Not Ordinary Tea, Know What Matches Are Made Of And How To Make It

WHAT is matchmaking made of (freepic)

YOGYAKARTA - Have you ever thought about what matcha is made of so that it can have a bright green color and a calming soft taste?

Behind a glass of aesthetic matchmaking, it turns out that there is a long process and the secret of Japanese traditions that make this green powder so special and high in value. Curious? Let's read it to the end!

Reporting from the Breakaway Matcha page, matcha turns out to come from the same plant as all types of native tea, namely Camellia sinensis. From the leaves of this plant can be produced green tea (teh without fermentation), coolong tea (half fermented), and black tea (full fermentation).

Matcha is included in the green tea category, but the ways of planting, harvesting, and processing are very different from ordinary green tea, especially from oolong and black tea.

Camellia sinensis sendiri memiliki beberapa variety, dan tidak semuanya cocok untuk membuat matcha berkualitas tinggi. Matcha terbaik biasanya berasal dari tiga varieties utama asal Jepang yaitu samidori, okumidori, dan ya khatika.

Also Read the article that discusses Don't Be Based! This Is How To Save Bottled Coffee To Last Long And Stay Fresh

These three varieties have been cultivated in Japan for more than 900 years by a family of tea farmers who have for generations understood how to produce the best quality matcha.

The flagship Matcha has five important characteristics, including:

The combination of five matcha characters is very rare, because most of the matcha on the market tends to be pale, bitter, and the foam is thin.

The best match-producing area in Japan is Uji, which is located on the southeastern border of Kyoto City, which is Japan's traditional art and culture center. Matcha from Uji is known to have the best March, producing perfect colors and taste.

In addition, the Nishio area in Aichi Prefecture has also been known as a quality matchmaker since the 12th century. The mountainous environment, fertile soil, and cool climate make the matcha from Nishio a brighter color, high umami taste, and maximum nutritional content.

The best matchmaking harvest is only done once a year, usually in May. About six weeks before harvest, the tea garden will be partially closed from sunlight using straw or black vinyl sheets.

The purpose of closing tea leaves is to gradually reduce photosynthesis, so that plants produce more chlorophyllics and amino acids. This process produces a thick green color and a soft sweet flavor without a bitter taste typical of premium matcha.

Only the youngest shoots of each shoot (two of the top leaves) are picked manually. These leaves are then steamed so that their colors and nutrients are maintained, then dried with hot air.

After being sorted, the best leaves were cleaned from the stems and bones until they became tencha, namely the basic material of matchha. Tencha was then slowly ground using a large rock to become a very fine powder.

Interestingly, the matcha milling process can take more than an hour to produce 30 grams of matcha. This also explains why high-quality matcha has a high price.

The name matcha itself comes from Japanese which means 'teh milled'. Well, after milling, the matcha powder is stored in a vacuum package and cooled to be ready to be sent, keeping its aroma and freshness perfect.

In addition to discussing what matchmaking is made of, follow other interesting articles on VOI, to get updated news, don't forget to follow and monitor all of our social media accounts!