This morning I had my first ever encounter with Matcha (so please excuse my ignorance). I had heard about the many health benefits of matcha (i.e. high antioxidant content etc.), so when I saw it at Davids I thought I’d bring home a little sample. My 14g sample cost $3.92 and probably has enough to make a couple more cups, if that’s what I choose to do with it (I say this because I just read of the many ways that Matcha can be used: mixed into smoothies, added into baking, added to other teas etc.).
So here is where my ignorance is going to shine (I’m sure I will look back on this tealog and cringe). I prepared the tea as directed, by whisking 1 tsp in 72 degree water. Well, it was more or less 72 degrees, I didn’t have my thermometer, so I just guesstimated. It didn’t taste bitter, so I’m pretty sure the water wasn’t too hot as it didn’t taste burnt. If anything, it might have been a little too cool? There were no lumps in the tea when I whisked it, but it did seem to settle a bit when I stopped whisking. Is that normal (I would assume so since it’s ground up tea leaves, but since I’ve never seen matcha before… I’m not sure)? Anyway, the color was a deep green, and reminded me of seaweed or spinach. It was a little startling at first, as it’s not what I am accustomed to, but hey, it reduces cholesterol and is high in antioxidants, so it could glow in the dark and I’d still try to like it.
My honest first impressions were that I didn’t love the taste, it wasn’t bad, but I’d say that I thought it was just o.k. It tasted like it was good for me: kind of leafy and faintly spinach-like. But even though this tea was not love at first sip, when I consider how good it is for me, I like it enough that I can eventually learn to love it. I prefer to drink my tea without adding anything, but with all the rave reviews about drinking this as a latte, I may have to give it a try. I was always intrigued by the idea of matcha and I’m thankful that Davids allows me the opportunity to buy tea in such small sample sizes, I hope more local tea shops will follow suit.