Is Ippodo matcha in stock in 2026?
Yes — all 8 blends. Ippodo is one of two premium Uji brands maintaining full availability through the 2026 global matcha shortage (the other is Marukyu Koyamaen). Their own site notes that "all of our matcha varieties are currently limited and sell out quickly after restocking" — the key word is restocking; Ippodo blends cycle through rather than disappearing entirely. The reason Ippodo holds availability when most specialty importers can't: 300+ years of direct relationships with Uji tencha producers, with allocation agreements built before the current shortage compressed supply. When the 2025 Uji tencha auction cleared at ¥10,251/kg (up from ¥4,089/kg the prior year), Ippodo's pre-negotiated allocations insulated their retail lineup. Full availability as of June 2026: Wakaki ($0.55/g, bitter 7), Ikuyo ($0.85/g, bitter 5), Sayaka ($0.85/g, bitter 3, umami 7), Kan ($1.10/g, umami 8, sweet 8), Seiun ($1.68/g, umami 9, bitter 2), Ummon-no-Mukashi ($2.25/g, umami 9, body 9), Kuon ($3.20/g, bitter 1, body 9), Kanza ($5.20/g, umami 10, body 10). Available at ippodotea.com (US) and global.ippodo-tea.co.jp.
Which Ippodo matcha should I order right now?
For daily usucha: Sayaka ($0.85/g) — bitterness 3, umami 7, the safest first purchase. Kan ($1.10/g) is the step up: sweetness 8 exceeds bitterness for the first time in the lineup, and the body firms up noticeably. For a serious daily driver: Seiun ($1.68/g) — umami 9 with bitterness 2, the best score-per-dollar in the Ippodo lineup by our tasting protocol. For lattes and milk drinks: Wakaki ($0.55/g) or Ikuyo ($0.85/g); bitterness holds up through milk and there's no reason to spend more than $1/g for drinks where milk masks the upper register. For koicha or ceremony: Kuon ($3.20/g) or Kanza ($5.20/g). Bitterness 1 in both — the lowest in our entire database. The one to avoid if you're new: Wakaki. It's deliberately designed to build tolerance — bitterness 7 is the highest in the Ippodo lineup, and most beginners who start here conclude they dislike matcha.
How does Ippodo compare to other brands that are in stock?
Ippodo and Marukyu Koyamaen are the only two premium Uji brands at full availability in 2026. Ippodo covers more price tiers — including the ultra-premium koicha range above $2/g where Marukyu doesn't sell retail. Marukyu's Unkaku ($1.58/g, umami 9, body 9) beats the comparable Ippodo Seiun ($1.68/g, umami 9, body 8) on score-per-dollar at the $1.50–$1.70/g tier. If you want maximum umami per dollar around that range, Marukyu wins. If you want the full range from beginner to ceremony-grade under one brand, Ippodo covers it.
Will Ippodo matcha go out of stock in 2026?
Individual blends restock on unpredictable cycles, but total catalog availability has held through the shortage. When a blend goes out, restock wait times stretched from a few days to a few weeks in 2025–2026. The safest approach: order at current stock — Ippodo's US site (ippodotea.com) ships from a US warehouse and arrives in 3–5 days, faster than waiting for a restock. Note: Ippodo announced in 2026 that some matcha tins (Kanza, Kuon) are switching to box packaging. This is a packaging change, not a supply signal — but it can confuse searches for the tin format.