Tea and Zen

After trying Ito En's Oi Ocha: Unsweetened Green Tea for the first time in years I didn't like it very much. It was very bland and bitter (I still want to get my hands on their dark Oi Ocha though). I'm too spoiled with high grade Japanese greens.

Unsweetened Can, a sweetened version is available

I was at the store and I laid my eyes on this. I had it once in the past and thought it was "meh." If that's all you care to know, that's how the Matcha Love is. It's their unsweetened green tea mixed with matcha. I feel it is very safe to assume that the matcha is food grade, not ceremonial grade.

I liked this better than their Oi Ocha. The taste you're met with at first is a much smoother and less astringent liquor than that of their Oi Ocha. So, basically, your bare bones Japanese Green tea flavor.

In the after taste there is matcha. Not a very good matcha. It's a slightly heavier stereotypical bare bones Japanese Green tea taste. There is no sweetness in this tea. It's not bitter either but I mean does that matter when it doesn't really taste like anything?

After the liquor hasn't been in your mouth for a while, there is a slight sweet aftertaste. It's not quite enough to redeem the tea.

Liquor

For $1.50 it isn't bad though. I wouldn't buy it again now that I've done a review of it. If you're unfamiliar with Japanese greens and don't like bitter things, try this out before you try out their Oi Ocha. However, if you too think that this is bland, don't judge all Japanese teas off of this or Ito En's Oi Ocha. They're everyday teas and a high end Japanese green will blow your mind away with how floral and sweet it is.