Matcha Outlet

It’s pumpkin season! When I opened the packet it smelled like a very spicy pumpkin pie – lots of cinnamon and clove, maybe a little pumpkin. I prepared it hot this morning, planning to add milk and turn it into the latte, but have been drinking it straight so far. I really like the level of spice and don’t want to mute it, and there’s zero bitterness to begin with. I spoiled myself with my experiments, so I have the royal matcha base – bright green, richly sweet.

I get more of the pumpkin in the taste than I did in the smell of the dry matcha – it’s a little tangy, a little sweet, a little earthy. The blend of flavor and green tea is a little strange this time: they’re both very good individually, but the whole is just the sum of those parts, no more. It’s a little like green chai, actually.

I got distracted and let this sit for awhile, so now it’s cold and stronger, so I’m adding a little milk. The creaminess is a nice addition – less like chai, more like pie! It would probably be really good with a little sweetener, but I didn’t think of it until just now – even with flavored matcha lattes, it still seems weird to sweeten green tea :P

Overall this is very good, I would definitely recommend, and you can buy for yourself here: http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/pumpkin-pie-matcha.html I got the delicate flavoring, which is fine for me, but if you really like pumpkin I’d go higher :)

It is f*#%ing cold outside. I am pretty sure it is colder today where I am living now, nearly the South (should feel like -10F today!) than it ever has been since I moved away from Chicago five years ago, even though I was living further north than I am now. It’s unexpected. Our house isn’t really built for this type of cold.

This matcha was nice and warming and energizing this morning. Now can I please not go outside?

Wow, it has been forEVER since I have had matcha! Between all the traveling and the moving, I just didn’t have the time or the equipment for it. But I actually got a bamboo matcha whisk for Christmas this year, and I was excited to try it out finally! I have been making my matcha with a regular metal kitchen whisk for months so I was interested to see how it would make a difference.

I made a matcha latte, although with real milk instead of almond milk as I had been. Turns out I prefer the almond milk! I think because the milk we had was 1%, so it was considerably waterier than the almond milk. Honestly the matcha whisk seemed odd to me but that is mostly likely because I am so used to whisking the dickens out of it with a metal whisk. It didn’t do much for the foam on the pre-milk matcha, but I did get a nice foam after adding the warm milk. So glad to get my matcha routine started again!

Made this one with 4oz of hot water and 4oz of warm almond milk (original, non-vanilla), with a pinch of sugar.

This matcha really shines as a latte. The thing about pumpkin pie is that it’s creamy and sweet, so adding more creamy and sweet elements really brings out the pumpkin pie flavor. It’s perfomance as a latte brings this one up into the high 80s in the ratings, and I will definitely really enjoy drinking it this way this fall.

This is flavor I could not wait to try. I am in love with all things pumpkin, so this one got purchased even before it went on sale last weekend (with a different coupon, though). I went ahead and ordered this with the basic matcha base and the “There’s matcha in there?!” flavoring level because I wanted a lot of pumpkin. Get it here: http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/pumpkin-pie-matcha.html

When I opened the pouch and sniffed I was very pleased because it smelled spicy, but also richly creamy-pumpkin. But you often can’t tell what something is going to taste like from its dry smell, and that seems to be the case here. For this first tasting I prepared the matcha with just hot water (then added a little sugar later). I got almost no froth when whisking this one, which has to be an effect of the flavoring somehow. It smelled very clovey when prepared, that really is the dominant aroma.

As for the initial taste, well, that was surprising. It honestly didn’t taste like much… some faint spicey and an earthy, minerally matcha base. I’m really not sure how that’s possible with the “There’s matcha in there?!” flavoring level, but it’s true. Then I added some sugar, which balanced the flavor a lot. It still didn’t taste as pumpkiny as the dry powder smelled, but it was certainly a more rounded spice flavor with a nice pumpkin undertone. Honestly I can’t wait to try this one as a latte, because I think it will really shine in that form.

I made this and the French Vanilla matcha as lattes for Hubby and myself to share this morning because I couldn’t bear having one left untasted for single day, and certainly not Black Cherry! Black Cherry anything reminds me of my dad on the other side of the world and so is one of my all-time favorite flavors. I was thrilled to see Red Leaf Tea bring it onto the matcha list and doubly so when it won its race against Pumpkin Pie to be on sale. I simply wanted it available as soon as possible—the sale price was an added bonus! Here’s where you can get yours, and believe me, you should:

http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/black-cherry-matcha.html

For this order I upped things a bit, getting a large size in the basic grade regular matcha (you can get organic now, if you like) and went for the Robust flavor level. When I opened the pack I was in Black Cherry Heaven. I could almost taste that great black cherry ice cream I had at Biltmore House a couple years ago—the last time I had anything black cherry. (It’s not a flavor that’s arrived to Australia yet, the poor things.)

Made as a latte, the scent reaches your nose before the bowl reaches your mouth and you’re smiling before you’ve had the first sip. Well, you keep smiling as you drink it and the smile gets bigger. Truth is, the smile comes back when you think of it again to write a review! That’s how good it is: like a memory that makes you smile every time.

My newest matcha order at last arrived yesterday afternoon, but don’t think for a moment that’s because my order was slow in being processed: The very next day after placing my order Red Leaf Tea already had it out the door! But dealing with Australian Customs means that international packages can take longer to reach you than they really should.

I’ve been antsy to try the French Vanilla matcha that so many have raved about on here. After reading this, hopefully you’ll want some too, so here’s where to get it:
http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/french-vanilla-matcha.html

My specs for this order are such: large size, basic grade of regular matcha (you can get organic matcha now as well), and the Robust flavor level.

I made this as a latte this morning with one Splenda tablet and used cold frothed milk. Normally I would heat up the frothed milk before pouring it into the whisked matcha, but it’s getting warmer here, so a cool drink is nice even for the morning wake-up. It is delightful: creamy without being guilt-inducing, vanilla without making you wish for chocolate, and just the right amount of flavor from the matcha itself to remind you, “Hey, I’m being good here!”

This will make a wonderful addition to a frozen fruit smoothie without needing to add the extra calories of vanilla yogurt. And I’m going to try blending it with orange juice and ice to get an Orange Creamsicle slushie-type thing. I love when matchas are multipurpose! A winner in my book!

I was a soda drinker for years – at one point I drank it more than water. A few years ago I did the impossible and gave it up to better my health. It wasn’t easy, and there are times when I find it hard to resist, especially since it’s so easily available. One of the problems is that the flavoring is hard to find. You don’t see “cola” flavored things very often. So when I saw this cola flavored matcha, I knew I had a found a winner. Tea AND cola flavors brought together? This is amazing.

And I have to say, it definitely is. Even from the smell I knew I was in for a treat. I used 1/2 teaspoon of powder in my water bottle, shook it up, and then took a sip. It was absolutely delightful. It tastes just like cola (I think it has more of a Pepsi taste than a Coca-Cola taste). I even added some seltzer to give it just a little zing, which also helped.

This is definitely recommended for anyone who loves soda, but wants to indulge in a healthier option.

I can not WAIT to blend this with other matcha flavors like rum and black cherry. I’m also planning to buy a couple more fruit flavors in my next order to mix with this. Hmm… maybe I should have bought a large.

It’s fall, and you know what that means .. TRY ALL THE PUMPKIN THINGS! In all serious, I’m not a pumpkin fanatic, but I do enjoy indulging in the various pumpkin related offerings this season, especially pumpkin pie. I’ve been underwhelmed with a lot of these desert matchas lately, but this one got pretty decent reviews (and it was on sale), so how could I resist? I got this with my usual “Robust” flavoring.

When I first opened the package the smell was AMAZING! It didn’t taste artificial at all and instantly evoked memories of Thanksgiving dinner for me.

Even though I’ve been “brewing” via the water bottle method, I didn’t even bother going that route. I knew this had to be enjoyed hot, so I brought out the gear. I whisked it up, added some milk, and took a sip. And man oh man, is this delicious. The pumpkin pie flavors really pop, especially the cinnamon. I think the spices are a little more pronounced than the actual pumpkin flavor, but it’s a delicious and yummy treat. I even added sweetener to kick it up a notch and it certainly did.

All in all, a fantastic desert and a lot less guilt after having this than a regular pumpkin pie.

As a reminder, you can get the matcha here:
http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/pumpkin-pie-matcha.html

Thanks Azzrian for sending me a bit of this!
HooRAY!

The aroma was a bit more subtle than I thought it would be. Most of the time when I think of Cotton Candy I think of over-the-top Cotton Candy/Pure Sugar/artificial flavoring, etc. Just to SMELL Cotton Candy on a stick makes my teeth hurt sometimes! Oye! BUT…this is much more subtle and more easy to handle on the nose and taste buds!

It’s sweet like candy and fruity like Smarties! There is that bit of “green” to it too! I like it! Actually the more I sip the more I like…It’s better as it cools, too! YUM!

Oh, jet lag. I feel it settling in. My body thinks it’s nearing bedtime, when it’s really nearing dinnertime. With that flagging sensation (and the fact that it is warm in the house even with the air conditioner in) I thought of a cold matcha latte and it sounded perfect.

My freezer is somewhat packed right now so I just reached back into the back where my matchas are and randomly grabbed one; turned out to be this one. I added extra matcha for the energy and a couple of pinches of sugar. Of course I forgot to sift the matcha (even though the sifter was sitting right next to me… oh jet-lag brain), but the ice cubes in the shaker prevented any clumping. Now, for the energy to kick in…

Another cold matcha latte today! Today I decided to go without sugar and see how it turned out. I’ve had this shaken with just cold water before and really enjoyed it, so I figured shaken with milk would be good too. Turns out yes! There was a slight sweetness from the milk and the matcha itself that made was just enough. Nutty and delicious!

This tasting note is pretty much exclusively a check-in for me. Some of you may know that I live on Long Island in NY, which was hit hard by Sandy. Fortunately for me, I have been in Ohio visiting my boyfriend since last Saturday. I was originally scheduled to return to NY on Tuesday, then Thursday, but horrible conditions in NY and Long Island have kept me trapped here until the weekend. But my school has been closed for the rest of the week, so I don’t have to worry about my teaching obligations. I know that my apartment fortunately didn’t flood, but that it probably still doesn’t have power (too bad for my food in the fridge/freezer).

I drank this cold on my drive down to Ohio, and definitely thank it for keeping me awake.

I had this one cold at the gym tonight. At first I was unsure of how nutty matcha would be cold, but holy moly, it was delicious.

Again, 1/2tsp for a liter of water. I actually usually put it in my water bottle with a little water in the morning, then fill it the rest of the way up with cold water at the gym. Not sure, but I sometimes feel like giving the matcha time to stew in the cool water all day boosts the flavor. This one was nutty (natch), very pistachio-y, and even a hint sweet (no sugar involved!). Yum. I think I prefer this one cold, even.

Latte time! This one turned into a delicious, nutty, creamy pistachio latte with almond milk. I still occasionally get a whiff or a taste of something that is almost clovey, like this is some kind of pistachio spice latte or something, but it is much reduced from the straight preparation. Definitely a delicious bowl of matcha!

I am actually not a big eater of plain pistachios, but I love their nut-paste based desserts, like gelato or various truffles. Yum. So I really wanted to try this matcha, especially after trying the almond matcha in all its nutty glory. I ordered this one in the robust flavoring level, with the basic grade matcha, from here: http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/pistachio-matcha.html

As I opened the pouch, the matcha definitely smelled like pistachio essence, by which I don’t mean it smelled like a bag of pistachios, but more like pistachio gelato or pistachio marizpan (marzipan made with pistachios instead of almonds!). I prepared this matcha as usual, with 1/2tsp of matcha for 8oz of water, and a little sugar added part way through the bowl.

When I first smelled the prepared bowl of matcha, I was surprised and confused that it smelled kind of spicy, like nutmeg and cloves. Wha? It wasn’t unpleasant, just totally unexpected. The smell carries over to just the beginning part of the taste, where it initially seems a bit spicy but then morphs into a nutty, rich pistachio flavor. The matcha underneath definitely takes on an earthy flavor, and I can’t help but wonder if the spiciness isn’t at least in part from the matcha that the pistachio flavoring is just bringing to the foreground.

This is a really tasty matcha, though not precisely what I was looking for with the pistachio flavoring. The pistachio is definitely there and delicious, but the spiciness is kind of throwing me off a bit. My score may change as I try it more times and attempt to figure out all of its flavors.

I was excited to see a wintergreen matcha! I love wintergreen! It is my favorite flavor out of all the mint flavors you could find. I’m happy I saved it for last. Last is best of all the game, right? You can find it here:

http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/wintergreen-matcha.html

MMM this smells like wintergreen Altoids! I could eat a pack of them a day. And I do :[ My wintergreen Altoid habit is getting expensive.. haha The smell is very strong and wakes my senses up a little bit. It’s slightly spicy, slightly sweet. It made my entire tv room smell like wintergreen. Now let’s see how it tastes…
Woo! It even tastes like wintergreen Altoids! The flavor is spicy, sweet, and cooling. I feel like mints and green tea go together quite well. In this case they make a perfect couple! They compliment each other. You think it would be weird hot but I almost prefer it hot! And it makes an excellent iced matcha as well, obviously.. I can see myself running out of this quickly. This is a very unique one, too. I haven’t seen many wintergreen flavored teas around so I’m very happy I found this one :] I’d recommend you give this one a try if you are a fan of mint teas!

I am slightly surprised that this was not on here so I’m sorry if I accidentally made a double! Anyways I’ve never officially tried champagne except for that one time on New Years.. But that was long ago(and not very well remembered), and I can no longer remember what it tastes like haha You can find it here:

http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/champagne-matcha.html

When I opened the package I got a lovely, sweet smell. I actually felt like I was smelling the top of bottle of actual champagne. I even felt like I could smell a bit of that alcohol smell that makes you crinkle your nose, which made me think twice about actually drinking it… But when whisked it has a beautiful sweet, grape smell to it.
Oh my goodness. This is actually REALLY good. It’s very sweet has a bit of a natural grape flavor to it. It’s very light tasting. The flavors kind of mix together in this one. There is a little bit of both present. This is PERFECT if you are just looking for a light, after dinner tea. This one is also missing that bitter aftertaste, or I just found the perfect temperature or water-to-matcha ratio. This is a very unique matcha and I would recommend it to anyone feeling a bit adventurous! Here is the link:
http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/champagne-matcha.html

Backlogging! I had this yesterday morning with breakfast. And… mixed with white chocolate matcha. I used mostly strawberry with just a touch of the white chocolate and it was awesome! Creamy, fruity, and just a touch of chocolate.

Well on my last Red Leaf order I just had to order it with the Champagne matcha.. Strawberries and champagne! :] Anyways you can find this matcha here:

http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/strawberry-matcha.html

Opening this package was such a joy! The smell was delicious! It smelled like ripe, tart strawberries. It almost reminded me of those strawberry hard candies with the soft center. Ugghh.. now I’m craving them :[ This even made my kitchen smell so wonderful! Yay :] I love when that happens!
To me the flavor is somewhere between natural strawberry and candy strawberry. It’s a little more on the candy side but that makes it all the better! For some reason it kind of reminds me of the fluoride at my dentist’s office(which is totally a good thing because I LOVE that fluoride. It also tastes like the candy :D and that is the last thing I say about teeth tonight :]). Anyways.. the strawberry works SO well with the matcha. They bring each other out so nicely. This matcha is not only sweet. It has a little bit of a tartness to it! But that just adds to the experience! I think it’s safe to say this just might be my new favorite matcha from Red Leaf! :] So I will leave you the link just in case you need to order some amazing matcha:

http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/strawberry-matcha.html

Well I was saving this one for more of a fall-like day but I seriously couldn’t resist not buying it any longer. And just my luck it went on sale right after I bought it :P And as always you can get this fabulous matcha here:

http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/pumpkin-pie-matcha.html

When I opened my little gold bag the smell of warm pumpkin pie hit me in the face! When I dumped it into my little tin all I could smell was cinnamon and clove. MM :] It’s very strong…
The flavor is also VERY strong. The spices in here are very, very strong. The main flavor I’m getting from this matcha is clove. The clove is the dominant flavor, by far. And I’m not sure how I feel about that :[ I use cloves to numb tooth aches so it just reminds me of tooth aches… I’m really happy I got the “delicate” flavoring on this one because I just don’t think I could handle any more of this.. I really wish there was a bit more cinnamon or something in this. Maybe next time I drink it I will add some cinnamon and a TINY bit of sweetener to round those edges.
I really wanted to like this one.. But I just can’t handle this much clove..

I’m continuing my matcha journey with White Chocolate Matcha! And you can find it here:

http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/white-chocolate-matcha.html

Mm this matcha smells pretty good! It smells like melted white chocolate. Like I left a candy bar in my hot car and it melted in the wrapper. Lately I’ve been taking my matcha to work in my tumbler so it was really nice to have a big, frothy bowl sitting in front of me.
This is a really creamy matcha. But for some reason I’m not really getting the white chocolate flavor. It tastes like a matcha cupcake with a smooth frosting. I really like the semi-sweetness of the white chocolate along with the sweetness of the matcha. Usually, to me, the matcha has a slight bitter aftertaste (not a bad thing). I feel like the white chocolate just kind of smooths that out. I really like how this is working out! It’s nice and delicate. But next time I think I might go for the “distinctive” flavor option instead of the “delicate” and see how much of a difference it makes.. I would recommend this to anyone just starting out with matcha! It keeps the matcha flavor and smooths out the slight bitterness. I’ll leave you the link again:

http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/white-chocolate-matcha.html

I ordered this Matcha not just because I love the flavor of cinnamon, but because of the many different blending opportunities it would present with so many of my other flavors. I was thinking primarily with the Caramel Matcha, because I LOVE the combination of cinnamon and caramel, but it would also be great with the pear and the fig Matcha, and well… just about all of them, really.

But it’s also really amazing on it’s own. I ordered the distinctive level of flavor with this one, and I’m not really sure why except that it is my “go to” specifications, but in the past I’ve been kind of mindful of the flavor that I’m choosing and I would have thought I would have gone for the delicate flavor so that the cinnamon did not overpower the matcha. And this distinctive level of flavoring does overpower the flavor of the matcha just a bit. (I also ordered the basic/classic grade of Matcha) Actually, not even by a “bit” – but a whole lot. This is like the Matcha’s answer to the cinnamon challenge! It’s STRONG.

But … it’s still really yummy. And by the time I’ve reached mid-bowl, I taste more of the Matcha… it’s like it needed time to catch up with the flavor of the cinnamon which is really quite aggressive.

However, even though the cinnamon is strong and it’s a sweet-yet-spicy-hot kind of cinnamon taste, it doesn’t taste like cinnamon candy at all. This tastes of true cinnamon, like Saigon cinnamon. It is really vibrant and zesty.

This matcha is available here: http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/cinnamon-matcha.html

Oh yeah! I needed a treat this morning. Yesterday’s interview was almost 2 hours long and was just questions. I admittedly was eyeing if I could install a zojirushi in my cubical if I got this job. I had to bomb home, grab my jiujitsu gear and bolt to class. I then passed out after all that.

I did 1/2t of this matcha with a 1/2 scoop of Caramel Matchaccino, mixed with soy milk. AMAZING! I didn’t need sugar, and since this pumpkin pie matcha is really spiced, the spices were not as strong and rounded out with the caramel.

Yum, healthy matcha and caffeine! Better than treating myself iwth that pumpkin pie fudge I made.