One of the preparations before tea lesson

Can you tell what this utensil (these items are parts of 1 utensil) is? I don’t have it myself. This is my tea master’s and we use it in the preparation room before almost every tea lesson.


Yes, this is a sifter for matcha. I use an ordinary tea strainer at home for sifting matcha. It works fine as well.

My master usually buys 20grams (0.7oz) of matcha for the lesson, which comes in a small plastic sachet. We have a lesson once a week and it takes about 2-3 weeks to consume all. We don’t sift matcha when it’s brand new but on the second or third week we sift it before each lesson. Then we put it into the tea container called natsume for the tea ceremony, and we use it in the lesson.



Putting matcha into the sifter

Sifting

Sifted matcha!　ヽ(^。^)ノ

Transfer the sifted tea from the sifter to the tea container, natsume.

It’s ready to be used for the lesson!

After the lesson, we put the remaining matcha in natsume back to the plastic sachet. We tightly bind the opening of the sachet and put it in an air-tight bin. Then my master keeps it in a freezer.

These steps might be troublesome but if you want to see your guests smiling over your tea, they are worth doing.


Note:
When you store tea in the fridge or freezer, there are two things you need to care about.

1. Odor from other food
Tea easily captures other smells. Please securely keep it in an airtight container.

2. Frost and moisture
Tea gathers frost and moisture when opening a cold tea package from the refrigerator. It is not good for the tea. Therefore, leave the package at room temperature for a while, and then open it.