I was delighted when Brighton based tea specialists Metro Deco offered to send me a sample of organic matcha green tea. As a green tea fan (I usually drink several cups a day) I have always wanted to give matcha green tea a try.
Matcha green tea, which has been used for centuries in Japanese tea ceremonies, is made from shade-grown tea leaves that are ground down to a fine powder. It has all the health benefits of green tea but in a more concentrated format; with matcha powder you ingest the whole leaf as well as the brewed water. It is said to have ten times the amount of antioxidants compared to green tea. There are a multitude of health benefits which are associated with matcha green tea; energy boost, weight loss, heart health, liver function and many others. Check out Metro Deco's blog post for further information about the health benefits of matcha green tea.
Metro Deco were also kind enough to send me some samples of their Rockerfella Cleansing blend, which is a delicious mint infusion in a "tea temple" rather than tea bag. This mint tea has a very similar taste to Tea Pigs peppermint tea, which is, without doubt, one of my favorite teas. I brewed one of the Metro Deco mint tea temples and added a small teaspoon of the matcha powder to make a "minty matcha" tea. This made the tea a slightly darker color and gave the mint a slightly earthy quality without impairing the clean fresh mint flavor at all. It was still a delicious cleansing minty tea, and a combination that I would happily drink again and again.
My husband is also a fan of green tea and peppermint tea, and he thought this "minty matcha" tea was just delicious - energising and cleansing at the same time. Matcha green tea powder is high quality and organic, which is reflected in the price, but I think it's a worthwhile purchase, not just because of the health benefits, but its many different uses.
Image: Metro Deco
Metro Deco sent me some lovely suggestions such as adding the powder to some cocoa to make a "matcha mocha". It can also be added to other drinks such as smoothies and lattes, sprinkled onto porridge or cereal, and even used as an ingredient when baking. A quick look at Pinterest shows all sorts of fab ideas for using matcha powder in baking: cupcakes, cakes, cookies, desserts - the list is endless. In Japan you can even buy a matcha flavoured Kit Kat! I've already added some matcha powder to make a delicious matcha latte and I'm planning to make some gorgeously green matcha cupcakes next!Grocery Gems Verdict: Metro Deco Matcha Tea
RATING: 9 out of 10.
Buy them again?: Absolutely.
Available: Sent to me for an honest review by Metro Deco
You can also find Metro Deco on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/mdteashop and on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/metrodeco
