Whisked matcha poured from a bowl over iced milk in a glass for an iced matcha latte

Matcha latte recipe: hot, iced and with the right matcha

For a matcha latte, sift 3 g of matcha, add 60 ml of water at 75–80 °C, whisk for 15–20 seconds and mix it with 150 ml of milk of your choice. For an iced matcha latte, whisk the matcha the same way, pour it over ice and top up with cold milk. That's exactly what it says on every tin of Green Room Matcha. Here you'll find the recipe step by step, the typical mistakes and which matcha works best with milk.

The recipe at a glance

	Matcha latte	Iced matcha latte	Hojicha latte
Powder	3 g matcha, sifted	3 g matcha, sifted	3–4 g hojicha
Water	60 ml, 75–80 °C	60 ml, 75–80 °C	60 ml, 90 °C
Whisk	15–20 seconds	15–20 seconds	15–20 seconds
Add	150 ml milk	Ice + cold milk (or cold water)	150 ml milk

What you need

A fine sieve, so no lumps form.
A bowl and a whisk – traditionally a matcha bowl (chawan) and a bamboo whisk (chasen). A milk frother works too.
A small kitchen scale. If you scoop by feel, 3 g quickly turns into too much or too little.
Water at 75–80 °C. No kettle with temperature control? Let freshly boiled water cool for a moment.
Milk of your choice, whether cow's milk or oat drink. Let your taste decide.

Step by step: hot matcha latte

Sift: Sift 3 g of matcha through a fine sieve into your bowl.
Add water: Pour 60 ml of water at 75–80 °C over it.
Whisk: Whisk briskly for 15–20 seconds, ideally in a fast zigzag motion, until you get a smooth, finely foamed surface.
Mix: Add the matcha to 150 ml of milk of your choice, warm or frothed.

Sweeten it as you like – but try it without first, because a good matcha brings its own natural sweetness and umami.

Iced matcha latte

Whisk the matcha as usual: 3 g sifted, 60 ml of water at 75–80 °C, 15–20 seconds.
Fill a glass with ice cubes.
Pour the matcha over the ice and top up with cold milk – or with cold water for an iced matcha without milk.

Tip for the look: Pour the cold milk over the ice first, then slowly pour the matcha on top. That gives you the green layer on top. Stir once before drinking.

Which matcha is best for a latte?

Milk takes some of the spotlight away from subtle nuances. So for a latte you want a matcha with strong colour and a creamy, rounded taste that doesn't disappear in the milk.

Daily Matcha Okumidori: our pick for an everyday latte, in a 30 g or 80 g tin. Single-cultivar Okumidori from Kagoshima – creamy, balanced and easy-going, whether straight, as a latte, in smoothies or for baking.
Matcha Okumidori: "deep green". One of the most vivid matcha cultivars, with exceptionally high chlorophyll content. The colour holds in milk. Creamy and grounding, with nutty depth.
Matcha Yabukita: the cultivar that built Japanese tea culture. Consistent and clean in the cup, great straight and works with milk too.

And for drinking straight? Cultivars like Saemidori (floral, sweet), Gokou or Asahi show their finer notes best with just water. In a latte they'd almost be wasted. You can compare all cultivars side by side in our matcha comparison.

Hojicha latte: the roasted alternative

Hojicha is roasted Japanese green tea – warm and naturally mellow, with notes of roasted nuts, caramel and cocoa.

Here's how: whisk 3–4 g of hojicha with 60 ml of water at 90 °C for 15–20 seconds and mix with 150 ml of milk. Hojicha generally contains noticeably less caffeine than matcha, but it isn't caffeine-free.

Common mistakes and how to avoid them

Your latte tastes bitter? Usually the water was too hot or there was too much powder for the amount of water. Stick to 75–80 °C and 3 g per 60 ml.
Lumps in the glass? The matcha wasn't sifted or wasn't whisked long enough.
The colour looks pale or greyish? That's down to the matcha itself. Vivid cultivars like Okumidori stay greener in milk. More on this: How to tell matcha quality.
Your matcha tastes flat after a few weeks? Store it airtight, cool, dry and dark – and in the fridge once opened.

Frequently asked questions

How much matcha goes into a latte?
3 g, a completely normal serving. The milk doesn't change the amount of matcha.

How much caffeine is in a matcha latte?
About 100 mg per 3 g of matcha, roughly as much as an espresso. The milk adds no caffeine. More in Matcha vs. coffee.

Can I make a matcha latte without a bamboo whisk?
Yes. A milk frother works too. What matters is that you sift first.

Which milk is best?
The one you like. Our recipe deliberately says "milk of your choice".