Matcha is made from shade-grown tea leaves. The preparation of matcha may last up to 20 days starting several weeks before harvesting. First, the tea bushes are covered to prevent direct sunlight. This process slows down growth and stimulates an increase in chlorophyll levels, which then turns the leaves into a darker shade of green, causing the production of amino acids — in particular L-Theanine. The finest tea buds are then hand-picked for production.
The leaves are laid out flat to dry, then the whole tea leaves will crumble slightly and become what it is called "Tencha"in Japan. "Tencha" or rough tea is the processed leaves with all parts of the leaves still included. Tencha will then be de-veined, de-stemmed, and stone-ground to the fine, bright green, talc-like powder known as Matcha. The flavor of matcha is dominated by its amino acids. The highest grades of matcha have more intense sweetness and deeper flavor than the standard or coarser grades of tea harvested later in the year.