What Is Matcha Green Tea? Everything You Need to Know
Matcha’s story begins long before our modern rituals of lattes and froth. Its roots stretch back to ancient China, where the first practices of steaming and shaping tea into bricks allowed leaves to travel across landscapes and generations. When these early practices reached Japan, matcha found a home where it could become something more—refined, revered, and woven into the rhythm of a slower life.
In Japan, matcha is the heartbeat of chanoyu — the Japanese tea ceremony. Each movement is quiet but purposeful, each bowl a moment of pause. Grounded in Zen philosophy, the ritual invites simplicity, mindfulness, and respect. It is not about the drink alone, but about presence. The highest ceremonial matcha, vivid in color and smooth in character, honors both leaf and spirit.
In South Korea, tea ceremonies represent a way to find relaxation and harmony in the fast-paced currents of modern life. The tradition known as Darye, is deeply rooted in a history spanning over a millennium. It's more than just a beverage; it's a quiet ritual emphasizing relaxation, connection, and mutual respect.
What Exactly Is Matcha?
The word matcha literally means "powdered tea". Unlike other teas where leaves are steeped and discarded, matcha is made from finely ground tea leaves, allowing you to consume the entire leaf—and all its nourishing compounds—with every sip.
Traditionally, to create the finest matcha, tea plants are shaded several weeks before harvest. This process intensifies chlorophyll production and develops a deep green hue with a sweeter, more delicate flavor. However, most modern shading practices use petroleum-based synthetic plastics stretched over tea fields. At Wild Orchard, we were concerned that the intense summer heat could cause chemical leaching onto the plants—an outcome deeply misaligned with our mission to elevate health through purity and nature.
Our Approach: Full Sun Grown Organic Matcha
Driven by our commitment to the highest standards of wellness, we created a different kind of matcha: full-sun grown, on a remote volcanic island where the leaves thrive naturally under open skies. This method yields a matcha rich in flavor complexity, depth, and concentrated natural benefits. Because full-sun growth produces a slightly higher bitterness—along with an even greater abundance of nutrients—our matcha is ideally suited for lattes, where the creaminess of milk balances and rounds out its robust character.
While our full-sun matcha reflects our dedication to health and transparency, we also understand the desire for the softer flavor profile found in traditional ceremonial matcha. We are currently exploring natural, chemical-free shading methods to allay our concerns around conventional plastic sheathing. Our goal is to soon offer a ceremonial-grade Wild Orchard matcha—without compromising our principles.
How Matcha Spread to Global Popularity
Over time, Matcha Green Tea journeyed beyond its origins. As the world searched for ways to reconnect—with nature, with self—matcha offered a quiet invitation. Its rise in popularity reflects not only a love for its earthy depth and balanced energy, but also a growing desire for rituals that ground us in an accelerating world.
From cafés in New York to kitchens in Copenhagen, matcha tea became more than a beverage—it became a movement. Its presence in wellness spaces, artisan bakeries, and mindful morning routines speaks to something deeper than trend. It reminds us that even in a fast-moving world, there are still traditions worth slowing down for—rituals that connect us to place, to people, and to the present moment..
As the world searched for ways to reconnect—with nature, with self—matcha tea offered a quiet invitation. Its rise in popularity reflects not only a love for its earthy depth and balanced energy, but also a growing desire for rituals that ground us in an ever-accelerating world.
Understanding Matcha: Production and Properties
What sets matcha apart is the intimacy of its making. In most matcha production, tea plants are shaded to slow their growth and deepen their nutrients. Before grinding, the veins and stems are removed. But at Wild Orchard, our Matcha is born from something different: unshaded, full-sun cultivation on a remote volcanic island. This choice yields deeper intensity—both in flavor and in benefit—echoing the raw purity of its wild-grown origin. The leaves are carefully harvested, minimally processed (the veins and fine stems are left intact), and stone-ground into a powder so fine, it carries the breath of the land with it.
Nutritional Profile and Health Benefits
Matcha is whole-leaf nourishment. Rich in L-theanine, it soothes the mind while sharpening focus. With EGCG (Epigallocatechin-3-gallate), a powerful antioxidant most abundant polyphenol in green tea, supports cellular health and restoration. Matcha also contains an abundance of phytochemicals (such as chlorophyll and quercetin). These substances may have some positive effects on our health, particularly when they are consumed in foods that naturally contain them.
Its gentle caffeine provides clarity, not chaos. It is energy as nature intended—steady, rooted, and aligned with the body’s rhythms. Matcha doesn’t rush you; it walks with you.
Using Matcha in Your Daily Life
To welcome matcha into your day is to create space. You may whisk it in silence or blend it into milk for a grounding latte. You may sip it while journaling, or drink it with nothing but stillness. However you choose to prepare it, let it be a pause—a place to return to breath and presence. Matcha, at its core, is an offering of time.
Creative Culinary Applications Beyond Tea
Beyond the bowl, matcha brings its calm brilliance into the kitchen. It finds harmony in baked goods, lends depth to sauces, and adds a grounding note to desserts. When used with intention, it elevates the everyday into something sacred. In green tea shortbread, matcha tells a story of land and leaf. In savory marinades, it carries warmth from soil to soul. Visit our Recipe for Strawberry Matcha Latte we shared with 123Farms, a delicious variation prepared during their Lavender Festival with our own Wild Orchard matcha green tea.
At Wild Orchard, our teas reflect the landscape from which they grow—wild, unhurried, and regenerative. Our organic matcha tea is not simply a product, but a practice: an invitation to slow down, connect, and taste something more than flavor. It is the season captured in powder, the island in your palm, the ritual in your cup.
