The origins of matcha

The origins of matcha: an ancestral tradition

Matcha is a green tea powder whose history goes back more than a thousand years. Its roots are Chinese, but it was in Japan that it truly flourished. Its arrival in the archipelago is credited to the Buddhist monk Eisai, who brought tea seeds back from China in the twelfth century. At the time the tea was valued above all for its medicinal properties, and was drunk by Zen monks to sharpen their focus and their spiritual alertness during long sessions of meditation.

Under the Muromachi era (1336–1573), matcha gained favour with the aristocracy and the samurai, standing for refinement and discipline alike. Later, the tea master Sen no Rikyū perfected the celebrated tea ceremony (chanoyu), building into it the principles of harmony, simplicity and respect. That ceremony remains an essential part of Japanese culture to this day, giving weight to every gesture and every moment.

A cultivation process of its own

What sets matcha apart from other teas is a particular way of growing it. A few weeks before the harvest, the tea plants are shaded to limit their exposure to the sun. This technique, known as shade growing, drives up the concentration of chlorophyll, which deepens the green of the leaves and enriches their antioxidant content — catechins and L-theanine in particular. After the harvest the leaves are steamed, dried, then carefully ground between stone mills to produce that fine, velvety powder.

A timeless inheritance

Far more than a drink, matcha is a living link to Japanese culture and tradition. Today it wins over enthusiasts the world over with its singular taste — vegetal notes and umami together — and its natural, stimulating properties. To drink matcha is to grant yourself a moment of calm while carrying on a centuries-old inheritance.

.