Twenty years ago, few people in North America had heard of matcha, and fewer still had actually tried it. Now the jade-green powdered tea from Japan is riding the wave of green tea’s popularity and quietly developing a following around the world.
Matcha has popped up everywhere, finding its way into body lotions, evening cocktails and (of course) tea cups. Is matcha right for your customers? According to Jesse Jacobs, founder of San Francisco-based Samovar Tea Lounge, there’s no such thing as a person who doesn’t like matcha. Rather, it’s a matter of finding the right form of matcha to fit each person’s taste preference.
“Never before have we sold so much,” he says. “Demand has increased over the years.”