The Club
Everyone here got something wrong first
This page is the noticeboard: questions readers send me, and the mistakes I made before I knew better. If you're about to ask "is this a stupid question" — it isn't, and it's probably already below.
Three things I got wrong, in order of embarrassment
1. I used boiling water for a decade
Every cup. Kettle boils, water goes in, done. I thought matcha was simply a bitter drink that people pretended to enjoy — which, given what I was making, was a completely reasonable conclusion. The fix took ten seconds to learn and changed everything: 80°C, never boiling. If you take one thing from this entire site, take that one.
2. I bought the biggest tin because it was better value
It was not better value. Matcha is a ground powder with an enormous surface area; it goes flat within weeks of opening. I finished a 100g bag over about eight months and spent the last four of them wondering why my matcha tasted like hay. Buy small tins. Drink them fast. This is the rare case where the expensive-looking option is the cheaper one.
3. I assumed the fancy word meant the fancy thing
"Ceremonial grade" sounds like a standard. It isn't one — there's no certification, no standards body, and no Japanese farmer using the phrase. I paid for the word more than once. What actually matters is on the back of the tin: a named region, a harvest, a packed-on date. The label-reading rules are here.
Questions readers have sent
This section fills up as questions come in — and the good ones become full articles. Recently answered:
- "Is matcha actually sold out, or is that just marketing?" — It's real, and I hit it myself trying to restock. Here's what I found, including which grades disappear first.
- "Do I need a bamboo whisk?" — No. A jar with a lid and fifteen seconds of shaking gets you 80% of the way. The jar method is in the brewing guide.
- "Why does my matcha separate at the bottom?" — Because it's a suspension, not a solution. Nothing is wrong. Drink it within two minutes and it never gets the chance.
Send me yours
Reply to any email from me, or start with the free cheat sheet and reply to that. I read everything, and questions that come up more than once get their own article — with credit if you'd like it.
Get the cheat sheet (and my inbox) →House rules, such as they are
- No question is too basic. The basics are where all the damage happens.
- Disagreement is welcome, especially from people who live in tea-growing regions.
- I'll never publish your email address, and I'll ask before quoting you by name.