Matcha vs. Green Tea: What Is the Difference in Taste, Nutrition & More

Posted by Lowrey Foods on

Both matcha and green tea are common beverages in life, but only very few people can accurately distinguish matcha from green tea, especially for young people who also know that matcha is different from green tea, but where it differs is not quite clear. This article provides six differences between matcha and green tea, master them and you will be able to distinguish matcha from green tea easily.

Appearance

Matcha must be in powder form, while green tea has both leafy and powdered forms, usually leafy green tea is the majority, the most easily confused with matcha is powdered green tea, usually the powdered green tea is darker in color, while matcha is lighter in color. When brewed, green tea has less foam, while matcha has more foam.

Distinguishing matcha from green tea by appearance is not always completely accurate and requires other indicators to go along with it.

Taste

Green tea has a sweet and astringent taste because it contains more theophylline. Matcha is slightly sweet, not bitter, and has a richer taste. Before brewing, matcha gives off the smell of seaweed, while green tea smells like grass.

If you can taste both, experienced people can usually tell whether it is green tea or matcha at once.

Nutrition

Although it is the same tea, matcha is a step above green tea in terms of nutrition. Matcha is rich in vitamins, amino acids, chlorophyll, tea polyphenols, especially catechins, which have anti-aging effects, and L-theanine, which has a brain-healthy effect. Nutritionists have found through experimental analysis that the calcium and iron content of matcha is much higher than that of green tea.

Price

The price is also a very intuitive way to distinguish matcha from green tea. Because good green tea is not ground into powder. Therefore, the price of matcha is usually ten to several dozen times higher than the price of ground green tea. If you come across a low-priced matcha, it is either green tea masquerading as green tea or a very low quality inferior product.

Process

The high price of matcha is mainly attributed to two aspects, one of which is the process. Green tea usually only requires daylight drying and high temperature killing. Matcha, on the other hand, requires more than a dozen processes such as shading, churning, steam-killing, low-temperature grinding, and ultimately a powdered granule of 2500 mesh or more.

Tree species

Compared to green tea, the tree species that can make matcha are more scarce. Generally speaking, there are good varieties of tea trees for green tea all over the world, while the best tree species for matcha are from Japan. Some countries import Japanese species for cultivation, such as China and Sri Lanka, but soil pollution and indiscriminate use of pesticides often have a fundamental impact on matcha quality due to the lack of good species and land management.

Frequently Asked Questions:

What are the criteria for judging a good matcha?

A good matcha must first meet the highest standards of food safety and must not contain harmful residues such as preservatives, pesticides, or genetically modified. Matcha should be in a dilute state after brewing and will settle after a long period of time. If it blends well with water, other substances must have been added.

Which country has the best matcha powder?

The country that produces the best matcha powder in the world is Japan. Since the Japanese envoys brought Chinese tea back to Japan more than 1000 years ago, they have continued to improve the tree species and the process, forming professional tea farms and tea making techniques, and the matcha powder they produce is free of pollution and any additives, and is the highest quality matcha powder in the world, meeting the food safety requirements of any country in the world.

What kind of matcha powder does Lowreys use?

The matcha powder produced in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan is one of the best matcha powders in Japan. The matcha powder used in Lowreys matcha flavored butter cookies comes from Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, and is of the highest standard in matcha in terms of nutrients, flavor, and other indicators. Its quality has been tested by the New Zealand food safety department, which has the strictest requirements in the world, and it fully meets the requirements for making related food products.

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