Where to buy matcha in Japan – when the media tell you there is a shortage

Hallo and Happy Pentecost to those who celebrate! Apologies for the slightly clickbait-y title! I got inspired share where to buy matcha in Japan by chance today, as I was lying on the sofa with the cats, casually browsing my phone, and came across this article called “How tourism drained a Japanese town” on the BBC web site.

I found it a bit laughable, since I have never had any issues buying matcha whenever I wanted to, that is, until I got to the venerated Ippodo Tea store in Kyoto where, originally to visit their cafe, and saw that all matcha was sold out. So before I got the chance to start my series on favourite shops in Kyoto, here is one for those who wish to bring some matcha home as a souvenir.

So, for any who are going to visit Japan soon, I am going to share my tips and personal favourites on buying matcha. This blog is small, so it’s not going to trigger a tsunami of matcha hoarders. But don’t be mad at me either if matcha is sold out – I am not going to say I can magick up your matcha, either.

And if you are really kind, please share your tips or favourite tea shopping!

Where to buy matcha in Japan

In this short blog post, I will share with my my tried-and-tested places to buy good matcha. Since I’ve hung around in Kansai in the past year, and spent a few weeks in Nagasaki the year before that, this post refers mostly to Kansai and the Nagasaki area.

The most useful advice I can give is to ask yourself whether you really need ceremonial grade matcha. If you love drinking your matcha neat, or are practicing tea ceremony, then, yes, probably. For matcha latte, the trend beverage par excellence, I do not believe you need ceremonial matcha. Often you find lower grade matcha in the tea shops or the supermarket, dubbed “culinary matcha” or “daily matcha”, which is often sold by the tea companies as a lighter drinking tea for every day. Also for making sweets and baking, culinary matcha will be the right grade. Basically, anything that will have lots of milk and/or sugar added,will not require ceremonial grade matcha, whatever some social media videos might suggest.

A very brief intro to matcha

Matcha (抹茶 means “ground tea” is the powderized leaf of the tea plant (Camellia sinensis) and was drunk in Japan at special occasions as part of a tea ceremony. Traditionally, it is a drink of nobility, and Buddhist clergy. Ask the internet about Sen no Rikyū and take it from there. A few centuries later, Social Media came along and… it conquered the world? Only some very new and young leaves are used from each plants, which grows under shade for the month before harvest. The tea leaves are then steamed, dried and ground in stone mills to a fine bright green powder. This powder is very sensitive to light and heat and oxidation, so it will not last long and is best kept in a cool dry place with no air exposure.

Japan has many tea growing regions, and they are all South of Tokyo. The largest is Shizuoka, followed by Kagoshima and Mie prefectures. In fact, pretty much all of Kyushu is a tea growing region. The most famous matcha, however comes from Kyoto, a small town called Uji, which is there the BBC article is referring to. So, the people in Kyushu would probably having a laugh reading this. And one of Kyoto’s most famous purveyors of tea is, Ippodo, the store I went to in March and returned empty-handed.

Also, if you are visiting Japan now, you have a good chance of purchasing matcha from the new harvest, which is usually made available through May and July. Just, for the matcha lovers visiting after you: Please only buy what you need, don’t stockpile. Matcha is delicate and should not be stored longer than a year. Enjoy the subtle flavours while they last.

If you only drink matcha latte, consider buying culinary grade matcha instead. This goes if you pour other flavourings like strawberry and mango into your matcha. No need to waste a high grade ceremonial matcha for that.

And last not least, Japan has many amazing teas. There is enough Hojicha to go round for another few million visitors, and is makes a great Hojicha latte. Plan sencha – superb drink that’s gentle on the stomach and slowly releases the caffeine – and full of antioxidants.

The famous but unusual: Ginkaku-ji, Kyoto

Ginkakuji is one of my famous Kyoto temples now. It has views, bamboo, moss, Zen gardens… and a cracking gift shop. I bought a perfectly nice tin of Uji Koyamaen (40g) by major producer Marukyu Koyamaen for about 2000JPY there. They store it correctly, and it’s apparently also the official supplier of the temple. You could do worse. They only sell one or two tins per customer, which is fair enough.

As I am not a big, big matcha drinker, this small tin will serve me well until next year, and this was a pure chance finding – it might pay to ask at other Buddhist temples, especially those that offer tea ceremonies (Daitoku-ji, Myoshin-ji, Kodai-ji, to name just a few), whether they sell matcha to the public.

Even more famous: Ippodo, Kyoto

I am adding this to be complete because Ippodo is famous, their teas get good reviews, and their shop in Kyoto is beautiful, but also rammed with tourists. It is situated a short walk from Kyoto City Hall in a pleasant street with upmarket boutiqe-ey little shops.

Shimizu- Ippoen, Kyoto

This is a small cafe operated by a tea company, Go for their matcha parfait, and buy a bit of tea on the side. Despite being on one of the busiest bus route in Kyoto, it sees mostly Japanese visitors and each time I went, it was not terribly busy. They do sell some of their teas so you may strike luck here. it is opposite Chishaku-in, a beautiful underrated temple, and just a short walk from Sanjusangen-do and Kyoto National Museum.

Otanien Tea Shop, Kyoto

Another Uji tea shop sitting nicely under the radar just a few hundred metres from Kyoto Station. The shop looks almost a little frumpy and does not draw much attention, and has a little cafe corner serving all sorts of matcha desserts, but is mostly a tea shop. Take the bus to Imakumano shrine, then walk about 50m, and you will see the store front on the main road. I just checked, and they have matcha galore for sale on their website. Prices range from 1000-3000JPY for 40g ceremonial grade matcha.

Tsuboichi Seicha, Sakai

Another nice matcha cafe with an on-site shop. When I visited Sakai last year, I was lucky to be among the first to buy their ne harvest matcha. It’s a very nice central location, and you can visit the Sakai Traditional Crafts Museum, too, then pick up a lovely Japanese knife at the museum shop or at one of the many cutleries nearby. Oh, and hire bicycles and visit the UNESCO World Heritage kofun while you are there, then relax in the lovely Japanese garden in Daisen Park.

Sakai sees very few tourists, most come fir the knives, but it is a totally underrated destination despite just being a 15-minute train ride (take the Nankai Railway from Osaka-Namba for the best route and easy bicycle hire in the station) from central Osaka.

Sonogi Tea Country, Nagasaki Prefecture

When I studied in Nagasaki two years ago, my husband and I hired a car for the weekend and visited the area of Higashi-Sonogi, about 30km from central Nagasaki, set in beautiful hill country with sweeping views of Omura Bay. And very few tourists. You can pick up all sorts of tea directly from the producer’s stalls at road stations on the main roads, or you can visit a producer or two, which I recommend, because the drive through the hill is beautiful. We visited Ooyama Tea Farm, where we tasted our way through their teas, then bought some. You can also see the actual processing at Forthees, a cooperation f four tea farmers, who produce an award-winning matcha that is widely available in Kyushu – I bought mine in my local supermarket. I have written a post on Sonogi tea if you’d like to have more information.

Last not least: Supermarkets

You may or may not strike lucky here. I managed to buy the more everyday drinking tea at supermarkets in Nagasaki. Then, I started going to a supermarket close to my tram stop, and Bingo, they sold Forthees Ceremonial Grade Matcha for 500 JPY. The supermarket is at the Atomic Bomb Museum tram stop, so in a very tourist-friendly location.

Other supermarkets where I have been lucky to find ceremonial grade matcha are LIFE and AEON Supermarkets – usually the bigger ones. So you might not be able to pick it up at Kyoto’s numerous Fresco, but try the LIFE or Coop at Nijo Station.

What about Uji, tea city par excellence?

While a lot of the famous matcha comes from the town of Uji in Kyoto Prefecture, I have not been there for years. hen I visited, in 2008, I went primarily to visit Byodo-in and was greeted with matcha-flavoured everything as soon as I left the train station, in fact, the entire street leading to Byodo-in was a tea shopping and snacking street! It could be that the more matcha is sought after, the more visitors might go visit Uji and its famous tea stores, so be prepared for crowds and empty shelves. I’ll probably visit at some point, and shall update this post if and when I visit.

Where to Stay

To be honest, you won’t necessarily need to stay near any of these places, but since affiliate links to Booking.com are the only way this blog is monetized, I appreciate your support if you were going to look for accommodation in Japan – and I share some of my favourite Kyoto places to stay.

First on the list, and in walking distance to both Shimizu Ippoen and Otanien (and Kiyomizudera) is Guesthouse Soi, a charming modern guesthouse, mostly with private rooms in a lovely Western-Japan hybrid style. They also rent some nice bicycles (and helmets) for about 500JPY a day, keeping you mobile for your sightseeing.

Another two of my favourite hotels, very convenient for Downtown Kyoto Shopping, yet quiet and relaxing, are Tabist Kiki Sanjo Takakura and Prince Smart Inn Kyoto Sanjo. Both are in a quiet side street, both are within a five-minute walk to the Kyoto Metro and bus stops. Tabist Kiki Sanjo Takakura Hotel is somewhat smarter, with a proper reception and large quiet rooms with Western beds and Japanese tatami seating areas with Sou-Sou soft furnishing. Prince Smart Inn is a bit more like a business hotel with comfy smaller Western Style rooms and a large cafe/coworking area on the ground floor. You can walk to Ippodo in ten minutes from the Prince Smart Inn, or, even better, cycle, for the Prince Smart Inn has designated guest bicycle parking. I stayed at both when visiting the Gion Matsuri in 2024, and they were perfect for that, just a short walk from the festival venues yet uncrowded. Also you have the Teramachi Shopping Arcade just around the corner, which has some lovely shops in it.

The Small Print

I hope this post helps you to find good matcha on your trip! If you have any questions, please feel free to comment or email me! I know Kyoto fairly well as a tourist.

All recommendations are, of course, unpaid. The only monetisation is some affiliate links to Booking.com at the end of this post.

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