Tencha vs matcha
Tencha is matcha before milling. They are the same leaf at two stages, and knowing this explains most of what determines matcha quality.
tea
What is being compared
Why these get confused
Matcha is often described as powdered green tea, which is true of the mechanism and misleading about the input. Powdered sencha is not matcha.
Point by point
| Aspect | Tencha | Matcha |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Shaded leaf that has been steamed, dried and de-stemmed but never rolled. | Tencha ground to a powder a few microns across between granite wheels. |
| Can it be drunk as it is | Yes, steeped like a very delicate green tea. It is rarely sold that way outside Japan. | Whisked into suspension, never steeped. |
| What determines quality | Shading duration, cultivar and how thoroughly stem and vein are removed. | All of that, plus the milling — heat from fast grinding dulls colour and aroma. |
| Why it is not rolled | Rolling would break cell structure and make clean milling impossible. | Not applicable; it is already powder. |
| Price | Lower, because the expensive slow step has not happened yet. | Higher, and a stone mill yields around forty grams an hour. |
The short answer
Buying tencha and grinding it at home rarely works — domestic grinders generate heat that granite mills avoid. The milling is a real part of what the price buys.
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