Marukyu Koyamaen Matcha Chart (2026): Every Grade Compared Side by Side | Matcha Alert Club

The Complete Comparison Chart

Grades are ordered top to bottom from most premium to entry level. The dividing line to remember: Kinrin and above can be prepared as koicha (thick tea); everything below is usucha (thin tea) only.

Grade	General Feel	Typical Use	Koicha?	Price Tier	Availability
Tenju 天授	Ultra-rich, extraordinary sweetness, no edges	Formal koicha, once-a-year occasions	Yes	$$$$$	Rarely in stock — months between restocks
Unkaku 雲鶴	Deep oceanic umami, full body, near-zero bitterness	Formal koicha, hosting, connoisseur usucha	Yes	$$$$	Sells out in hours
Choan 長安	Mellow, creamy, quietly refined	Koicha practice, contemplative sessions	Yes	$$$$	Limited
Kinrin 金輪	Creamy, nutty, balanced umami	Entry koicha, special-occasion usucha	Yes	$$$	Intermittent
Wako 和光	Exceptionally sweet, smooth, long elegant finish	The best daily usucha, gifting	No	$$$	Sells out fast
Yugen 又玄	Complex, nutty, rounded	Experienced daily drinkers	No	$$$	Usually available
Isuzu 五十鈴	Balanced, floral, naturally sweet, clean finish	Daily whisked matcha, ceremony practice	No	$$	Usually available
Chigi no Shiro 千木の白	Light, smooth, low bitterness	Beginners, gentle usucha	No	$$	Usually available
Aoarashi 青嵐	Bold, brisk, grassy, energetic	Lattes, iced matcha, first tin	No	$	Widely available
Wakatake 若竹	Strong and robust — cuts through milk	Lattes, smoothies, high volume	No	$	Widely available

Culinary grades (Ayame, Suisen, Midorigi, Byakuren) are excluded — they are for baking and blending, not whisked preparation.

⚠️ The availability column matters more than the price column

In 2026, choosing a Marukyu Koyamaen grade is only half the decision — actually getting it is the other half. Unkaku, Wako, and Tenju routinely sell out within hours of a restock. Check the live grade-by-grade stock status and set up a stock alert before you need it, not after it sells out.

How to Read the Lineup: Three Flavor Axes

Tenju

Unkaku

Wako

Isuzu

Aoarashi

Wakatake

Powder color by grade (illustrative): premium grades whisk up a saturated jade, entry grades lean yellow-green

Every step up the Marukyu Koyamaen ladder moves the same three dials, and knowing them makes the chart self-explanatory:

Umami rises. Entry grades taste grassy and brisk; premium grades develop the deep, savory-sweet richness that defines Uji matcha. By Unkaku it is almost oceanic.
Bitterness falls. Aoarashi has an assertive bite. Wako has almost none. Unkaku and Tenju have effectively zero at any concentration — which is what makes them koicha-capable.
Body thickens. Texture moves from light and refreshing to full and velvety. Thicker body is essential for koicha, where the tea is whisked into a paste-like consistency.

This is why "better" grades are not automatically the right choice. A latte needs Aoarashi's boldness to survive the milk; Unkaku's subtlety would vanish into it. Match the grade to the preparation, not the price tag.

Head-to-Head: The Four Decisions People Actually Face

Most buyers are not choosing between all ten grades — they are stuck between two neighbors on the ladder. These are the four matchups that come up constantly:

Aoarashi vs Isuzu

Isuzu for whisked matcha, Aoarashi for lattes

This is the most common first decision. Aoarashi is bold and grassy with noticeable bitterness — character that works in a latte but reads as harsh in plain usucha. Isuzu costs more but is where the Marukyu Koyamaen house style actually begins: natural sweetness, balanced umami, and a clean finish with nothing to hide behind. If you will drink it whisked with just water, skip Aoarashi and start at Isuzu.

Isuzu vs Wako

Wako is the upgrade you notice immediately

Isuzu is excellent daily matcha; Wako is the flagship usucha grade. The step up buys markedly more sweetness, a longer finish, and almost no bitterness. Most drinkers describe the difference as obvious from the first bowl, not subtle. The catch is availability — Wako sells out quickly while Isuzu is usually purchasable. A common pattern: Isuzu for weekdays, Wako when you can get it.

Wako vs Unkaku

Different jobs — usucha ceiling vs koicha territory

These two are less direct competitors than they appear. Wako is the top of the usucha-only family: elegant, sweet, made for thin tea. Unkaku is koicha-capable — dramatically deeper umami and full body designed to hold up at thick-tea concentration. If you never prepare koicha, Wako gives you more pleasure per gram. If you are moving into koicha, Unkaku is the traditional choice and the grade worth setting an alert for.

Unkaku vs Tenju

Tenju only if you find it — Unkaku is the practical peak

Tenju is the competition-tier ceiling of the retail lineup, and it is priced and stocked accordingly — often unavailable for months at a time. Unkaku delivers most of that experience and actually restocks. Unless you are a collector or preparing for a formal occasion, Unkaku is the realistic top of the ladder.

The Upgrade Ladder: Where to Start, Where to Go Next

If you plan to explore the lineup over time rather than buy once, this is the progression that makes each step feel meaningful:

Start: Isuzu — the first grade that expresses the real house character. (Start at Aoarashi only if lattes are your main preparation.)
First upgrade: Wako — the flagship usucha. The jump in sweetness and finish is immediately obvious.
Into koicha: Kinrin — the entry point to thick tea, and a lovely special-occasion usucha too.
The peak that restocks: Unkaku — the most celebrated koicha grade in regular retail. Alert-worthy.
The trophy: Tenju — competition tier. Buy it when you see it, because you will not see it often.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between Marukyu Koyamaen grades?

Each grade reflects different first-harvest leaf and cultivar selection, not marketing tiers. Moving up the lineup, umami and sweetness increase, bitterness decreases, and body thickens. Kinrin and above are koicha-capable; Wako and below are for usucha only.

Which Marukyu Koyamaen grade is the best value?

Isuzu. It is the least expensive grade that fully expresses the house character — natural sweetness, balanced umami, clean finish — and it is usually in stock. Wako is better, but you pay more and have to catch a restock.

Is Aoarashi good for drinking straight?

It is drinkable whisked, but its brisk, grassy character with medium-high bitterness is really built for lattes and iced preparations. For plain usucha, Isuzu is a significantly better experience for a modest price difference.

Why can’t Wako be used for koicha?

Koicha uses roughly double the powder in half the water, which amplifies any bitterness dramatically. In the Marukyu Koyamaen system, only Kinrin and above are refined enough to stay sweet and smooth at that concentration.

Which grades sell out fastest?

Unkaku, Wako, and Tenju — typically within hours of a restock, sometimes under an hour. Isuzu, Chigi no Shiro, Aoarashi, and Wakatake are usually purchasable outside of peak demand spikes.

Where can I see current stock for these grades?

Matcha Alert Club tracks the full Marukyu Koyamaen lineup and sends instant alerts when a grade restocks — the practical way to secure Unkaku or Wako without refreshing the store page daily.

Picked Your Grade? Now Actually Get It

The grades at the top of this chart sell out in hours. Track every Marukyu Koyamaen grade — plus Ippodo, Nakamura Tokichi, and 15+ top Japanese tea houses — and get an instant alert the moment it restocks.

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The Short Version

Lattes: Aoarashi. Daily whisked matcha: Isuzu. The best thin tea in the lineup: Wako. Koicha: Kinrin to start, Unkaku as the goal. And whichever you choose from the top half of the chart, set the alert first — with Marukyu Koyamaen, knowing what you want has never been the hard part.

Marukyu Koyamaen Matcha Chart: Every Grade Compared (2026)