51
drank Strawberry Matcha by 52teas
111 tasting notes

Okay I’ll admit it I’m a virgin. A matcha virgin that is :) that is until today. I was so excited to get in my 52Teas order so that I could try this and I researched how it was to be prepared and all I can say is that I think I am on Team Chrine on this one.

I prepared it according to Wiki (One flat teaspoon to 2.5 ounces of water) all I can say is that I don’t think I am going to end up finishing this bowl. I seriously think this is an acquired taste. I can appreciate foods/drinks that are acquired tastes I mean I love raw oysters, boiled crawfish but I don’t see myself acquiring a taste for this ANYTIME soon.

It is strong like BLECH what was that, strong!!!!!!! I do pick up on the strawberry and that was the part that I think I liked. I am going to hold out on rating this tea in order to try it latte style and to try much less matcha to water ratio.

In the words of my son’s teacher DO NOT DO RESEARCH VIA WIKI. :)

Go TEAM CHRINE!

PART TWO: (My Second attempt at Matcha)
I would have posted the picture from flicker here __________________ but my 14 year old still has not taught me how to do this. LOL I can post pictures, send pictures I don’t know why I cannot paste a link here?! (aggravated) BTW I also have my after picture up on flicker of my before/after tea cupboard cleanout.

Anyway it’s round 2 Me (Soccermom VS 52Teas Strawberry Matcha) yesterday depending on how you look at it Matcha might have won it kicked me in the mouth and I threw it down the drain! Today determined to tangle with this wild drink and win I made another bowl of it and followed Shanti’s advice I started out with way less than a teaspoon and about 8 ounces of water. Did I mention I love the strawberry smell from the pouch? Well I do. I do not have exact measurements of anything used today I eyeballed it I didn’t have time to put on my fighting gloves in other words measure. I had to look this tea straight in the eye and try to intimidate it. I definitely did better this round as I didn’t get punched in the mouth like yesterday but instead we are fighting a fair fight Shanti’s advice was like having Freddy Roach in my corner I’m forever grateful for it. It tastes nice and mild actually I don’t know if I’ll be craving this but I wouldn’t mind stepping back in the ring for another round or two with this fruity but strong competitor.

Show 39 previous comments...
Cofftea 15 years ago

You must not have seen my wiki matcha fail… just add more water til you can drink it.

SoccerMom 15 years ago

Will do next time.

Cofftea 15 years ago

I think the 3 scoop measurement on wiki is accurate… but if I go by weight it’s actually 7! You could start w/ 1 scoop in 3-8oz of water and either increase the matcha or decrease the water till you get a good ratio you like.

~lauren. 15 years ago

Oh, I wiki everything for the quickness of it all! However, I say the same thing to the kiddies ‘wiki does not equal research’ when they are homework-ing. Hehehe now that I write it and look at it, sounds a bit double-standard-ish. But, then again, they also google everything!

Lori 15 years ago

I always use wiki…:)!

AmazonV 15 years ago

i use wiki for things i would ask a neighbor, for things you must have right i use encyclopedias or other things i can blame for my wrongness if needed

__Morgana__ 15 years ago

Matcha virgin here, too. I’m saving myself until I get up the guts to whisk…

Cofftea 15 years ago

I love it Morgana, that sounds really wrong.

~lauren. 15 years ago

All these comments are making me laugh! AmazonV – I agree! credible accountability is a must!

SoccerMom 15 years ago

Morgana- All I can say is use lots of water, my matcha to water ratio was not to my tasting. Next time I’m going to try at least 8 oz of water to one flat teaspoon and work my way up from there.

Shanti 15 years ago

Woo, matcha! I have three pouches of Mandarin left, so I didn’t order this one. But my tip is to try 1/2 to 1/3 of a teaspoon of matcha in 4 to 6 ounces of hot but not boiling water at first…as you get more used to it, you can start increasing the amount of matcha. But yeah, 1 teaspoon in 2.5 ounces of water is intense, especially if its a low grade matcha like the kind 52teas uses (I presume).

SoccerMom 15 years ago

Shanti, Thanks so much for the experienced advice. I will try this method, are you the one (Shanti) that I read about in Ricky’s post that stole all the Mandarin Matcha?? :)

Shanti 15 years ago

Yes, that’s me :) Or, actually, my evil alter-ego that swoops in an buys too much tea, Shantea haha :)

SoccerMom 15 years ago

LOL

Cofftea 15 years ago

I tried 1tsp of powdered sencha in 6oz cold water (8x stronger than they suggest). It was, of course, VERY strong- but by no means undrinkable, helped by the addition of 2TB lemon juice. I also know that this is not matcha, but I thought I’d throw that out anyway.

Ricky 15 years ago

Seems we’re all confused as to how to prepare this matcha ;)

I’m going to turn this into a latte next time, hmmm or make some ice cream with it? Hmmmm…..

Cofftea 15 years ago

No, I just think everyone likes it a little different. And I’m no help cuz I don’t measure w/ a tsp. lol. It’s funny, I don’t like matcha and milk, but I’m TOTALLY grooving putting some of the this on chocolate frozen yogurt. And yes I know “grooving” sounds really stupid, but hey matcha makes me act weird lol.

AmazonV 15 years ago

now i am nervous eyes matcha perhaps I’ll start with the yogurt plan first?

Ricky 15 years ago

Matcha + Milk, delicious. Matcha + Chocolate milk sounds strange to me =P

Matcha + frozen yogurt… hmmm… now that’s a plan ;)

Cofftea 15 years ago

AmazonV, you could- it’s up to you. But don’t be nervous. Ya know… LiberTEAS is gonna shoot me lol, but are people having problems because they’re using a teaspoon to measure it? I use a matcha scoop and have very few matcha fails. Just curious.

Ricky, I got the matcha + ice cream (or frozen yogurt) idea from Den’s! (still waiting for their e-newsletter)

Cofftea 15 years ago

Ok, correction- I’ve only had one matcha fail (pertaining to ratio of matcha/water)… and that was completely wiki’s fault lol.

Ricky 15 years ago

We’re going to start a Teaspoon Matcha club, who needs the bamboo scoop!

Hmm, I have to look that up on Den’s website when it gets warmer again.

Cofftea 15 years ago

Ricky… Maybe more people do? I’m not about to tell people how to make their matcha (although I do think a chawan or bowl of some kind just has to be done lol), but it does seem as if people who are displeased w/ it or have ratio problems are using a tsp. Just an observation. At least it’s a cheap accessory/gadget.

~lauren. 15 years ago

I got a matcha banana smoothie/shake from garrett yesterday that sounds awesome – soon as I find all my blender pieces, I will let you know how that goes! http://steepster.com/Shojikoto/posts/35069

AmazonV 15 years ago

Yea, teaspoon club! we’ll crack this case – no way am i investing in more tea gear….i don’t have anywhere to put it! ok and i went a little tiny bit crazy with orders last month, just a little…

Cofftea 15 years ago

lol, that’s actually what I like about scoops- ~$5 accessory that can fit in pretty much any nook and cranny. Very portable for travelling. I’ve noticed 52teas matchas (at least the one I’ve tried) don’t need much whisking so measure, dump, swirl, and drink:)

~lauren. 15 years ago

Where on Steepster can you find a Steepsterite who hasn’t gone just a tad bit crazy in the last month or so on tea orders, I ask? He/She would have to be one very self-controlled restrained person in the face of all these yummy tea posts/reviews! LOL! But, AmazonV, I love tea gear/tea ware … they are so pretty and functional and absolutely a requirement !?!?!

Ricky 15 years ago

Haha, I’ve been very good lately. I’ve been trying to clear my cupboard to make room for summer tea. I even restrained myself from ordering DFT Series #2! Now I have a gap in my A&D tea collection, uhoh.

AmazonV 15 years ago

i gotta put together a little picasa on all my teaware….it’s a lot for a tiny apartment (2 dragon teakettles, 1 china, 1 porcelain, 1 cast iron, 1 glass, dozens of bone china teacups, 1 shelf of mugs, 1 shelf and 3 boxes of tea, 2 Russian tea cups, zarafina, breville water kettle, brita water pitcher, mr. iced tea maker, and more i don’t even want to unpack) that of course doesn’t even get into my coffee obsession…and a galley kitchen

~lauren. 15 years ago

Okay – you win! that is a lot of teaware! and if memory serves, you have some nice china teacups from mother-in-law, too! sorry for the awkardness of comment – now on iPod touch and am not that good on keyboard yet.

AmazonV 15 years ago

~lauren you are a better person than I – I keep trying to use steepster via Blackberry and end up with the most awful typing! half the time i give up and don’t post it

Ricky 15 years ago

She’s a Steepster addict :P. I can’t even stand logging into Steepster from my iPhone. It’s dreadfully slow :(

I ♥ NewYorkCiTEA 15 years ago

TEAM CHRINE has changed sides. Just came to the Strawberry Matcha page to tealog and was reading your tealog. I did 1/4 tsp in 8 oz of 180° F water. I cannot believe the difference. I thought there was no way I’d ever like matcha. Anyways, I’m about to post a tealog about the matcha surprise so you can read all about it there!

I ♥ NewYorkCiTEA 15 years ago

PS I also used Wiki the first time I prepared it. Bad Wiki!

Cofftea 15 years ago

I know chrine! Where do they get that 3 scoops weighs that much? If you go by wiki’s # of scoops and not weight, you’re good.

I ♥ NewYorkCiTEA 15 years ago

I have no idea. It was WAY too much matcha for me.

Cofftea 15 years ago

I know! The thought of the 7 scoops of matcha I used makes me gag… :)

Shanti 15 years ago

Oh, yay, I just noticed your update :) Yeah, I also tend to just eyeball the amount of matcha, and usually only make 3 or 4 ounces of it when I need a shot of something to force my eyes open. The bitterness (and of course the caffeine) are great when I’m feeling kinda “blah” and need to be jolted awake. I don’t know if I could handle 8 ounces at a time (plus the matcha might settle since I’m a slowish drinker). But yeah, maybe fiddling around with the amount of water might make it more palatable. :)

I ♥ NewYorkCiTEA 15 years ago

Oh, so it does settle? I thought I might not be mixing it enough still. (I just had some!) I noticed the perking effect and was wondering if it was in my head since I associated the super bitterness of the first attempt with high caffeine content. But it is a mellow perking, not a jittery perking.

Cofftea 15 years ago

chrine, take it from someone that often makes 8 (and on a rare occasion 16)oz at a time that it does settle if you don’t drink it quickly enough- it’s a suspension, not a solution. I prefer to take my time to enjoy it so an occasional whisk or two while drinking it does the job and I’m not forced to rush.

I ♥ NewYorkCiTEA 15 years ago

Thanks Cofftea, that’s good to know.

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Cofftea 15 years ago

You must not have seen my wiki matcha fail… just add more water til you can drink it.

SoccerMom 15 years ago

Will do next time.

Cofftea 15 years ago

I think the 3 scoop measurement on wiki is accurate… but if I go by weight it’s actually 7! You could start w/ 1 scoop in 3-8oz of water and either increase the matcha or decrease the water till you get a good ratio you like.

~lauren. 15 years ago

Oh, I wiki everything for the quickness of it all! However, I say the same thing to the kiddies ‘wiki does not equal research’ when they are homework-ing. Hehehe now that I write it and look at it, sounds a bit double-standard-ish. But, then again, they also google everything!

Lori 15 years ago

I always use wiki…:)!

AmazonV 15 years ago

i use wiki for things i would ask a neighbor, for things you must have right i use encyclopedias or other things i can blame for my wrongness if needed

__Morgana__ 15 years ago

Matcha virgin here, too. I’m saving myself until I get up the guts to whisk…

Cofftea 15 years ago

I love it Morgana, that sounds really wrong.

~lauren. 15 years ago

All these comments are making me laugh! AmazonV – I agree! credible accountability is a must!

SoccerMom 15 years ago

Morgana- All I can say is use lots of water, my matcha to water ratio was not to my tasting. Next time I’m going to try at least 8 oz of water to one flat teaspoon and work my way up from there.

Shanti 15 years ago

Woo, matcha! I have three pouches of Mandarin left, so I didn’t order this one. But my tip is to try 1/2 to 1/3 of a teaspoon of matcha in 4 to 6 ounces of hot but not boiling water at first…as you get more used to it, you can start increasing the amount of matcha. But yeah, 1 teaspoon in 2.5 ounces of water is intense, especially if its a low grade matcha like the kind 52teas uses (I presume).

SoccerMom 15 years ago

Shanti, Thanks so much for the experienced advice. I will try this method, are you the one (Shanti) that I read about in Ricky’s post that stole all the Mandarin Matcha?? :)

Shanti 15 years ago

Yes, that’s me :) Or, actually, my evil alter-ego that swoops in an buys too much tea, Shantea haha :)

SoccerMom 15 years ago

LOL

Cofftea 15 years ago

I tried 1tsp of powdered sencha in 6oz cold water (8x stronger than they suggest). It was, of course, VERY strong- but by no means undrinkable, helped by the addition of 2TB lemon juice. I also know that this is not matcha, but I thought I’d throw that out anyway.

Ricky 15 years ago

Seems we’re all confused as to how to prepare this matcha ;)

I’m going to turn this into a latte next time, hmmm or make some ice cream with it? Hmmmm…..

Cofftea 15 years ago

No, I just think everyone likes it a little different. And I’m no help cuz I don’t measure w/ a tsp. lol. It’s funny, I don’t like matcha and milk, but I’m TOTALLY grooving putting some of the this on chocolate frozen yogurt. And yes I know “grooving” sounds really stupid, but hey matcha makes me act weird lol.

AmazonV 15 years ago

now i am nervous eyes matcha perhaps I’ll start with the yogurt plan first?

Ricky 15 years ago

Matcha + Milk, delicious. Matcha + Chocolate milk sounds strange to me =P

Matcha + frozen yogurt… hmmm… now that’s a plan ;)

Cofftea 15 years ago

AmazonV, you could- it’s up to you. But don’t be nervous. Ya know… LiberTEAS is gonna shoot me lol, but are people having problems because they’re using a teaspoon to measure it? I use a matcha scoop and have very few matcha fails. Just curious.

Ricky, I got the matcha + ice cream (or frozen yogurt) idea from Den’s! (still waiting for their e-newsletter)

Cofftea 15 years ago

Ok, correction- I’ve only had one matcha fail (pertaining to ratio of matcha/water)… and that was completely wiki’s fault lol.

Ricky 15 years ago

We’re going to start a Teaspoon Matcha club, who needs the bamboo scoop!

Hmm, I have to look that up on Den’s website when it gets warmer again.

Cofftea 15 years ago

Ricky… Maybe more people do? I’m not about to tell people how to make their matcha (although I do think a chawan or bowl of some kind just has to be done lol), but it does seem as if people who are displeased w/ it or have ratio problems are using a tsp. Just an observation. At least it’s a cheap accessory/gadget.

~lauren. 15 years ago

I got a matcha banana smoothie/shake from garrett yesterday that sounds awesome – soon as I find all my blender pieces, I will let you know how that goes! http://steepster.com/Shojikoto/posts/35069

AmazonV 15 years ago

Yea, teaspoon club! we’ll crack this case – no way am i investing in more tea gear….i don’t have anywhere to put it! ok and i went a little tiny bit crazy with orders last month, just a little…

Cofftea 15 years ago

lol, that’s actually what I like about scoops- ~$5 accessory that can fit in pretty much any nook and cranny. Very portable for travelling. I’ve noticed 52teas matchas (at least the one I’ve tried) don’t need much whisking so measure, dump, swirl, and drink:)

~lauren. 15 years ago

Where on Steepster can you find a Steepsterite who hasn’t gone just a tad bit crazy in the last month or so on tea orders, I ask? He/She would have to be one very self-controlled restrained person in the face of all these yummy tea posts/reviews! LOL! But, AmazonV, I love tea gear/tea ware … they are so pretty and functional and absolutely a requirement !?!?!

Ricky 15 years ago

Haha, I’ve been very good lately. I’ve been trying to clear my cupboard to make room for summer tea. I even restrained myself from ordering DFT Series #2! Now I have a gap in my A&D tea collection, uhoh.

AmazonV 15 years ago

i gotta put together a little picasa on all my teaware….it’s a lot for a tiny apartment (2 dragon teakettles, 1 china, 1 porcelain, 1 cast iron, 1 glass, dozens of bone china teacups, 1 shelf of mugs, 1 shelf and 3 boxes of tea, 2 Russian tea cups, zarafina, breville water kettle, brita water pitcher, mr. iced tea maker, and more i don’t even want to unpack) that of course doesn’t even get into my coffee obsession…and a galley kitchen

~lauren. 15 years ago

Okay – you win! that is a lot of teaware! and if memory serves, you have some nice china teacups from mother-in-law, too! sorry for the awkardness of comment – now on iPod touch and am not that good on keyboard yet.

AmazonV 15 years ago

~lauren you are a better person than I – I keep trying to use steepster via Blackberry and end up with the most awful typing! half the time i give up and don’t post it

Ricky 15 years ago

She’s a Steepster addict :P. I can’t even stand logging into Steepster from my iPhone. It’s dreadfully slow :(

I ♥ NewYorkCiTEA 15 years ago

TEAM CHRINE has changed sides. Just came to the Strawberry Matcha page to tealog and was reading your tealog. I did 1/4 tsp in 8 oz of 180° F water. I cannot believe the difference. I thought there was no way I’d ever like matcha. Anyways, I’m about to post a tealog about the matcha surprise so you can read all about it there!

I ♥ NewYorkCiTEA 15 years ago

PS I also used Wiki the first time I prepared it. Bad Wiki!

Cofftea 15 years ago

I know chrine! Where do they get that 3 scoops weighs that much? If you go by wiki’s # of scoops and not weight, you’re good.

I ♥ NewYorkCiTEA 15 years ago

I have no idea. It was WAY too much matcha for me.

Cofftea 15 years ago

I know! The thought of the 7 scoops of matcha I used makes me gag… :)

Shanti 15 years ago

Oh, yay, I just noticed your update :) Yeah, I also tend to just eyeball the amount of matcha, and usually only make 3 or 4 ounces of it when I need a shot of something to force my eyes open. The bitterness (and of course the caffeine) are great when I’m feeling kinda “blah” and need to be jolted awake. I don’t know if I could handle 8 ounces at a time (plus the matcha might settle since I’m a slowish drinker). But yeah, maybe fiddling around with the amount of water might make it more palatable. :)

I ♥ NewYorkCiTEA 15 years ago

Oh, so it does settle? I thought I might not be mixing it enough still. (I just had some!) I noticed the perking effect and was wondering if it was in my head since I associated the super bitterness of the first attempt with high caffeine content. But it is a mellow perking, not a jittery perking.

Cofftea 15 years ago

chrine, take it from someone that often makes 8 (and on a rare occasion 16)oz at a time that it does settle if you don’t drink it quickly enough- it’s a suspension, not a solution. I prefer to take my time to enjoy it so an occasional whisk or two while drinking it does the job and I’m not forced to rush.

I ♥ NewYorkCiTEA 15 years ago

Thanks Cofftea, that’s good to know.

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New to the world of hot tea, being born and raised in Texas we typically only drink lipton black tea, sweetened and iced of course! I recently discovered the world of hot tea / flavored teas and am thoroughly enjoying my new little world of tea!

Favorite Tea Quote: A woman is like a tea bag – you can’t tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water.
Eleanor Roosevelt

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