Our Story
A different relationship with matcha.
Watashi Tea began with a change in my own relationship with matcha.
I grew up in Japan, where green tea was part of everyday life. Matcha, however, was something different. It was reserved for special moments. I loved having it while traveling, paired with wagashi, often in beautiful settings. It felt rare and intentional.
As I got older, I became a coffee drinker. I relied on caffeine to keep my energy up, and coffee became part of my daily routine. I tried to bring tea back into my life for health reasons. I explored different teas, hoping they would replace coffee. But I kept going back.
That changed when I discovered matcha lattes in London.
Matcha, not as an occasional ritual, but as something you could drink every day. It was a completely new relationship with matcha.
I replaced my daily coffee with matcha, and it worked from day one. Something that used to feel special became something I reached for naturally, every day.
At the same time, I started noticing a gap.
There is the traditional way matcha has been consumed, shaped by the tea ceremony. And there is the modern way people drink it today, often as lattes.
The two don’t always align.
Not all matcha works the same way.
Some simply don’t taste good. The flavour is weak, and once mixed with milk, it disappears.
Others are high quality, but not suited for lattes. Delicate, umami-rich matcha can lose balance when combined with milk or sweeteners. In those cases, the quality becomes wasted. Even over-specified for the purpose.
Price adds another layer.
If matcha is to be part of daily life, it needs to be something you can continue without hesitation.
Yet the market is often driven by vague labels like “ceremonial grade.” A term without a clear standard, often disconnected from how the matcha is actually used.
I don’t believe matcha should be defined simply by grade.
What matters is how you drink it.
When matcha is not matched to its use, its potential is lost. And I believe it can be much more.
