Maeda-En Matcha Powder Bulk, Matcha Green Tea Powder - 1.1 LB Large Bag

Fairly expensive, but excellent.Compared to Osulloc's plastic squeezy thing (korean brand), two weird chinese brands (one from amazon - "starter matcha", the other from a friend), some other weird korean brand (from a friend), and one japanese brand of matcha powder (the most expensive one, 6$ for a small tin at retail asian store) that I have around (I know this isn't very specific) - this powder is very clearly the best.The package I received was extremely fresh and not oxidized much at all, the color was immediately noticeably different from all the other powders - bright green and no sign of spoilage unlike most of the other ones which ranged from dark green but brown when mixed with water (the "starter matcha" chinese brand) to varying shades of dark green (all the other brands). Taste is excellent and *much* less bitter in equivalent amounts than any of the other powders I had around. The aroma is also excellent, no hint of spoilage and very fresh and green-tea like.I am too lazy to upload pictures, so hopefully you can just take my word for it.In the Q&A part of this page above the reviews someone mentioned that maeda replied to their email stating this stuff was "universal-culinary grade". I sent them an email too and they clarified the leaves were made in Japan and that they classify this powder as "culinary".I put that in quotes because compared to the other "culinary grade" stuff on the market this powder is easily many times better.If you expect to be going through a lot of matcha powder and care deeply about quality, just buy this.I personally spoon out some of this powder into a tin that I keep in the kitchen, while the big bag goes into the refrigerator. Both the bulk bag and the tin that I regularly use have oxygen absorbed packets inside. Up to you.Don't pay any mind to the low-quality reviews for the other matcha powder brands on Amzn - they are vastly overstating the quality of the product because those reviewers have had nothing to compare to. The "starter matcha" stuff on amazon I ordered for instance had overhwhelmingly positive reviews but it was easily tied for last place among the powders I tested.Probably the best way to filter out the bad stuff purely based on reviews is to look at the proportion of 1-star reviews. This powder has just two - one by a guy who rated everything he bought a 0 and the other by someone with a single review ever posted and poor english (wouldn't be surprised if that was a competitor). Neither really make sense anyways.

I have been a matcha drinker for approximately 4 years now. Although I drink it everyday, I have not succumbed to buying the ceremonial grade matcha yet. I just can't justify the expense for paying for a 1 oz ceremonial grade matcha when I can get a drinkable 7-10 oz culinary grade matcha for a lesser price and getting the same amount of the anti-oxidants, EGCG, theanine and other goodness of matcha. I have bought here on Amazon different brands of matcha like DNA matcha from China, Zeda from Korea and the first brand that I bought in 2011, the Vitalife matcha. I have also bought matcha from other internet sites aside from Amazon. Of all the matcha that i have consumed, Maeda-En Matcha, by far, has the smoothest taste, the nicest color and the the least bitter of the bunch. Although, the umami taste is not quite noticeable ( Zeda wins out on the umami taste but is more bitter), adding a few milligrams of theanine powder ( also bought here on Amazon a few years ago) have provided the umami taste that i was looking for. The 1.1 pound of this Maeda-En Matcha Powder Bulk will give me more than 6 months of daily usage.I will definitely buy this again when I run out. Although I will try the DoMatcha one of these days when there is an occasion that I can justify buying a 1 oz matcha for $29.99I also like it that the reviews seems to be from real drinkers of this matcha, not from "professional" reviewers, which I get leery nowadays whenever i buy a product that has hundreds of five star reviews and yet the reviewers where just given a sample for review which I believe does not provide an ample time to really use the product for a while.Update 4/9/2017As you can see i finally succumbed to buying the ceremonial grade matcha. See the comparison in the photo. There is a slight noticeable difference in the color and taste but not enough to persuade me to spend my hard earned money to continually buy a very expensive ceremonial grade matcha when i feel that i can get the same benefit from a lot less expensive great tasting matcha.

I ordered this particular Matcha because the local coffee shop I usually get matcha latte from uses this exact product. Now I get to make it at home. Its high quality Matcha, tastes so good! I add it to core power vanilla protein and it makes a great energy/protein packed drink! Highly recommend

I'm 100 percent convinced these people leaving the 5 stars have never had a good matcha thus they don't know what they are talking about.What a disappointment. When it comes to matcha the quality varies widely. And it shouldn't be dull green with a dirty taste.You want a great...and I've tested this on my extra picky matcha peeps...great matcha where you taste and FEEL the difference?Ito En unsweetened matcha powder.Best budget matcha. Currently I'm out and it's covid 19 time with riots and no one has it to sell. Of course. As if things aren't bad enough.I'm like a coffee snob. I don't out a bunch of sugar and cream to cover up the crap in my cup like some people do. I want quality.So bummed.

You get quite a bit for your purchase, but it isn't as high quality as their other smaller batches. It does not have the full umami taste, but it does taste like Matcha.