Matcha Men & Women

[Seeker]

Really, what are the dimensions?

When you get it, will you share photos? Be nice to see on "share a photo of fav chawan thread" with matcha in it!

Hope there's a nice package awaiting you this evening.

[clareandromeda]

Matcha women and men, I'm hitting the bottom of my O-cha kiri-no-mori. It's the first nice matcha I've had. What should I try next?

[Maitre_Tea]

Really, what are the dimensions?

When you get it, will you share photos? Be nice to see on "share a photo of fav chawan thread" with matcha in it!

Hope there's a nice package awaiting you this evening.

*Sigh* I'm a little tempted to march down to the Post Office and track down my package. The dimensions of the Chawan are 5 inch width by 3.5 inch height. My rice bowl had the same width but it's a little shorter (about 3 inches). Of course, maybe I'm just using a larger rice bowl than most people.

[olivierco]

Matcha women and men, I'm hitting the bottom of my O-cha kiri-no-mori. It's the first nice matcha I've had. What should I try next?

Ippodo wakamatsu no mukashi

[iannon]

Matcha women and men, I'm hitting the bottom of my O-cha kiri-no-mori. It's the first nice matcha I've had. What should I try next?

Ippodo wakamatsu no mukashi

i'd like to try the Ippodo one day soon..that shipping is killin me tho.. just got in some Yame Matcha Sansui from Zencha that i found very tasty!

[Seeker]

Clare,
I really like the wakamatsu or horai from ippodo, but since shipping is prohibitive for you, an equally good and comparable matcha is Wako (available from Teance.com or InPursuitofTea.com).

And Maitre, sorry to hear of your disappointment with your new chawan size!
Still, I hope it may grow on you and that you come to love it. If not, then may the lesson be well learned and contribute to your next chawan being just right.

I'm very curious to hear some more detailed reviews of the yuuki matchas.

Cheers!

[Maitre_Tea]

Clare,
I really like the wakamatsu or horai from ippodo, but since shipping is prohibitive for you, an equally good and comparable matcha is Wako (available from Teance.com or InPursuitofTea.com).

And Maitre, sorry to hear of your disappointment with your new chawan size!
Still, I hope it may grow on you and that you come to love it. If not, then may the lesson be well learned and contribute to your next chawan being just right.

I'm very curious to hear some more detailed reviews of the yuuki matchas.

Cheers!

Don't get me wrong, I'm in love with my Chawan, beauty dimple and all (see the post in the Show Off Thread to see what I mean), but I'm surprised about how small it is in my hands. I think I've learned that I can work with dimensions outside of what Chamekke recommends on her blog. I'm a little curious about the "sourness" I'm tasting in my Matcha. It's not sour like lemons, but it's the first thing that comes to mind. Is there a better term for what I'm tasting here?

[ochaken]

I drink matcha everyday ... twice or more times per day

[violson2000]

I am admittedly still a matcha novice, having started drinking it only in the last 3 months or so. I started out drinking it each morning after breakfast. I now find that I enjoy matcha most right after exercising, especially swimming. I find that matcha somehow simultaneously calms and awakens me, which is perfect after physical activity. So now I just have it right after I swim, which is generally 3-4 times/week. I usually have it in the late afternoon. Great feeling of clarity and repose while drinking it and afterwards!!

[Smells_Familiar]

I am admittedly still a matcha novice, having started drinking it only in the last 3 months or so. I started out drinking it each morning after breakfast. I now find that I enjoy matcha most right after exercising, especially swimming. I find that matcha somehow simultaneously calms and awakens me, which is perfect after physical activity. So now I just have it right after I swim, which is generally 3-4 times/week. I usually have it in the late afternoon. Great feeling of clarity and repose while drinking it and afterwards!!

this is a GREAT idea!

i lift weights 3 or 4 times per week (~60min each) and two of those sessions i'll do some intense cardio for 20-30 minutes afterward without eating before the cardio (third cardio on a non-lifting day). this leaves me very pooped and i'm normally kinda grumpy for two to three hours afterward, even after eating. i've tried a few different remedies wanting to find something to leave me with more energy and a clear and calm mind, and nothing has worked very well so far. i think matcha may be the perfect remedy! i love the unique high that matcha gives me and so i try and preserve it's potency by only having it two or three times per week (jus a gut ration here, nutin scientif%@42w).

i could easily fit these two or three matcha sessions in after my lift/cardio.

cool... i'll let ya'll know how it goes

thanks for the inspiration!

[violson2000]

this leaves me very pooped and i'm normally kinda grumpy for two to three hours afterward, even after eating. i've tried a few different remedies wanting to find something to leave me with more energy and a clear and calm mind, and nothing has worked very well so far.

from my experience, matcha works like a charm to provide exactly what you're looking for. i hope it works for you!! let us know...


doesn't hurt that it also tastes alright

[Intuit]

The theanine/GABA/glutamine punchup from quality matcha would be ideal after a heavy workout, benefiting the CNS (antioxidant synthesis) and vascular systems (dilation) by limiting the oxidation hit from muscle energy metabolism.

Not sure about the caffeine hit though - if you're grumpy after a workout, it's a sure sign of exhaustion/hypoglycemia. I'd aim for maximum hydration and maybe a little protein/carb drink between the weightlifting and cardio workout. After an hour of anerobic exercise, another half hour of highly aerobic cardio is leaving you really depleted, enough that you're probably pushing your cortisol levels higher than necessary, making recovery difficult.

Caffeine ain't gonna be the answer because if your energy stores (liver and muscle glycogen) are temporarily depleted after the strength/cardio sessions, that caffeine hit activates brain ACTH release and consequently, cortisol and insulin release. If you haven't got the blood sugar levels to match, you're hypoglycemic and you have nothing in your GI tract to supply energy, you're not helping matters but you are boosting inflammation response (prostanoid release)

Maybe timing of post workout energy replenishment - and then a little matcha would be better.

You'll understand the timing issue if you feel like puking after the workout if you have that matcha and your protein/moderate carb drink hasn't hit your bloodstream yet (still heavily hypoglycemic). :-0

[violson2000]

Intuit, you clearly know the science much better than i do, so i am in no place to argue with you. i find when i get home from swimming, i'm not so exhausted that i just need to get some food/sugars into my bloodstream. i am tired, but i feel fine before and after i drink the matcha without any other food beforehand (i do drink a good amount of water before the matcha).
i can certainly see how, if i was completely drained, having matcha before anything else would be a problem though...

[Seeker]

Maitre - Wow - I don't know how I missed it, but I didn't see your last post on this thread. Sour? Really? I've never tasted "sour" in matcha.
What do the rest of you think? Could the matcha be spoiled? I wonder what quality matcha it is? Also, what is the date posted on it? Did your matcha get moist in storage? If so, could there then be some fermentation taking place? Curious. Wonder what all you other seasoned matcha men and women think about this?

Intuit - as always, I love your scientific biochemical information sharing.
Cool!

(ps - just got back from the Kinesiologist - and I'm clear for green tea again!!! YAYYYYYY!! Matcha tomorrow morning! Oh Yeah! )

[Maitre_Tea]

Maitre - Wow - I don't know how I missed it, but I didn't see your last post on this thread. Sour? Really? I've never tasted "sour" in matcha.
What do the rest of you think? Could the matcha be spoiled? I wonder what quality matcha it is? Also, what is the date posted on it? Did your matcha get moist in storage? If so, could there then be some fermentation taking place? Curious. Wonder what all you other seasoned matcha men and women think about this?

Intuit - as always, I love your scientific biochemical information sharing.
Cool!

(ps - just got back from the Kinesiologist - and I'm clear for green tea again!!! YAYYYYYY!! Matcha tomorrow morning! Oh Yeah! )

It definitely wasn't expired...but maybe sourness was too strong a word for what I was tasting...maybe it was more like astringency or something like that? I made that comment when I just started Matcha, and I overcame the astringency problem with a lower temperature and actually doing all the steps right. For the record, I was completely happy with my Yuuki Midori Matcha, and Yuuki-Cha in general...sorry if my comment caused any alarm amongst TeaChatters about the quality of Yuuki-Cha's wares.