4 Reasons To Drink Matcha Tea

A simple web search will reveal that Matcha tea has long been a favorite for not only tea drinkers, but those in the culinary industry too.  After all, it's such a versatile tea, and its finely ground powder form embodies very intense flavors that people truly love. It's also grown differently, prepared differently and even brewed differently. It's a different tea and it differentiated itself from other forms of green tea.

Below are four reasons why Matcha tea should have a place in your pantry.

It's for more than just drinking

Once it was discovered that Matcha had a truly beautiful flavor – and that it varied depending on the way it was grown
and processed – people went crazy with inventions for its use. It became more than just a powder dissolved in water or
milk. It became an art form (especially desserts).

Now people use it in:

• Mochi and soba noodles for flavor and dye
• Green tea ice cream
• Various beverages
• Japanese Wagashi confectionery
• Mixed with salt for tempura batters
• Chocolate and confectionery
• Desserts
• and the list goes on...

^{by T.Tseng - Chashaku for koicha}

It's not just your Average Tea

We've established that Matcha tea is something special, but did you know it's not leaves or tea bags like you're used to? The word Matcha itself means powdered tea, meaning you don't get leaves to infuse in your water, nor do you get a tea bag you need to discard on your saucer. The leaves have already been finely crushed into a fine powder. 

The whole process is quite technical which is why it's on the higher end of cost to regular green teas. It involves putting the tea plants under shade right before harvesting, which helps enhance the flavor and texture. The leaves are then steamed to stop fermentation followed by the drying and aging process in a cold storage. 

This will further enhance that gorgeous flavor. The dried leaves are then ground up into the product you buy today. When you drink it, you mix the Matcha powder with hot water or milk, then whisk until it froths. It's almost a magical and
delicious science project.

It contains caffeine

You can be forgiven for thinking that swapping coffee for tea has enabled you to “give up” that caffeine addiction. It's true in the fact that you will be consuming less caffeine, but certainly not none at all. Matcha has three times as much caffeine as a standard cup of tea. It also has approximately the same amount as a standard coffee.

Just as you wouldn't drink a strong brewed cup of coffee before bed, it's recommended you lay off the Matcha before bedtime as well. Although you don't get the same level of buzz as you do from coffee, it's still putting caffeine in your body at a time you should be fully relaxed.

It's healthy

Matcha provides a huge range of vitamins, minerals and nutrients – more so than a standard cup of green tea. It's also very rich in anti-oxidants which have been known to be beneficial in such conditions as cancer and heart disease, as well as reducing blood pressure and anti-aging! Recent study have shown that it benefits your brain as well.