Vanilla Matcha Flavoured Green Tea Powder

🍵 The Powder — Finely ground Japanese matcha blended with natural vanilla, producing a vivid, emerald-green powder of exceptional smoothness and fragrant depth

🍵 The Colour — Whisked into warm water or milk, it opens into a beautifully rich, creamy green cup with a naturally velvety, lightly frothy finish

🍵 The Taste — Softly grassy and gently umami from the matcha, with warm vanilla rounding the edges into something indulgent and naturally sweet

🍵 The Occasion — Equally rewarding as a traditionally whisked bowl, a frothy matcha latte, or stirred through smoothies, porridge, and baking

Vanilla matcha green tea powder brings together two of the world's most celebrated flavours in a single, vivid green cup. Matcha has a history stretching back to Tang Dynasty China, where powdered green tea was first prepared by steaming and grinding the leaves — a practice later carried to Japan in 1191 by Zen Buddhist monk Eisai, who wrote the first Japanese treatise on tea and called matcha the elixir of the immortals. By the 15th and 16th centuries, growers in Uji, Kyoto — still regarded as the spiritual home of Japanese matcha — had discovered that shading the tea plants in the weeks before harvest dramatically changed the character of the leaf: less bitterness, more chlorophyll, a deeper sweetness, and the vivid emerald colour now associated with high-quality matcha.

The matcha in this blend follows that same shade-growing tradition. By limiting sunlight in the final weeks before harvest, the leaves accumulate more theanine — the amino acid responsible for matcha's smooth, umami-sweet character — while the striking green colour deepens in the leaf. After harvest, the leaves are slowly stone-ground into a fine, silky powder, a process that must be unhurried to preserve both colour and flavour. Natural vanilla is then carefully blended into this base, softening the grassy notes into something warmer and more approachable, while allowing the quality of the matcha to remain at the centre of the cup.

The result is quietly compelling. The colour is a rich, creamy green; the flavour smooth and lightly sweet, with a gentle vegetal depth supported by a warm, fragrant vanilla note. It works beautifully prepared in the traditional way — whisked in a bowl with a bamboo chasen — or steamed into a latte with oat or soya milk. Cold over ice on a warm afternoon, it is equally good. The versatility of this blend is part of what makes it such a satisfying addition to a daily ritual.

Since 2008, High Teas London has been one of the country's leading independent tea specialists. With over 350 teas and infusions — one of the largest collections in the country — we have always sought out teas and blends with genuine character and provenance. This vanilla matcha powder is a fine example of that commitment.

Ingredients: Matcha green tea powder, natural vanilla flavouring.

Brewing Note: Vanilla matcha rewards a little care in preparation. Use water that has cooled slightly after boiling — around 75 to 80°C — as water that is too hot can affect both the colour and the flavour of the powder. Sift around one level teaspoon (approximately 2g) into a pre-warmed bowl or jug, add a small splash of the hot water and whisk briskly with a bamboo chasen in a W or M motion until the powder forms a smooth, frothy paste with no lumps. Add a further 100 to 150ml of hot water or warmed milk — oat and soya both complement the vanilla particularly well — and whisk again briefly to a light foam. For a cold vanilla matcha latte, whisk the powder with a small measure of hot water first, then pour over ice and top with cold milk of your choice. Sifting the powder and whisking thoroughly make all the difference.