d:matcha Kyoto Sapporo — Restaurant in Sapporo

In one sentence: Just go there and see for yourself🍵

I’ve been enjoying matcha for over 10 years, but I never really paid attention to the finer details like flavor profiles or whether it was single origin or blended.

I just liked anything matcha in general.

That all changed when I visited d:matcha Kyoto Sapporo.

I originally stopped by to buy some matcha to take home and to try their matcha ice cream near Odori Park.

Since I wasn’t sure which matcha to choose, I decided to try the matcha tasting.

It turned out to be the best decision.

Kanei-san was incredibly kind and knowledgeable.

He explained the differences between the matcha varieties with so much passion and joy.

It was clear how much he loved what he was doing, and his enthusiasm made the experience even more enjoyable for me.

To me, he felt like a matcha professor, but a very friendly and interesting one 😆

If you are visiting from abroad and do not speak Japanese, there is no need to worry.

He speaks excellent English and explains everything with ease.

Their matcha sweets were also fantastic. Each item was thoughtfully made and full of rich, authentic flavor.

The matcha ice cream was especially amazing.

It was so creamy and not too sweet.

I ended up getting two bags of matcha.

One was balanced with umami and bitterness, and the other had a more intense bitterness, perfect for making lattes.

Now that I’ve learned so much about matcha, I know I’ll enjoy it more than ever.

All thanks to Kanei-san and everyone there.

This was my first time visiting Japan, and I’m really glad I chose Sapporo as my destination.

Visiting d:matcha Kyoto Sapporo was one of the most memorable moments of my trip and something I will always cherish.

Everyone working there was welcoming and kind, always with a smile.

If you visit, I highly recommend taking your matcha treats to Odori Park and enjoying them on a bench.

It is the perfect way to relax and fully appreciate the experience.

The photo of the matcha financier is a metaphor for how I felt while eating it at Chitose Airport.

It was bittersweet, just like the financier itself.

Leaving Sapporo made me a little sad, as it had become my favorite city in the world, but I also felt happy knowing I’ll always have something to look forward to.

I will be back soon,...

Welcome, brave souls, to the Matcha Gauntlet! If you've ever thought, "My matcha isn't bitter enough," then congratulations, you've found your happy place! So "extremely matcha," in fact, that sugar clearly got lost on its way to the party.

The ice cream: Prepare your taste buds for the unapologetically matcha experience! This ice cream is so intensely green, it might just turn you into a plant. "Almost no sugar" is less a description and more a stern warning for the uninitiated. But if you're a devotee of pure, unadulterated matcha power, this ice cream delivers a flavor so strong it could probably power a small village.

However, if you're considering the matcha latte, prepare for a spiritual journey only a true matcha masochist could appreciate. It's less a beverage and more a liquid dare: overpriced, eye-wateringly bitter, and designed exclusively for those who believe sugar is the devil's condiment. With three options ranging from ¥600 to ¥1200 for a cup that's roughly the size of your disappointment, you're not just buying a drink, you're buying into a lifestyle of refined suffering.

As for the ambiance, prepare to get intimately acquainted with your fellow patrons, as the entire establishment boasts the expansive square footage of a walk-in wardrobe. Forget "taking a load off" – gravity is your only friend here. But rejoice, Anglophones! The owner's perfect English means you can enjoy the full, unadulterated explanation of why you're paying top dollar for a standing-only, no-sugar, intensely bitter green experience that tourists apparently can't...

We booked a matcha preparation and tasting class with Kenei-san, who is the owner of this franchise. Kenei-san was very detailed and explained in fluent English about the different cultivars and why tasting single cultivar matcha is important to develop one's own palate and decide which cultivars give taste notes (bitter, umami, fruity etc) we like.

The key metrics appear to be umami vs. bitter; different single origins offer different "ratios" of umami vs. bitter. The different matchas we tried were of the Sayamakaori, Asanoka and Ujimidori cultivars. I think my favourite here is the Ujimidori, bolder in terms of both umami and bitterness, but the bitterness is not overwhelming.

All the matchas are from their own tea farm in Wazuka, Kyoto. We tried almost all the food offerings (matcha financier, matcha roll cake, double matcha tiramisu, ceremonial-grade matcha soft serve). All with amazing taste which shows why the quality of matcha used is important, notwithstanding baking skills and that Hokkaido has very good flour and dairy products.

It is actually quite rare to get tastings at other tea shops in Sapporo (or Kyoto/Tokyo), as a lot of the matcha powders are blends and not single cultivars / single origins.

Lower grade / more bitter matcha blends are typically used to make matcha powder for matcha lattes rather than for matcha prepared without milk. With Hokkaido milk, the matcha lattes taste great (quality of milk is also a factor here).

Highly recommend to do it if one is in Sapporo and has a fleeting...