REVIEW: Red Leaf Tea White Matcha

Disclosure: I got this product as part of an advertorial.

I was really excited to see this review opportunity for Red Leaf Tea's White Matcha because I somewhat recently fell in love with a green matcha fusion tea. I wasn't quite sure what to expect because I've never tried a powdered tea...(I understand matcha itself is powder, but the one I tried before was pre-bagged).

So what is white matcha? "White Matcha is made in exactly the same way as regular Green Tea Matcha is made: stone ground to a fine powder. But we have done it with White Tea. Why would we offer you a White Matcha? For people who like Matcha Tea in its original form as a Green Tea, you know how flavorful and pure it is. We want to give that to all tea lovers. Whether you like Green Tea, Black Tea, White Tea or any other kind of tea, we want you to experience the Matcha in different flavors.

What does stone grinding do for tea leaves? It is quite simple. This is special process that does not take away from the flavor or take away any of the health benefits of original tea leaves. Basically with the stone grinding process, you are getting the highest quality tea in its purest form outside of just having straight from the tea tree. It is simple and straightforward, leaving tea leaves with tons of flavor and amazing healthful qualities."

The tea shipped very quickly, and the packaging was in good shape. So, let's start with that packaging....the pouch the tea comes in is great, the zip seal stays closed well, it's aesthetically pleasing...but there's something missing. Two somethings, in fact.

First, I would really love to see an ingredient list. Are there additives? Coloring? I did find this information on the website and Amazon.com, however, so I am not too upset by it. Perhaps not printing it on the packaging saves on cost? Anyway, according to the website the White Matcha tea is made of "Pure Matcha powder from white leaves,White Powder." And the following qualities:

 100% Pure Matcha

 Natural Flavors

 Artificial Coloring

 Sweeteners

 Preservatives

 MSG/Chemical Additives

Simply put, I love most of that. Leaves only two questions - What exactly is "natural flavors"? And are the products GMO/would they be willing to get verified by a third party?

Second, there are no instructions. Again, this is something that can be found on the website and Amazon.com, but I guarantee there will be people who don't notice it. Still, I suppose it reduces materials. Perhaps it's just the smaller pouches that don't have these things? I can't really say.

 The tea itself...well, I'm not sure white tea is quite for me. I much prefer greens and herbals. That said, for being the white tea that it is, it's on par. A more bold white tea. The dry powder has a musky floral scent, whereas there is almost no scent when it's prepared. It's a deep murky brown, and has a lovely froth.

Takes a fair amount of mixing to dissolve the powder, probably would have been easier had I used a whisk as advised, but my whisk hardly fits in a mug. I did have some settling in my cup.

It's smooth at the beginning, a little dryer at the end. I enjoyed the flavor more after I let it sit and cool off, so perhaps I will use the rest as a chilled tea, or sneak it into some smoothies to get the health benefits without all that oomph.

You can buy the tea yourself on redleaftea.com or amazon.com. They also carry a crazy variety of other flavors (like CHEESECAKE Matcha and  Turkish Green Apple), so you're bound to find something you should like. Not to mention the kid's section of fruity, junk free herbals.


I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.