Matcha is having a moment, but it’s been having one for over 800 years.
Ceremonial matcha is made from shade-grown tea leaves, hand-picked, steamed, and slowly stone-ground into a fine green powder. One hour of milling gets you just 60 grams. That’s effort you can taste.
The tradition comes from Japanese tea ceremonies; deliberate, slow, and quiet. No foam hearts. No oat milk. Just presence, precision, and a frothy green bowl.
Today, you’ll find matcha in lattes, croissants, serums, smoothies - mass-produced and repackaged for the algorithm. But behind the trend is a product rooted in calm, clarity, and care.
At Bootlegger, we’re coffee people. But we’re also ritual people. Matcha reminds us that what you drink, and how you make it, matters.
Shop Ceremony South Africa at Bootlegger online or experience it in any of our cafés nationwide.
Did you know?
- Tencha (the base for matcha) is shade grown for 3–4 weeks before harvest. This boosts chlorophyll and L-theanine, giving matcha its vivid green colour and mellow, umami taste.
- Only the youngest leaves are used: Matcha is made from the top, most tender leaves and hand-picked to avoid bitterness.
- Matcha is never steeped, it’s consumed whole: When you drink matcha, you’re drinking the whole leaf, finely ground. More nutrients, more caffeine, more intensity.
- Matcha has more antioxidants than blueberries: Particularly catechins like EGCG, which are linked to heart health and reduced inflammation.
- The highest-grade matcha is ceremonial, not culinary: Ceremonial matcha is sweet, vibrant, and meant to be drunk on its own. Culinary matcha is used in baking, ice cream, and lattes.
