Having been reading up on the virtues of matcha and teaching them to my customers at tea parties, I thought it was time I tried it myself.
Matcha is the vibrant green powdered tea used in traditional Japanese tea ceremonies. It is made from the leaves of shade grown tea trees. When the leaves are harvested they are steamed, dried and then further processed to remove the veins, stems and impurities. Only about 10% of the original harvest remains, and this is called the "tencha". The tencha is then ground to a fine powder often in a stone mill. It takes about one hour to produce an ounce of matcha, because grinding any faster would result in a burnt tasting tea. Today the highest grades of matcha usually remain in Japan for use in their tea ceremonies and the price can be as high as $100 an ounce. The majority of matcha available in the general market today is now ground by sophisticated machines, which make it affordable to the average tea drinker. Even with the machines, it takes an hour to grind 40 g. Regardless of the grinding technique used, the production of matcha requires a great deal of hand labour, skill and time.
The health benefits of matcha tea exceed those of green tea because when you drink matcha you ingest the whole leaf, not just the brewed water. One glass of matcha is the equivalent of 10 glasses of green tea in terms of its nutritional value and antioxidant content.
Absorption is key. When tea bags or loose teas are steeped, only 5% to 10% of the nutrients naturally found in tea end up in the cup because most of the nutrients are not water-soluble - the minerals, fibers, vitamins, and antioxidants end up thrown out with the tea leaves. With matcha the whole tea leaf is ground into a fine powder and consumed entirely so you get 100% of the nutrients from the leaves.
I have this wonderful set of cups that my brother-and-sister-in-law brought back from their stint as ESL teachers in Japan. It was fun to use one this morning!
Isn't the crane gorgeous? And the crackle glaze?
So how does matcha taste? Bear in mind that I made the tea, photographed the set up and then sat down to drink. It was very intensely green tasting - and by the time I got to it, any froth I had created was gone, and it was not hot enough, honestly. So I will try it again to have a better perpective of it - drinking it right after I make it, the way it was intended. But definitely I'll try it again - the health benefits make it too imperative to not try it again, and soon!
I have also used my matcha to make a facial mask and that was very enjoyable. It's been almost a month, so I'm due to try that again very soon, too!
Enjoy whatever you are sipping today! Blessings, Ann







