What is Ippodo's full matcha price range per gram?
Every Ippodo blend is in stock as of May 2026 — 8 of 8, the only major brand with full availability through the shortage. Direct Uji producer relationships; they hold their own inventory. The lineup runs $0.55/g (Wakaki) to $5.20/g (Kanza) across 8 blends, and every price step is legible: umami climbs, bitterness drops, and you can feel it. Start at Sayaka ($0.85/g) if you want approachable ceremonial. Move to Seiun ($1.68/g) when you want the bowl to sit in the back of your throat. Kuon and Kanza are for koicha and ceremony — don't drink them out of habit.
What does each Ippodo matcha tier taste like?
Wakaki ($0.55/g) is intentionally harsh. Bitterness 7 — highest in the lineup. It's a training matcha built to calibrate your palate. Don't start there unless that's specifically what you want. Sayaka ($0.85/g) is where Ippodo becomes pleasant. Bitterness drops to 3, the bowl is clean and accessible. Right first purchase. Kan ($1.10/g) is where sweetness (8) overtakes everything else for the first time. The finish is noticeably cleaner — worth the extra $0.25/g. Seiun and Ummon ($1.68–$2.25/g) are the premium everyday tier: umami 9, bitterness 2. Deep and savory, the kind of matcha that sits in the back of your mouth after you swallow. Kuon and Kanza are ceremony matcha. Bitterness 1 — lowest in the database. Don't drink these out of habit.
Which Ippodo matcha is the best value for everyday drinking?
Buy Kan ($1.10/g) for everyday drinking. Umami 8, bitterness 3, sweetness 8, body 7 — the first point in the lineup where the bowl is genuinely pleasant from start to finish. If you want to step up without going ceremony-tier: Seiun ($1.68/g) adds a point of umami and drops bitterness to 2. That gap is $0.58/g. Starting point for most people: Sayaka ($0.85/g) on Amazon. Widely available, honest ceremonial quality, lowest bitterness under $1/g.
How does Ippodo's pricing compare to Marukyu Koyamaen at equivalent quality?
At $1.10/g: Ippodo Kan (sweet 8) edges Marukyu Wako (sweet 6) on sweetness — the difference is real in the bowl. At $1.58–$1.68/g: Marukyu Unkaku ($1.58/g, body 9) has more body than Ippodo Seiun ($1.68/g, body 8) at a lower price. At $2.25–$2.28/g: Marukyu Eiju (bitter 1, sweet 9) is marginally sweeter and less astringent than Ippodo Ummon (bitter 2, sweet 8). Ippodo edges at the entry tier on sweetness; Marukyu edges in the $1.50–$2.30 range on body and bitterness.