Botanik Herbs & Tea is a tea company from Davis, California that currently specializes in providing ceremonial, single origin matcha from Shizuoka, Japan (but I believe they will be expanding their collection beyond just matcha). They are trying to push a new way of tea culture that centers itself around quality, health consciousness, and sustainability. They send me their matcha to give my feedback on, here is what I thought:
Ceremonial, Single Grade Matcha
I find myself consuming matcha when I need something a bit stronger than black tea. With just a small amount, matcha grants me clarity, energy, and focus. This is where I found myself when trying out this specific matcha. Weeks apart, I had this tea multiple times to see how the appearance, taste, and aroma might change based on my mood. I found some interesting discoveries.
My first cup was very nice. It has a nice balance of astringency, vegetal, and a mellow creaminess to it. Over that week, I might have varied the amount of matcha I used (which could explain this well) but the second and third cup definitely felt more astringent with a heavier vegetal-like taste. It reminded me a bit of that fresh cup grass/spinach notes with a little sweetness rounding it out. All cups had a mouth-watering feeling to it, that even lingered a bit past each sip. The color of the matcha was a vibrant green with a very small tone of yellowness to it. I was beyond help in the tired department so I made this matcha, and about 15 minutes later I felt FOCUSED. My head was clear and I felt great.
I think the packaging might have not been the best for the tea. While I remember my first cup having the balance of vegetal almost sweet spinach notes with a little mix of creaminess in it. However, when I made the tea again a few times later, it tasted more astringent than I remembered. The bright green I remembered also turned a bit more yellowish toned, not too much. But I did feel like the quality did decline a little bit even though I properly stored it.
Pricing: Their ceremonial grade matcha is $18 for 30 grams, and is also available on Amazon.
Packaging: The packaging for the matcha was in a pouch, which is my least favorite way for matcha to be stored. I personally feel like it doesn’t keep as long as it does in a tin.
Sourcing: Eco-consciously formed, masterfully produced in Shizuoka, Japan
Grown in the majestic hills of the Shizouka Prefecture, Japan, it is pesticide free and only uses only organic fertilizer produced by the local community. This practice maintains a sustainable closed-loop system that supports a thriving local ecosystem including rich soils and vast biodiversity. Our farmer has configured an array of solar panels to shade the plants while generating electricity for his village. The plants are hand-harvested in the spring, and ground using traditional stone-milling tools. The difference is something you can see, smell, taste and feel.
Botanik Herbs & Tea
How do you consume matcha? Are you a ceremonial person, or matcha lattes all the way? Let me know! Happy brewing!
-Danielle