I’m finally trying matcha!
This is the free sample from Red Leaf Tea that I got a few weeks ago and have been afraid to try. But here it is.
I have no matcha equipment whatsoever, so I had to do with some random bowl and a fork. I believe I whisked it just right – and until the foam appeared. I used roughly 1/4 tsp per 6 ounces of 170 F water. And yes, I sifted it. Also, this post was very helpful: http://oolongowl.wordpress.com/2013/01/26/how-to-make-a-cup-of-matcha-the-easy-way/
Okay, so this is supposed to be French Vanilla – I could smell it a bit in the dry powder, not so much in the ready brew. I cannot taste it at all. But that is okay since all I care about is pure matcha anyway. It’s my very first experience with it, so perhaps it’s even better that I cannot notice the supposed flavoring.
Well, umm… It’s odd. There’s this bitterness to it, not overpowering, just different from any other bitterness that I know. It settles on the back of my tongue for a bit and then disappears. What a weird taste! I can definitely see how this would be better with milk… I cannot have dairy though (or too much of it) and I am not sure if coconut or almond milk work well heated up. Perhaps in the summer I could make iced lattes…
But anyway, I really quite don’t know what to make out of this experience. I think it is growing on me with every sip. My mouth started to get used to the “unusual bitter” and detects more of a complexity of the flavor of matcha itself. I think I could perhaps learn to love it but it might take a few more lessons. I might also tweak the amount of water used as well as the amount of matcha powder and see how that goes. Maybe add a bit of coconut milk to the brew made with warm water. I know there’s like a million ways of preparing it!
I am really glad that RLT offers these free samples, so that I didn’t have to splash out a whole bunch of money on a pack of matcha and then not know what to think of it. I still have about 4-5 servings of this sample left, and that should be enough to confirm whether I want to start a matcha adventure or not ;D
I also know, though, that good things take time :)
