As humans, we can find passion in almost anything. And, the more range we have, the higher the potential for passion. Aka, the more choices we get to make about something we’re pursuing, the deeper down the rabbit hole we’re willing to go.
Why? Because range points to something fundamental: freedom. The ability to decide. And through decisions comes something uniquely our own. Through creating something of our own comes identity.
Matcha’s meteoric rise to global stardom was driven by exactly this. Range.
Crazy? Maybe. But I’ll explain it from three vantage points: my own, the producer’s craft, and the trends driving awareness.
My own:
This one is easy to write.
I got into matcha before it was popular in Western markets. My love for it was simple. I tried a good matcha at a café. It made me feel good, better than other caffeine sources (err, coffee). And it tasted great.
That was the entry point.
From there, I started making my own matcha. And that’s where range entered.
I could choose the tools. How to prepare it. What to pair it with. Hot or cold. Different matchas with different flavor profiles paired with nut milks, oat milk, coconut water, sparkling water, or prepared straight as usucha or koicha.
That’s a short list. But you get the idea. The degrees of freedom are nearly endless. And that’s where personal taste gets to weigh in.
Whatever I made, I could share. With friends. Or with a photo on my wall. The feedback I got pushed me to keep refining, to keep learning, to go deeper.
The producer’s craft:
If the list above feels expansive, you haven’t seen anything yet. The art of making great matcha is endlessly complex. Here’s just a glimpse of the decisions involved:
Where should I grow? Higher elevation or lower, cooler or warmer, foggy or clear
What cultivar of tea plant should I grow? Yabukita or Saemidori (or 30+ others)? Which is best designed for the climate I’m growing in? Which is most popular in the market right now?
After I make these decisions, I need to wait 4-5 years for the tea plant to mature sufficiently to the point I can begin harvesting
And during that time, I need to care for it. What fertilizer should I use? Organic or traditional? Should I make my own or purchase it?
When should I should trim the the tea plants (those beautiful, perfectly cared for rows you see the in the photos come from labor intensive trimming)
During the winter, how do I protect the tea leaves from frost? Sprinklers or fans? Or nothing at all and instead give them the nutrients they need to weather the cold?
How often should I check the fields?
When should I begin shading?
How long should I shade for?
When should I begin the first harvest?
Which facility should I use to steam and dry? (this is the process of converting freshly harvested tea leaves into aracha)
How long should I steam for?
Should I use a traditional brick kiln or contemporary dryer?
How long should I dry for?
Which facility will process the aracha into tencha?
Should I roast the tencha a second time?
Should I age it? How long? At what temperature?
Should I blend it with other tencha? Which cultivars? What ratio? Should I mix crops or use a single harvest?
What should I use to grind the tencha into powder? A stone mill, ball mill, bead mill, iron mill?
How should I package the freshly ground matcha to preserve freshness?
At what temperature to store it?
Believe it or not, this is a short list. 👆 The degrees of freedom are endless.
It’s easy to see why matcha has been refined for over a thousand years. There were simply so many options to try.
And that’s what makes matcha-making a craft passed down through generations. Expertise developed over a lifetime. Gladwell’s 10,000-hour rule might be closer to 100,000 hours here.
The trends driving awareness:
Humans are passionate about creating things uniquely their own.Passion scales with available degrees of freedom. Feedback from others drives refinement, which drives deeper engagement.
Matcha has always been great. That didn’t change. What changed is that it became an artistic form of expression for more of us.
And, as people began sharing their own rituals, recipes, and expressions, a virtuous cycle emerged. Creation led to sharing. Sharing led to inspiration. Inspiration led to demand.
And that force… the one behind matcha’s meteoric rise… is range.
