Our matcha for the day is the award-winning Naoki Matcha Silver Yame blend. This matcha is from Yame, in the Fukuoka prefecture.
Matcha Powder and Preparation
The Matcha powder is light and fluffy with a grassy and flat flowery scent. The colour is a dark green, though slightly grey, so a bit off from the perfect vibrant green matcha.
I used 2 grams of matcha. No need to sift this as the matcha powder was practically floating. I used around 165F / 74c water temperature. I found less water was best for this tea – I liked around 150ml/5oz. I had previously tried it at 175F / 79c and it was not good.
Naoki Matcha Silver Yame blend foams up from whisking but took some work to get going.
Tasting of Naoki Matcha Silver Yame Blend
Overall the flavor is on the light side. The flavor is creamy, like the insides of a button mushroom, while other sips are buttery. It has a bright note of fresh sweet grass. There is a light floral note in the background. After each sip, a soft buttery grass and floral note show up. The texture is like melted butter and slick. This matcha also leans on the sweeter side. No marine or super savory notes.
Iced: On a whim, I tried Naoki Matcha Silver Yame Blend iced, which turned out to be the best taste. This isn’t a deal where the cold temperature hides flaws, this matcha just shines and it’s one of the best iced matchas I’ve had.
Naoki Matcha Silver Yame Blend is ultra-refreshing and sips in sweet grass. The creamy butter note is high, as well as the texture, so it is like drinking cold butter (that’s still liquid) and fresh grass. Like other cold applications, it is sweeter too, so this is just a treat how sweet and refreshing it comes out.
Comments
Naoki Matcha Silver Yame Blend is great matcha if you prefer a sweeter matchas without marine or savory notes. It has a good mouthfeel and buttery nature and does best in cooler temperatures. This is a friendly to new people matcha, provided you have a kettle to do the lower temperature.
This matcha comes in a bit larger 40 gram tin at $25.99, clocking in at $0.65 per gram. I feel it is at an expensive price point compared to other ones in the same price range, but considering foam-ability and flavor complexity, but it holds the fort as it is sweeter than the rest.
(Matcha provided for review | Amazon Affiliate Links)
