Kitaura Matcha was founded in 2025 to address both the decline in quality and the growing dilution of matcha’s cultural identity.
In January, I ran out of the matcha I usually purchase in Japan and bring back to the UK. This led me to start exploring UK-based matcha brands. Every matcha consumer has encountered the term “Uji matcha” — Uji, a city in Kyoto Prefecture, has long been regarded as Japan’s foremost region for high-quality matcha. I had been drinking Ippodo’s matcha — a respected 300-year-old tea house in Kyoto — for years, so I immediately noticed a steep decline in quality between genuine Japanese matcha and the UK brands. It became clear that many products labeled as “Uji matcha” were, in reality, counterfeit. This realisation compelled me to move back to Japan and establish my own matcha company, one rooted in sourcing transparency and a respect for matcha’s cultural significance.
Uji matcha — what actually qualifies as Uji matcha?
In principle, it should mean that the tencha is grown in Uji or the surrounding towns within Kyoto Prefecture. However, many brands bypass this by completing only the manufacturing or finishing stages in Uji or Kyoto Prefecture, then labelling the product as ”Uji matcha” even when the tencha was grown elsewhere in Japan — or even overseas.
Therefore, to uphold the highest standards of quality, Kitaura Matcha’s first batch is sourced from Shizuoka. The farm we have partnered with produces single-origin, single-cultivar matcha — meaning the tea is made entirely from the same harvest with no blends. This level of purity makes assessing and maintaining quality far more reliable.
Cultural Integrity:
It feels as though a new matcha brand launches every week, and many Western-led companies increasingly frame matcha through the lens of health benefits or “ADHD-friendly” productivity, promoting it as a cleaner, less jittery caffeine alternative. Labels highlighting “high in L-theanine” dominate the conversation, overshadowing the labour-intensive cultivation required to produce even a single 40g sachet.
At the heart of matcha lies a philosophy that, in the fifteenth century, Japan elevated into a religion of aestheticism: Teaism. Teaism represents the adoration of beauty within the ordinary and imperfect moments of daily life. It is impossible to think of matcha without acknowledging its deep connection to sadō, the Way of Tea, which has shaped Japanese architecture, ceramic styles, interior design, and much more. At the root of Kitaura Matcha’s ethos is a commitment to honouring and preserving this lineage — respecting the craft, the ritual, and the cultural depth that matcha deserves.