a teaspoon of Matcha powder looks like in around 1 ounce of water. As you can see the color is a pretty deep green. I usually add this to my oat milk, and I measure with my heart! If I had to guess I’d say I use around 6 to 8 ounces of oat milk though.

I travel to Japan a lot, but strangely never went to a tea ceremony. My various hosts through the years never talked about it, never mentioned matcha. Of all the wonderful things in Japan, matcha just never popped up as something to see or do or try. Maybe because I'm not a tourist. I got the impression that they think of the tea ceremony as an uncomfortable obligation they had to learn as kids as part of their cultural heritage but rarely do themselves. Matcha entered my consciousness when I saw it in a grocery store display (ok *somebody* must buy the stuff), and a cute sales girl explained to me how it worked. It took a while to get the mechanics down, but once I did I was hooked on this stuff. So now this is what I drink every single morning "Purchased 30 times" since then (see photo). But I have also tried every other kind of matcha on amazon, and dozens of them in Japan (I went to live there for a while). It has a very different blend of mind-altering morning chemicals than coffee or tea, that's very good for me, my reaction to the straight caffeine blast isn't good. So, this blend is not ceremonial grade. I had a lot of high end ceremonial grade in Japan because it was Y600-1000 for this quantity. Maybe 5-7 dollars at the time. But $30 for 2 oz is expensive. I tried culinary grade, so you don't have to. Don't try drinking culinary grade, it's gritty and tasteless. This is an excellent compromise, very high quality, perfect mouth feel, and perfect for drinking every morning. It's not quite as wonderful as real ceremonial grade, not quite the same matcha taste, it is a blend. There are other drinkable matchas in this middle category. I thought Ito-En (from one of Japan's largest tea companies) was great, but this Uji-do is better. YMMV. You can definitely buy this without fear, and enjoy it as I do! If you already know Matcha well, or are just getting into it. Strong recommend. Everywhere I go I offer it to my friends. Guilty secret, I use a milk frother to whip it up in 15 seconds, much faster than coffee or tea too, and it makes no per-serving trash like both coffee and tea do. I personally vouch for this product.

UPDATE: 9 months later. We have tried 2 new Matcha's since this purchase 9 months ago (It's still in pantry & at this point I should toss as we are just avoiding it) We received the one matcha, Asahina Matcha, from our Sakuroca subscription box. That Matcha was pure (no blend or sugar), came in single serve foiled sticks direct from Japan. It was so smooth, you could just drink with hot water alone. (the 2nd was one my daughter picked up with a blend of sugar so not comparing it here). ORIGINAL REVIEW I did not think a blend would make that big of a difference in taste; however, it did. We just finished a different brand (Naoki matcha -not a blend) and I thought we could save a few dollars. We have found we like making Orange Julias with a frozen banana & mixing in a teaspoon or 2. The drink is a tasty treat and a fun way to kick off our morning instead of coffee. Unfortunately, switching to this brand made the drink bitter/grassy. I was surprised as OJ can kill the aftertaste of most anything bitter (it's what my kids would use to chase down bad tasting medicine, like prednisone!) I have read that "ceremonial grade" is just a Western term and not used to define quality Matcha in Japan. Japan refers to premium matchas being produced from the youngest, first-harvest leaves which results in that vibrant green color, a smooth texture, and a naturally sweet, umami-rich flavor with little bitterness...this one was bitter. And I may be a little bitter that I am unable to return lol... I feel I am being generous with 3 stars. It is a 2 compared to the Naoki (but again, that one is pricier)