Naturally Grown Kyobancha- Surprisingly Delicious

This naturally grown Kyobancha from the tea farmer Sinichi Kihara was a nice surprise tea! I purchased this after looking for hojicha (online at yunomi.life) and found the dry leaves to be quite unique.  The leaves are not rolled but after steaming they are dried as is or flat. It's interesting that they don't roll the leaves as this results in quite a large volume.  I'm still trying to learn more about the different kinds of Japanese tea but "Kyo" refers to Kyoto and "bancha" is unprocessed leaf meaning not rolled.  It is a type of hojicha (roasted green tea) but the main difference in hojicha, the roasting is of processed or rolled leaves.  These leaves are also older and thus bigger than other Japanese teas.  You can read more here.

The first time I brewed it, I used about 3g of leaf in my 175ml gaiwan and 90 degree water for 1 minute.  The tea soup was a yellow/light brown shade which surprised me because I was expecting it to be darker.  It was also very clear and bright looking.

Subsequent sessions, I used 5g of dry leaf...almost filled my 4oz ramekin!

 The steeped tea leaves...looks very similar to the dry and very dark.

 My most recent brew using 5g...

The tea soup is amber in colour and still very clear and bright.  Aroma is roasted and slightly smoky as you would expect.  The taste is less roasted than I would have thought and there is some cooked grain taste, barley possibly.  Soon after, there is a subtle sweet finish to it which is surprising as it's not what I would expect.  Brewed 3 times and still had good flavour.  

I quite like this tea and see this as a daily tea but also one for guests that aren't familiar with tea.  And for the price it's very good value!  This was part of my first order with Yunomi last year and the experience and quality has been very good.  I also like that they have many small vendors/farmers on the site that you wouldn't normally hear of in North America.  Definitely recommend checking them out for other Japanese teas.  

How to Make Roasted Milk Tea (Without Milk Powder or Creamer)

ChaTime's roasted milk tea has been a favourite of so many of my friends and myself that there are times I want to make one at home.  Especially a hot one on extremely cold days like today!!  I know that most bubble tea places use milk powder or creamer in their drinks which makes it easier, however I don't have these items on hand. So I began using regular milk and thought I'd share some key tips on how to make milk tea, more specifically roasted milk tea in this post.  Making cold vs hot also requires different steps which I'll highlight but my recipe below will be for a hot roasted milk tea.

1.  Finding the right tea

Tea is available almost everywhere these days, but finding roasted tea...that can be a stumbling block from the start.  There are oolong teas that are roasted however, roasted oolong may be a little expensive to use and may not be exactly the right flavour profile.  A more readily available roasted tea is hojicha (also spelled houjicha) a Japanese style roasted green tea.  If you haven't heard of hojicha, you're missing out!  Comforting when brewed hot and refreshing and unique when cold brewed.  I purchased my first batch at Nohohon Tea Room which sells the Momo Tea brand (very nice teas) but recently I've also ordered online from Yunomi. Roasting levels can vary though.

2.  Quantity of tea leaves

Use at least double the amount of tea leaves for the volume of water used to brew the tea.  You could try three times the amount depending on the tea but start with two.  This is because of the addition of milk or ice that will dilute the brew.

3.  Using liquid milk instead of milk powder

So this post comes about because I don't have milk powder or creamer on hand.  To get a similar creamy taste, it's ideal to use 3.25% fat or homo milk for this but you could definitely use lower fat milk.  In addition, because you'll be using liquid milk, a small amount won't cut it, the quantity of milk will need to be almost equal to the quantity of tea and that is why you'll need to brew the tea strong.

4.  For cold milk tea, use large chunks of ice to cool the tea quickly.

You want the tea to cool very quickly to reduce the amount of water that gets added to the drink or you risk diluting the drink too much.

5. Steep time

There are some teas that will be quite bitter if over steeped so don't try to add extra time to the steeping unless you are making more than one portion. You will need to increase the steep time compared to making a single portion by about a minute.  I find with hojicha it doesn't over steep so easily so often I'll brew longer.



Hot Roasted Milk Tea:
Makes 1 large mug (approx 300ml)

6g of hojicha tea leaves (1 rounded tablespoon)
150 ml boiled water
1-2 tsp sugar (adjust to taste, I prefer 1.5 tsp)
150 ml milk

Put tea leaves into a brewing vessel*.
Pour boiling water into a separate cup first, then pour onto tea leaves (this step is to reduce the water temperature to about 85°C as boiling water with result in some bitterness).

Let steep for 3-5 minutes.
Strain the tea into your cup/mug.

This was after 4 minutes

Add sugar.
Heat milk till steaming (do no boil).
Add to tea and sugar, stir and ENJOY!.

*No brewing vessel, a small pot/saucepan also works (and steps may be simplier), especially when making more than one cup.

Light Cafe - Offering Light Meals, Desserts and Coffee/Tea on Baldwin St.

A clean and modern space, Light Cafe 路燈咖啡 will appeal to those looking for a light meal or leisure chat with friends over waffles and coffee or tea.  Light Cafe is originally from Taiwan and I believe this is their first branch outside of Taiwan.  Gosh, how I miss cafes in Taiwan!!

You'll notice quite a bit of detail went towards the atmosphere, menu, and food presentation.  Especially important in this age of social media, pictures are worth a thousand words.  Typically, cafes like these have average food (of course there are some exceptions that also have stellar food) but the draw for people is the food presentation and the space is usually a haven for a girls get-together. Not to say guys don't go, but walk into a cafe like this in Taiwan and the majority of patrons are groups of females.  However, if it's near a university than there will be a more balanced ratio, but I would say girls still out number guys.

Anyway back to my meal.  I was by myself on a Monday and ordered the smoked duck salad and an iced Southbrook berry herbal tea. Although I thought about ordering one of their sandwiches, the smoked duck is not too common in a salad and I had quite a bit of bread for breakfast so a salad it was.  The salad was very fresh and paired with their yuzu salad dressing, it added just the right amount of zing.  But, I would have liked a little more butternut squash or tomatoes or both to make it a little more like an entree salad.  Overall, a good salad.  But to be honest, I was still hungry afterwards...I think I would have even settled for just a slice of buttered toast with my salad.

The berry tea was also very nice; both in taste and presentation.  A nice berry taste, not too sweet, no artificial aftertaste and quite refreshing. I also liked how they presented the tea with frozen berries and apple slices...makes the price of the tea a little more worth it.  If I were to say anything negative, it would be that there was a ton of ice in the drink!

It's interesting that the cafe decided to use Pluck Teas which is a local purveyor of tea rather than Taiwanese tea.  I've heard about Pluck Teas, but have not purchased or tried any of their teas until now.  Pluck Teas tries to separate themselves by stating that they use local ingredients in their tea blends.  Of course the tea leaves are from overseas, but the added ingredients could be local depending on the blend.  On their website, they list whether they use local product or not however in a blend with 6 ingredients, I'm not sure if all are local when they say local.  I've noticed Pluck Teas showing up in a lot of places now and I think it definitely owes to the personal touch of the founder...definitely look out for this tea company!

Quite spacious

Looking out through their front window.

In terms of value, I would say that is where the salad was lacking.  It was over $10 and in a city like Toronto where you have lots of great options for salads (e.g. IQ foods for a quick lunch option), it's a bit steep for what you get.  Especially when most of the salad is actually spinach and mixed greens. Despite this, Light Cafe is definitely worth a second visit to try their sandwiches which looked very appetizing, and their waffles and ice cream!  Oh, and bring CASH, they don't accept anything else.

Also, if you're a coffee fan, they also have some interesting coffee options.  Their Light Cafe Special coffee and the cotton candy coffee (the online menu offers a picture of these items) are definitely worth a look!

Light Cafe 路燈咖啡
23 Baldwin St.
Toronto, ON M5T 1L1
647-347-3883
http://lightcafe.ca/

Green Tea from Taiwan (Baguashan 八卦山): a pleasant and mild green tea

After the first infusion

For Christmas I received a really nice set of tea canisters containing a variety of tea from Taiwan.  (Would have loved to show pics of the canisters but my photos weren't very good.) I was super excited as there was green tea as part of the mix!  Taiwan is not known for green tea and they don't produce very much of it, but they do produce it.  Oolong teas are really their forte but this one was a nice change.  I remember after drinking the first cup, it sort of gave me a "Spring" like feeling...but, then again I also drank this on New Years Day when the sun was shining and it was much warmer than you'd think for January weather!  (Whatever it was, it was a nice feeling!)

This tea was from Taiwan Tea Crafts, which ships tea directly from Taiwan.  I've recently come across a number of websites (in English) offering Taiwan tea that are based in Taiwan and ship worldwide.  Five years ago there weren't that many but now there are so many options.  You can get Taiwanese oolong teas on almost any online tea shop but, most of these new ones mention that they work directly with the tea farmers indicating product authenticity.

Made from the Qing Xin Gan Zi  (青心柑仔) tea varietal, this tea was also hand-picked from the southern most tip of the Baguashan (八卦山) mountain ridge in Nantou County. Usually, Qing Xin (青心) is the only term referenced on a lot of sites, but I like how they were even more specific.  I only thought there was one Qing Xin varietal, but since I've been reading some text I bought from Taiwan, I've learned that they are further divided.  Qing Xin Gan Zi is mainly used to make green tea while Qing Xin Oolong  (青心烏龍) and Qing Xin Da Pan* (青心大冇) are normally made into various oolong teas.


Baguashan Qing Xin Green Tea

Dry Leaves...3 grams
Vessel...Ceramic Gaiwan 175ml
Temp...80°C boiled water

First cup

Infusion time...1 minute.

Colour - lovely light green/yellow, clear
Body - medium thick, nice mouth feel.
Taste - vegetal and grassy but not as sharp as other green teas...there was a bit of creaminess to it.


Second cup

Infusion time...1.5 minutes

Body - lighter than the first
Taste - vegetal but lighter.  I may have to adjust timing or temperature of this second cup as I thought it could have been better given the leaves were still quite rolled after the first infusion.


Overall, I really like this green tea.  It's more subtle than other green teas and the hint of creaminess is perfect for a light roasted oolong tea lover, but it does have a distinct vegetal grassy taste.  From the website, the tea was picked in Oct 2015, so a winter tea.  This is also unusual because most green teas I know of are picked in the spring.  I wonder what kind of difference there would be if picked in the spring vs winter?  Anyway, I'll definitely be keeping my eye out for more news on green tea in Taiwan.

*Not sure if this is the right English translation because the Chinese character is usually known as "mao3" when it is written elsewhere.

Nohohon Tea Room - Japanese Tea Drinks/Bubble Tea

If you're a fan of Matcha or other Japanese teas, you'll probably like to check this place out.  Serving iced drinks, they have matcha, homebrew hojicha beverages, and sencha tea drinks.  No powder is used to make the drinks which is nice to know.  The night before they had just got in dry tea retail packages and I of course had to pick one up too!

I got their new drink, Furano Fields; matcha tea flavoured with lavender milk.  The matcha was good tasting, not too sweet, and was hand whisked.  You could taste the lavender but it's subtle and not overwhelming.  Of course I didn't know Hokkaido is known for lavender as I always think of Hokkaido as the place famous for their milk and in the winter crab, so I had to check out some info on the place. Here is a site with nice pics and travel info.  I'll definitely be back to try their other teas like their hojicha homebrew or the ume sencha which is more unique.

Not sure if they have any hot beverages as I didn't see it on the menu or missed it, but in the winter it would be a great option to have. 

The space is quite open with a bench on one side and it's more of a take-out type place (too bad, a sit-down place would be awesome).  They sold vegan oatmeal cookies which I was really tempted to get, but I decided I'd try one next time.  The owner(?) was really sweet, taking the time to explain a little bit about the teas.  She didn't have nice bags yet for the retail dry tea leaves and apologized for it; it's nice to have but wouldn't stop me from coming back.
 

I picked up a package of Sencha which is actually by Momo Tea in Toronto, an online retailer. So glad to have been introduced to this retailer as my initial impression of the tea is that it's quite good. Would definitely buy more tea from here as the prices are also quite reasonable.  When I first opened the package the scent was very strong, loved it!  Brewed myself a small cup and the taste was as expected, green and grassy but stronger than other places I've purchased Sencha from.  I also was able to brew it 3 times (didn't try a fourth though) and it was just a lovely way to spend a morning. 

Brewing at home

 

 

Nohohon Tea Room

467 Queen St. W.

Toronto, ON

http://www.nohohon.ca/

T: 416-603-2366

 

 

An Ji Bai Cha (安吉白茶) - a delicate green tea

Anji baicha
-I love looking at the leaves after brewing, totally amazing that the bud and 2 leaves can look like it was just plucked!

After completing the Tea Sommelier Certificate Courses at George Brown College several years ago, my sampling of a multitude of teas every week had ceased and I returned to drinking only my favourite teas, occasionally having a chai or a sencha.  So it was nice to sample a range of teas again and loved doing it at Tao's Tea Leaf Spring Tasting Event.  Anji baicha is one tea I picked up at the event.


Anji baicha - dry leaves, rolled thin and long


An Ji Bai Cha (安吉白茶) is a light green tea whose flavour is mild and delicate.  The characters 安吉 "An Ji"  is in reference to the city/town in China the tea leaf originates from and the characters 白茶 "Bai Cha" which translates to "white tea" refer to the colour of the leaf before harvest.  The buds are whitish-green in colour and are only this colour before the first harvest.  The term 'Bai cha' is commonly used for white teas such as Silver Needle or Bai Mu Dan (White Peony), but this is not a white tea.

This is actually a new green tea, it was discovered in the 1980s but some believe this is a lost tea that was referenced in a 900 year old ancient book.  According to the Seven Cups Tea Shop, this tea must be picked before the temperature rises above 25 degrees Celcius, otherwise the leaves start to turn brighter green, losing their white-green colour.  This apparently changes the characteristics of the tea.

I brewed this quite mild at first.

2g in 6oz of water for 1.5 mins.
Water temp 175F

But I found it was better with 3g in 6 oz of water.  Taste is grassy with notes of some sort of vegetable like asparagus...can‘t really say.

 

I paired it with a red bean taiyaki treat from Kevin's Taiyaki that we picked up from Galleria supermarket.  The taiyaki complemented the tea nicely.  Since the tea was a little more delicate, I'm glad the red bean wasn't too sweet.  My only comment about the taiyaki was that there was actually too much filling and not enough cake!  There were certain sections of the cake that only had a very, very thin layer surrounding the red bean filling which is actually quite impressive that it didn't leak out.  

 

This cross-section shows a good balance between cake and red bean filling but aside from the centre, red bean was much more dominate in other parts of the cake.

Overall a nice green tea.

 

 

David's Tea Update - Ahhh, they have a flip top!

I recently did a review of their carry travel mug and was quite impressed with it.  But, 2 things that I noted as potential negatives of the carry travel mug were addressed in their new travel mug (at least I think it's new).  I previously noted that you required both hands to open and drink as campared to flip-top versions that you can do with one hand AND the 16oz size might be too big for some if they want to carry it in their bag.  I guess others before me thought the same! :)

 

Now, upon visiting a David's Tea recently, they have a flip-top version and it's slightly smaller at 14oz!  Definitely more handy I would say.  The only negative I see is the strainer might be too small to brew oolong tea.  Right now, my oolong leaves unfurl and fill the entire strainer of the carry travel mug.  This 14oz migh actually be too small for ball-shaped oolong tea.  I think I'll go with that and just be happy with my current one.  (Ahhh, so hard to avoid the grass is always greener mentality, lol!)

Besides the new travel mug, the reason I went into David's Tea was to try an iced tea.  I originally wanted to go to Chatime but the lineup was at least 20 people long!  Didn't have time for that, so headed to David's Tea since it was something I've wanted to try.



16oz iced tea - Organic roasted gyokuro. They make any of their teas iced which is a big draw for many.

Most people would get something fruity or something like their Chocolate Macaroon but I decided to go for an iced Gyokuro.  For tea purest, I'm sure my selection to be iced would receive disappointing head shakes and they would stop reading altogether.  This is because fine green teas are best drunk hot so the nuances can come out.  Although this is true, if the iced tea is brewed hot first, the flavour profile should still come out to a certain extent.  Oolong teas is where each brew might be different so an iced version is less likely to show the nuances.  So anyway, I opted for Gyokuro because I noticed that they had a Roasted Gyokuro which I've never had before.  All hot and iced teas are $3.25 a cup (16oz).

Taste
Expected of a green tea, the grassiness came through with some buttery notes.  But, also quite a bit of bitterness was there too. Gyokuro tea, because it is shaded during part of it's growth, normally produces a umami taste; but that didn't come through. I couldn't taste the roasted quality of the tea either and maybe it was because I had it iced.  However, I've had iced roasted teas from Taiwan and that roasted quality does come out...maybe the roasting is actually very light and is only detected if it was had hot? Maybe the temperature of the water was not right?  Anyway, the taste is indeed that of strong Japanese green tea but the specific roasted and umami quality was not there.  Maybe I'll make my way there some other day and try it hot to compare.

Sugar options include agave, cane sugar, and sweetener. 

The staff will add sugar for you but it is usually a very low amount (which is good).  I actually had to ask for more which was new for me, usually I'm asking for less! 

Service
Very pleasant and eager to assist. 

Overall, I like the fact that you can choose to ice any of their teas, especially great for the summer.  Icing tea that doesn't have any other ingredients but the tea leaves also reminds me of tea shops in Taiwan...yes, yes...more about Taiwan.  Most people would get a drink that is just iced tea of some sort whether it is green, jasmine, oolong, or red/black and have their preferred level of sugar added to it.  This was incredibly inexpensive and something I miss!  For David's Tea to ice any of their teas, it does give the customer the option to try the tea and also to have something flavoured without as many calories of traditional drinks.

  

Ten Ren's Tea Class - Sign up if you're a tea fan!

I usually take any chance I get to learn more about tea, so when Ten Ren's Tea began offering a tea class, I immediately signed up.  Even though I got my tea sommelier certification from George Brown College, I don't mind hearing information again and sometimes there may be small pieces of info that might be new.  Tea is also a very vast topic and even brewing methods can be different.  Offered in English and in Mandarin/Cantonese, I took the English class.

What you'll get...

• basic introduction to tea production and brewing
• some info on the company and products
• Gong fu cha presentation
• chance to brew your own tea gong fu style

Who this is for...

• Interest in tea but you have very little knowledge
• Interest in trying to brew tea gong fu style

Not for you...

• If you have advanced/expert knowledge on tea (unless you're like me and love to soak up any info)

Cost:  FREE



If you're interested in a little more detail...

We got to sample Jin Xuan oolong or what some call "milky" oolong and it was smooth and quite nice. This tea naturally has a subtle "milky" flavour and fragrance to it but contains no milk additives.  The "milky" flavour is a natural characteristic for this cultivar but I believe the environmental conditions aid in whether it is stronger one year versus the next.  I've heard that there must be a temperature drop during the growing period before it is picked to ensure this characteristic is there.  Often, high mountain oolong gets this temperature drop.  But, I've also read that it has to do with the processing as well but this is an area I'm not too sure about the details.  (Be aware that there are milky oolong teas that have been processed with milk essence or additives to give the tea a strong milk fragrance and they are not the same.)

Tea master brewing tea

We got to brew two types of tea.  Both were okay, not extraordinary but one was a bit nostalgic for me.  We weren't told what kind of oolong tea at first but upon first taste I noticed something familiar about it.  I couldn't pinpoint it...something about the flavour?  Mouthfeel?  When I was told it was Dong Ding oolong I immediately went "ahhh" (in my head of course).

Dong Ding Oolong tea is actually one of the first oolong teas I started drinking.  When the Ten Ren's Tea on Highway 7 first opened, I had ordered a pot of Dong Ding Oolong tea.  Not knowing much about tea at the time I still experienced something different, a type of "cooling" sensation after I drank the tea and then a slight sweetness.  Not like menthol cooling but a very natural feeling and it was subtle but I was intrigued and loved it.  But, on a subsequent visit I ordered the tea again and unfortunately didn't really get the same feeling.  I remember that year Ten Ren's carried 2 grades of Dong Ding; one was approximately $20 for a cannister and the other >$100 so I purchased the lower grade because I just couldn't bring myself to buy the higher grade.  It wasn't the same but still was okay.  In some ways, I think that first experience was the higher grade tea and was served in error.  Now I always wonder...was it the grade of tea, the temperature of the water, or just my imagination...

Anyway, back to the class.  I think I enjoyed the class because I got to just relax and think only about tea and tea brewing.  Sometimes brewing tea is a very thoughtful process and drinking tea can take you to a very calming place and I miss that aspect during my regular day of chores and responsibilities.  Definitely a good 2 hours in my opinion.

Aside from the presentation and drinking tea, we also got some tea treats which were quite nice.

L: Green tea tea cookies, Middle: Candied Guava with Green Tea, R: Sun Moon Lake Black Tea with Walnut

All were actually better than I expected for different reasons.  The tea cookie had green tea flavour but also the hint of seaweed gave it a twist.  The cookie also had the taste of "HK style waffle".  The candied guava didn't have much tea flavour, but what I liked about it was the softness of the dried fruit and it wasn't overly sweet.  You'll also notice they have bits of green tea in the package.  The sun moon lake walnut candy was soft and chewy with some tea flavour, not too sweet and the walnut was a good accompaniment.

Overall, a nice experience (thanks Ten Ren's)!  Definitely renewed my interest in the brand.  And, I got to ask why the tea drinks at the flagship location on Highway 7 were not offered at the other locations.  The response: it was a new concept at the time to have tea centred food and drinks made with fresh fruits and increased tea flavour.  Now they are slowly going to roll it out to other locations.  My response, yay!!

Drive-Thru Bubble Tea??

Would drive-thru bubble tea be a hit in Toronto?

I recently went to Green Grotto Tea Room at Warden and Steeles to check out their new(ish) location.  They moved to the old Wendy's spot in the same plaza almost a year ago.  And since Wendy's had drive-thru, they kept the window and now have the option to offer drive-thru bubble tea!

I personally think the idea would fly but maybe because I've had moments where I didn't want to park, take the baby out, then line up for a bubble tea.  My personal reasons aside, given the number of people that line-up for bubble tea, I still think it can be a viable option.

In Taipei where you can walk just a bit and hit one or scooter up to a shop, they don't have drive-thrus.  In Toronto, unless you are in specific parts of the city, you're not often walking.  North of the city or Scarborough is where many of those that frequent bubble tea shops reside or hangout.  So, driving is common.

So, again...would drive-thru bubble tea be a hit?  

It definitely got me thinking.  For Green Grotto, I can see it increasing their sales because of higher turnover and sometimes people want something quick.  They would be offering something that no other tea shop can in the GTA.  So, the first of it's kind.  Come to think of it, I think they were also the first Taiwanese bubble tea place in Toronto (since 1993, that's over 20 years!!)

For the consumer there is potential for faster service, you don't have to find parking, and in the winter we don't have to step out of the car.

But, demand is questionable and hiring extra staff is a must.  If the drive-thru is slow because of the variety of offerings or the amount of time it takes to make a drink, this could potentially be irritating to customers.  The other thing is loss of ambience.  Going to a tea room is an experience so would drive-thru be beneficial for the brand image?  Some might argue that if you're already getting take-out, there isn't a difference.  You're just ordering it slightly different.

In some ways, maybe not a full drive-thru is possible right now given the number of unknowns..., so maybe they should do a trial.  (I'd LOVE to see a trial.)

• Drive thru available FRI/SAT/SUN when it's the busiest.
• Condensed drive-thru menu may be needed?  In Taiwan, bubble teas are fast because a lot of what is offered is really simple drinks.  There are usually more varietals of brewed and it just needs to be sweetened and iced.

Well, those are my thoughts anyway.  Let me know what you think!

I asked staff about the drive through and they said potentially next year but no guarantees.  Aside from the drive-thru, I went inside Green Grottos newish (well new for me since it's been 9 months since the last time I visited) digs and it looks great.  Like a college cafe now matured.  Although I loved the atmosphere of their previous place, the new space is a little more modern and grown up but still with a relaxing feel.  Love the tree and bird cages!

Lots more seating and natural light

Several bird cages ^-^

The magazines!  (There's more shelving to the right)

Front area

 New items, drinks and food have been added to the menu.  And their awesome collection of magazines remains!  I'm definitely coming back to try some new items.  Staff are also very friendly and accommodating.

Back patio

Matcha Pocky vs Green Tea Pocky

We went to the new supermarket Seasons (in Thornhill) to check it out and I ended up buying Pocky.  I have't bought it in years!!  It's one of those treats as a kid that made going grocery shopping with my parents fun.  If you don't know what Pocky is, it basically is a biscuit stick covered in a cream or flavoured chocolate coating.  I noticed they carried both a green tea flavoured Pocky and a matcha flavoured one.  Not sure when they came out, I'm guessing both have probably been out on the market for awhile.  In a drink the difference can be noticeable, but what about a snack like Pocky, is there a difference?

The green tea Pocky (right side) comes in a larger size, I just bought the smaller pack since I wanted to just try them out.

Many people think matcha and green tea powder are the same but there is a difference.  Matcha is basically steamed green tea (tencha leaf) that has been grown partially in the shade and later ground into a fine powder.  Steaming green tea is a method mainly used by the Japanese in the production of green tea (stops the oxidation of the leaf) and produces a different flavour profile compared to other methods of heating the leaf.  The leaf is grown partially in the shade to eliminate/reduce astringency and provide a stronger and "sweet" taste.  There is ceremonial grade (very expensive) and culinary grade which is more affordable and is commonly used in baked goods and confections.  More info can be found here.

Green tea powder is basically green tea finely ground into a powder.  Likely not grown in shade (which costs more).  

The Matcha Pocky was slightly more expensive ($2.99 for 61g vs $2.59 for 70g), so is it worth it?

Aroma:
Both had a nice green tea smell when you first open the package.

Taste:
Both taste like green tea, only a slight difference in taste when you just bite and chew.  However, if you allow the cream to melt on your tongue, the Matcha Pocky is stronger in tea flavour and slightly sweeter and creamier. The Green Tea Pocky while okay in taste, had a slight bitter after taste.

Packaging:
The ingredients lists show 2 notable differences. One, the Matcha Chocolate Pocky lists cocoa butter while the Green Tea Pocky does not (expected since it doesn't mention chocolate).  And two, the Matcha Chocolate Pocky lists 2 types of green tea, "green tea powder, roasted green tea powder".  I'm surprised the translation doesn't include "matcha" but I'm guessing when they say green tea powder it is the matcha in this case and the roasted indicates regular green tea powder.  The Green Tea Pocky lists "green tea powder" only.

The Matcha Pocky is a product of Japan while the Green Tea Pocky is made in Thailand.  To some, this makes no difference but to others, Japanese products generally are associated with having a higher quality.  I have to admit, there are times where something is made makes a difference in whether I buy one product over another given all other factors are fairly equal.

Verdict:
I prefer the Matcha Chocolate Pocky.  I'd spend a little more for a slightly more flavourful and better tasting product, the itty-bitty amount of matcha tea powder, and cocoa butter.  However, if the Matcha Pocky was not available or became more expensive than the already premium $2.99 price tag, I'd happily choose the Green Tea Pocky since the taste is acceptable and it's more economical.