Objective Evaluation of Astringent and Umami Taste Intensities of Matcha using a Taste Sensor System

Matcha is a kind of Japanese green tea that is traditionally used for the Japanese tea ceremony, Sado, and has, in recent years, also been used as a food ingredient. In addition, Sado and food items containing matcha are becoming popular in countries where matcha drinking is a new experience. Therefore, information on the quality of matcha is important for manufacturers, dealers, and consumers in order to produce, select or purchase a product that meets their purpose. To obtain objective information on matcha tastes, we developed a standardized method for evaluating the astringent and umami tastes of matcha using a taste sensor system with standard substances, (–)-epigallocatechin-3-O-gallate (EGCg) for astringent taste and monosodium glutamate (MSG) for umami taste. The precision of these evaluation results was sufficient for its practical use. The evaluation method was applied to commercial matcha samples, and it was revealed that the method has the potential to characterize, in detail, the taste of matcha for different uses.