MEM Tea
Matcha Premium
Tasted May 15th 2020
About MEM TEA: MEM tea company is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts (local to me) and was founded in 1999 by Mark Eli Mooradian (MEM). MEM partners with the hospitality industry, supplying products to over 800 businesses in the New England area. With an extensive tea collection, MEM currently offers 6 grades of matcha.
About Blend: This blend is from Koyoto, Japan and the site describes it as velvety with “bright top notes of fresh spring vegetables”. It is not organic and I didn’t find information on quality testing.
Price: $17.50 for 2 oz on MEM’s website.
Scent: Spinach like with light fruity notes.
MEM TEA Matcha Premium
Color: A darker green that is a bit flat and muted. 2.75 points.
Foam: Easily formed, fluffy and uniform. 4 points
Taste: This is an intense tasting matcha, with pronounced astringency and bitterness. It is earthy and sharp, with spinach and seaweed flavors. It was difficult for me to enjoy plain, but the flavors worked much better with oat milk. 2 points
Final Score: 2.9
Thoughts: This blend had less zenergy than Encha for example, and was acidic. If you have acid reflux or are prone to anxiety this is likely not a good match for you. If you like flavor intensity and favor bitterness this blend can work well for matcha lattes or smoothies (perfect for cafes). This would be considered a budget friendly matcha. The bitterness and color suggest this powder is made from 2nd or older harvest leaves.