Matcha comes from the same tea plant (Camelia Sinensis) as all teas but about 4 weeks before it's harvested the Matcha tea field is shaded in bamboo (or a man-made bamboo equivalent), this special shading technique results in a 90% reduction of sunlight. The plants, now growing almost in the dark, compensate for the lack of light with an intense production of chlorophyll making the leaves rich in amino acids. The process encourages the chlorophyll to rise to the top and then at the time of harvest only the youngest most tender, emerald green leaves are picked from the top third of the bush.
After being steamed and then freeze-dried, the highest quality leaves are selected and the stems gently removed. The last step in producing our Matcha takes place in the factory where special granite stone mills grind the Tencha tea into superfine Matcha powder. The grinding itself is done in a cleanroom in which temperature and humidity are kept constant. Industrial quality air filters keep the air clean and eliminate bacteria and germs. One single stone mill grinds only up to 30-40g of tea per hour, which is the amount of one of our OMGTea Matcha tins. More rapid grinding would burn the leaves.
This very fine powder is mixed with water and drunk rather than being brewed and the leaves (or tea bag) discarded. This means you get all the benefits of the Matcha tea in every cup you drink - nothing is thrown away.