Kenko Matcha Green Tea Powder [USDA Organic] Culinary Grade Matcha Powder for Lattes, Smoothies and Baking [100g Bag = 50 Servings]

Since I was boy, I've always preferred tea over coffee and I'm always on the lookout for a good tea. This is one of the finest I've had the pleasure of drinking. My first experience with green tea, were with crappy bagged green tea leaves. The blend I got tasted like lawn trimmings and I was turned off of green tea for quite awhile. However, when my Dad got very sick I decided to give green tea another shot because the numerous health benefits I had read about. Getting this tea was excellent choice. The tea helped him fight his illness and he overcome it, and helped his blood pressure. I also started drinking the tea, and for first time in my life I started drinking tea without any sugar in it at all.The package is 100g and states that there are 50 servings per bag. I haven't measured the exact number of cups of tea I've gotten out of a bag, but I've found that a 1/4 teaspoon makes a large, strong mug of green tea. I'm very pleased with the multiple organic certifications Kenko Tea has. On top of this, I'm even more pleased by the other certifications. The package is flat and very compact, making easy to store until you're ready to use it. As soon as I opened the bag, I knew this was going to be great tea. The matcha powder has rich, earthy scent to it, which matches perfectly with the pale green of the powder. This color is intense and can easily be used as food coloring like saffron, possibly even as a dye or natural pigment. The taste is smooth and mild, there is no bitterness or grassiness at all. The difference is between real Japanese matcha powder and commercially mass produced green tea, is like the difference between night and day. This may be cooking grade, but the tea is anything but a cheap cooking additive. Once you drink this, you won't want anything else.This is high grade tea and is on the expensive side. The quality worth every penny, though. I try to brew a pot of this for myself and my father every day. This is one of the few products I've brought where I could see the health benefits right in front of my eyes. Drinking this reminds me of Quentin Tarantino's line in Pulp Fiction, about buying good coffee to taste it. This couldn't apply more here. You don't need milk, sugar, or anything else to drink this, its perfect as it is. Don't cheap out, buy this and you won't be disappointed.

I am no Matcha expert, so remember that when reading. I only just started trying to drink this regularly instead of coffee.This particular brand is from a farm in Japan, which I prefer over getting it from a brand that buys from China. This company is also smaller, and I wanted to support small business. I think the product is excellent... the Matcha is super-fine and dissolves well enough. I do not have one of those bamboo whisks (though I really want one, they look so cool!). I use a regular wire whisk in a little bit of hot water to dissolve 1tsp of the powder, and it works just fine. It wasn't totally dissolved, but I think that's to be expected without the right tools. There weren't giant chunks left!The taste is super fresh and it smells really nice as well. Even my husband, who doesn't like new, or green, things thought that it tasted good enough to drink (I added some honey for him)! I have only had it a week, and I think to benefit from Green Tea you have to be consistent and drink it for a while, from what I've read. So, I'm not really more energetic yet, though I do feel less sluggish after cutting coffee. This could be due to the Matcha as well, but I'm not sure. Either way, without coffee I have been able to keep up with the kids all day and not feel a crash, so the Matcha is definitely not hurting my energy! I do feel a bit more focused on my work days after I drink it in the morning. I haven't lost weight (not MY goal, but might be someone elses).I like to drink it iced so what I do is dissolve 1tsp in about 1/2 cup of HOT water in a shallow bowl. Then I whisk it up and try to get it really dissolved. Then I add in a little honey and whisk that up too. Pour that in a bigger cup/glass and add about 1/2 cup of cold water, and whisk just to mix it up. Then I put as much Soy or Almond milk as I want (usually about 3/4 to 1 cup). Then I add some Ice, stir it up, and enjoy the deliciousness!I thoroughly enjoy the drink/product, and I will keep enjoying this brand for when I want my Matcha!