A Short Message

Before I post the next tea review, I wanted to write a quick message to two junior high schools in Yokohama, Japan. The schools are Maita JHS and Kyoshin JHS. Recently I worked at both schools, although now I'm back living in the USA. My time at the schools was amazing, and I had a great time with the kids there. There's a lot I learned from the kids, even though I was the one teaching them. I just wanted to say, 'Thank you,' to all the students and teachers.

The next tea review I will be posting is kombu-cha (konbu-cha), kelp tea. Hopefully I will have that up soon.

Thanks.

Soba-cha

Before coming to Japan I had never heard of soba-cha (buckwheat tea). To be honest, tea would have been the last thing to pop into my mind after hearing the word 'buckwheat'. Like most of the tea I've tried in Japan, my first encounter with soba-cha came about due to curiousity. I saw a bottle of the buckwheat tea in a convenience store and decided to try it. I was familiar with noodles made from buckwheat, so I figured the taste must be similar.

At first, I thought the taste of soba-cha was peculiar, but there was some interesting flavor present that kept me drinking. It wasn't until I tried hot soba-cha that I realized how delicious the brew is. Slightly sweet and not as dry as mugi-cha, soba-cha has a very unique, nutty flavor. In my opinion it's one of the easiest teas to drink due to its smooth flavor.

The two variations of soba-cha I have tried are regular and roasted, both of which are deliciouis, though I feel regular soba-cha has a much deeper flavor. The roasted version loses some of its unique, nutty 'buckwheat' flavor during the roasting process. However, don't let that dissuade you from trying the roasted version. It really is amazing.

In terms of health effects, buckwheat contains rutin, a chemical that strengthens capillary walls. Additionally, chemicals in buckwheat have been studied in relation to treating Type II diabetes.

Regular:

Score: 5 out of 5
Color: Light brown
Taste: Sweet and nutty, not sour or bitter
Served: Cold or hot (I recommend hot)

Roasted:

Score: 4 out of 5
Color: Yellow
Taste: Sweet and nutty, not sour or bitter
Served: Cold or hot (once again I recommend hot due to the great aroma roasted soba-cha has)

Mugi-cha

When you think of popular tea in Japan, you undoubtedly think green tea (regardless of the type of green tea), but for the first post on this blog dedicated to Japanese tea, I wanted to take a look at something very popular in Japan, yet almost unknown to people living in the U.S.

Mugi-cha means 'barley tea' and is made from roasted barley. The drink is often consumed cold and during the summer time. Throughout most of the Japan, summers are very hot and humid, and cold mugi-cha is considered a refreshing drink. Not as bitter as most green teas, mugi-cha has a slightly sweet flavor at first, followed by a dry aftertaste.

Cold mugi-cha can be found throughout vending machines and convenience stores in Japan. Mugi-cha tea bags used for making cold mugi-cha are also very common in super markets.

Personally, mugi-cha is one of my favorite Japanese teas. I think it is easier to drink than most green teas due to it's refreshment factor, but I have to admit that it doesn't have the depth of flavor that green teas usually have.

Score: 3 out of 5
Color: Light brown
Taste: Sweet to dry, not sour or bitter
Served: Cold or hot (though I have encountered cold mugicha more often than hot)