What a bowl changes in matcha extraction

When we began developing MTCH™ AIR, we started with the extraction of flavour.

We wanted to understand how a bowl could help us bring sweetness and umami out of matcha, while keeping bitterness and astringency in balance.

Temperature, movement, and time

We were looking for a bowl that held temperature well. Its shape also needed to help the water and tea powder move freely and quickly during preparation.

Those details mattered because we wanted better control over both the preparation time and the result in the cup.

Our aim was to draw out sweetness and umami in a relatively short time, without taking bitterness and dryness further than we wanted.

Learning through use

The development took more than two years. We worked through drawings, models, material choices, performance tests, and daily tea preparation.

We also thought about the practical parts of using a bowl. It needed to be light, durable, easy to clean, heat resistant, and easy to carry.

The original MTCH™ AIR was made from polycarbonate. Our launch notes described the material as heat resistant up to 141°C. That is a material specification, rather than a recommended water temperature for making matcha.

For us, the purpose of developing a tool was to keep improving the way we prepared tea. The bowl's shape and material were decisions made in service of that aim.

It is another part of understanding the cup: looking at how the leaves, water, movement, time, and the vessel work together.