Authenticity

As Matcha grows in popularity, it’s imperative to recognize the premium source of the premium green tea.
The human mind is very capable of inventing shortcuts.
Avoid Them!

• Regarding Authentic Matcha:
• Soil preparation is important.
• It should be tilled 2 to 3 meters
• It should be shade-grown, preferrably with 3 layers of shading.
• Leaves should be wide and thin.
• There should be 5 years of maintenance before any product is harvested.
• They should be kept trimmed and weeds should be pulled.
• At the 2 year mark there should be a ‘test’ harvest.

And now, some news from around the world.
What are people doing with Green Tea?

Christina Peralejo of the Vancouver Observer says this of Chef Kev’s creations: “I’m also partial to his green tea truffles as they are never too sweet and contain just the right hint of green tea to roll around in your mouth. …“

Hot Chocolate and Green Tea: New Chocolate Combination from Oliver Kita Chocolates. “It adds a wonderful undertone of green tea taste to the cacao flavor.”

Celebrate Russian culture with Green Tea, not Vodka? True, writes PilotGirl in the Times Union.

MatchaGT

The Premium, Authentic Matcha!

Trimming the Fat

In the news this week ~ hot chocolate mixed with Matcha green tea doubles the health benefits of the chocolate. “It adds a wonderful undertone of green tea taste to the cacao flaver,” says Oliver Kita, an award-winning Chef and Caterer who turned his artistic culinary talents to creating hand-made chocolates. He continues on, saying it elevates the taste experience to a new level as well as being a pleasurable lift of energy. “Matcha green tea is known to increase energy without the caffeine jitters, lower blood pressure, boost metabolic rate by over 35%, stabilize blood sugar levels, and decrease the “bad” cholesterol LDL,” he praises. “Take the time to evaluate and enjoy what you have, where you are now, and chocolate every day is a part of that experience,” he says.

Recipes that include Matcha Green Tea
in the mix is a popular trend.

The very inspiring story of “the last immigrant from Japan.” On The Epoch Times online, Mr. Yagi of New York, a visionary Japanese businessman, recalls his 1968 journey from Japan to the United States, and the epic stories of his many twists of fate and the journies that followed since. These days he operates a tea house in New York and the writer explains his experience of the Matcha tea ceremony thus: “The thick beverage arrived in earthenware, handmade mugs. According to tradition, the cup has to sit on your left palm while holding it with your right hand. Then one has to turn it halfway three times clockwise, drink it all at once, and then turn it counterclockwise halfway once. As we sat talking, Yagi pointed at the interior, elaborating that these places were customarily built from what nature provided in and around the places monks and their masters lived.” There’s far more fine reading available. Take the time to immerse yourself in the full story.

Matcha Green Tea is available
for your tea house too!

This, from Tucson, AZ: “In honor of Asian butterfly month in the Tucson Botanical Gardens Butterfly Magic Exhibit, Seven Cups Tea House will be offering free tastings of two famous and rare green teas, on Saturday, February 20th, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.” The article goes on to say, “Zhuping Hodge, a certified tea master and tea scholar will be explaining Chinese organic farming and will talk about the teas being served. Eric Carr, a tea scholar who has been studying tea since childhood, will present information about the history of green tea and how it relates to the silk industry and the silkworm.” Sounds interesting!

News reports about the health benefits of green tea are always making headlines. An article regarding green tea extract and the treatment of uterine fibroids recently made press on webmd online. The essential component in the green tea is EGCG. “EGCG is a polyphenol in green tea and is a compound found in vegetables and fruits,” the article explains. Health claims regarding green tea or any herbal remedy should be discussed with your doctor, with your specific health conditions in mind.

In one case though, green tea was beneficial in helping “Laura shed four stones!” writes Dunfermline Press. Laura Muirhead credits tough sessions in the gym, protein shakes and green tea with helping her become the Motivate category winner of the UK Maxitone Body of 2009. “I was a couch potato, I went home and did nothing – just watch soaps all night,” she explains. “I lost it quite gradually over two years but I was really under-confident and I didn’t start training or taking supplements until I’d lost a bit of weight. Then I started using protein to tone up.” Further along in what is a really inspiring story, it continues, “And she revealed to the Press her secret weapon: Green tea. Eight to ten cups a day helps you burn an extra percentage of fat. It’s also anti-ageing!” she believes.

Matcha Green Tea is available here.

Prime Time for Theanine

Theanine is sold in the US as a dietary supplement and is FDA confirmed as “GRAS” or Generally Recognized as Safe. That’s good because theanine is a natural component of the Camellia sinensis shrub (that’s tea). Able to stimulate the brain, theanine has been shown to reduce mental and physical stress and improve cognition and mood in much the same way caffeine does. It’s not uncommon for beverage manufacturers to sell drinks containing theanine and market them as having qualities beneficial to focus and concentration.
On May 17th of 2009, it was reported in the Chicago Tribune that although most people will opt for an energy drink for a quick pick-me-up, a better choice would be to go with a beverage containing the amino acid L-theanine to enhance concentration and mental stamina. L-theanine, the report says, has the ability to put you in an alert state without keeping you up at night. “Several studies suggest that the substance stimulates the brains alpha waves, which are associated with alertness,” it says.

Furthermore, in 2003 the Brigham and Women’s Hospital announced in a news release the results of a study that indicated “drinking certain types of tea containing high concentrations of an amino acid called L-theanine may help strengthen the bodys immune system response when fighting off infection.” It goes on to note, “A control group drank coffee instead. The study showed that those people who drank five to six small cups (about 20 ounces) of black tea per day were better equipped to prevent infection. At two weeks, the halfway point of the study, the gamma delta T cells from the tea drinkers, but not the coffee drinkers, showed an enhanced ability to produce disease-fighting chemicals after exposure to bacteria. Specifically, when blood samples were analyzed, the researchers found that the tea drinkers made up to five-fold higher amounts of anti-bacterial proteins – an indicator of a stronger immune response.”

The above-mentioned articles are great. I highly recommend clicking on the links for full details.

Information gleaned from these recommended Resources:

http://archives.chicagotribune.com/2009/may/17/science/chi-tc-health-theanine-0513may17

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theanine

http://www.brighamandwomens.org/publicaffairs/Newsreleases/tea_immunity_04_21_03.aspx

Information on other MatchaGT related websites:

http://matchagt.com/
http://www.smoothieessentials.com/
http://matchagt.blogspot.com/
http://smoothieessentials.blogspot.com/
http://matchagt.wordpress.com/
http://smoothieessentials.wordpress.com/

Green Tea in the News

Among the latest endorsements regarding Green Tea is one coming from CNN. “A new year has arrived, and with it, a new list of resolutions. If “eating better” is on your list, experts say, there are a few items you can slip into to your diet that can improve your health and help you ward off certain diseases in 2010.” Among the recommendations are soy and grains such as oat, barley and rye which cut down on cholesterol; salmon and oily fish which are chock full of omega-3 fatty acids; red wine (in moderation) for its flavonoids; and green tea which is full of antioxidants.

The report goes on to say that green tea can ward off some cancers according to one Japanese study that looked at nearly 500 women with stage I and II breast cancer. It explains, “They’ve found people who drink green tea every day are leaner,” and “Green tea helps lower belly fat.” It’s an excellently written report and closes with the smart reminder to “Eat well, drink in moderation and stay active. All of these lead to a healthier life.”

Another report making the news recently is that the major brewers of Japanese beer – Kirin, Sapporo, Asahi and Suntory – experienced shipments falling for a fifth year in 2009. Clever microbreweries on the other hand, experienced a bumper year! For example, “Morita Kinshachi produces a range of European-style pilsners, an Indian Pale Ale and an Imperial Chocolate Stout, but among its best-sellers are beers flavored with green tea.” The article goes on to say that, “The Matcha Draft green tea beer won bronze at an international beer competition last year.“

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History of Matcha

From as early as the third century A.D, green tea was regularly used in China as a remedy for swelling, fever, depression and other illnesses.  During the Song Dynasty of about the first millenium, the practice of grinding green tea and storing it in brick form was invented.

Bodhisattva Guanyin; 11th/12th century A.D.; Polychromed Wood; Chinese; Shanxi Province; Liao Dynasty (A.D. 907-1125) Nelson-Atkins Museum Collection; Kansas City, Missouri

Later, this green tea became reknowned in Japan for certain medicinal qualities. Eisai wrote in The Book of Tea that green tea could prevent fatigue, quell indigestion, and improve concentration ~ to name a few of the benefits. But the flavor of powdered tea caught on so well, that it quickly became a beverage enjoyed throughout Japan whether a person needed the medicinal benefits or not.

Myoan Eisai was a Japanese Buddhist priest, credited with bringing the Rinzai school of Zen Buddhism and green tea from China to Japan. Eisai Zenji, or “Zen master Eisai,” returned to Japan in 1191, bringing with him Zen scriptures, tea seeds and a new way of producing green tea. He immediately founded the Hoonji Temple in remote Kyushu, Japan’s first Zen temple.

Zen Buddhism promoted humility, simplicity and natural beauty ~ and the green tea ceremony was meant to bring peace and harmony to an often violent world. The ceremony of tea became almost synonymous with Zen Buddhism, the samurai class, and the Japanese culture. The powdered form of green tea transformed green tea from a medicine to the nation’s most desired beverage. Thus, he produced a tea that would change the nation. Through careful diplomacy, his green tea became the drink of nobles in the Japanese court, and is still the primary tea used in this ancient art of the Japanese tea ceremony. Eisai is even said to have served tea to the Japanese emperor himself. Due to its elevation in status, green tea was also cultivated to its finest grade of leaf ~ and this top-quality leaf became what we now know as Matcha!

Powdered Green Tea: Matcha!

Matcha is the oldest variety of shade-grown Japanese green tea. Common leaves of the common green tea bush are used for common green tea. However, Matcha green tea is grown from specially shaded tea bushes. Experts pick only the finest leaves, dry them and then grind the entire leaf with special granite grinding wheels. The result is a jade-green powder. The color green is important because if improperly ground, the cholorophyl is burnt out of the tea and that leaves it with a yellowed hue. Pure and correctly powdered, Matcha is whisked with water to create a unique, beautiful and richly flavorful drink.

Over the course of time, Matcha has been cultivated into an unparalleled beverage of taste and superior health benefits as compared to other teas. By using the entirety of the leaf, the stem, and the vein more nutrients remain. Contrarywise, the destemmed, deveined bag-style teas are not of the same nutrient quality. Matcha is also richer in antioxidants than the lower grades of green teas.

These days green tea is still the beverage of choice in Japan and growing in popularity in the United States. Matcha green tea is not only regarded as the most flavorful of all green teas, but due to its powdered form its shelf life is nearly two years and it can be added to many food and beverage recipes. Recognized by its distinctive, brilliant green hue, it is a much-in-demand ingredient in ice cream, gelato, smoothies, lattes and even chocolates. So preferred is Matcha by those in-the-know, that it can also be found in many nutritional supplements and various beauty and hygiene products.

The biggest names in the food and beverage service industry (including Starbucks, Jamba Juice, Haagen Dazs, Booster Juice, to name only a few) recognize Matcha’s popularity and add it as an ingredient in lattes, smoothies, ice creams, chocolates, confections, and more.

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Bouncing Back Up

Green tea is continually being studied

for possible health benefits.

For example, ABC News recently covered a Reuters Health report on some recent findings of a study conducted by Dr. Niu in Japan.

The subjects of the Tohoku University Graduate School study

• were aged 70 and older
• they drank four or more cups of green tea per day
• they were 44 percent less likely to have symptoms of depression
• black tea, oolong tea or coffee drinkers did not report lowered symptoms of depression.

“However,” the report closes with, “further studies are necessary to confirm whether greater green tea intake actually has antidepressant effects. Therefore, Niu shied away from recommending greater green tea intake to minimize depression among the elderly.”

In a related topic, insiders health reported a recent study of over 43,000 individuals, aged at least 40 years, whose daily diet includes a 5-cup pot of green tea, showed a 20 percent reduced risk of developing psychological distress.

Lastly, a report from perhaps one of the most un-depressed people in the world: a cheerleader. Ashley Bond, reporting on her upcoming photo shoot for the Chicago Bulls “Luvabull” poster, shared the secrets of her strict diet. Given less than two weeks to ‘lean out’ for her photo shoot, she vamped up her work-outs with kick-boxing to exercise the heart, high intensity weight training, and cardio intervals that included jumping over a bosu. She cut down on the sugars, amped up on her proteins, veggies, fruits and whole grains, and drank green tea every morning.

Drinking green tea every day may not pull everyone out of a depression, and it may not turn you into a cheerleader bounding out of the posters on the backside of a teenage boy’s door ~ but it seems to be a common denominator in the diets of people who care about keeping themselves well.

Get Talked!!

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Matcha as an Indulgence

Matcha, the small indulgence that can give you that big break.

It was reported in the Associated Press recently that, “Intellectual freedom, independent research and frequent coffee breaks with colleagues helped this year’s Nobel Prize winners make their groundbreaking scientific discoveries.” Ignoring top-down decisions in favor of collaborating on a level platform seemed to be the preferred method for success. That, and taking enough breaks to discuss research with colleagues.

Some people will focus on the word, coffee: I’ll focus on the word, break. The principle for success was the fact that they took time away from isolated studies to round-table with their fellows. Next time you sit for tea with friends, it just might be that you were spending time with a future Nobel prize winner!

Caffeine and other numbers

Recently reported in BevIndustry: “2009 was the year of comfort food and small indulgences,” said Julie Hall, executive vice president and partner at Schneider Associates, in a statement regarding key findings from the eighth annual Most Memorable New Product Launch Survey. Although technology has topped the list’s top ten over the past few years, the current trend shows consumers more likely to remember specialty drinks such as  McDonald’s McCafé. The migration marketing trend, where consumers migrate from product to product based on current recessionary status, shows comfort food and small indulgences rate high at this point. Also notable is that food product purchases are influenced by the absence of trans fats and high fructose corn syrup, as well as low-salt content.

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Matcha Tea Ceremony in the news again

This week’s blog is another in a continuing series that highlight how popular the Matcha Japapese Tea Ceremony is becoming.

An interesting story I found this week was written by Kate McCaffrey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Yoko Motoyama and Sally Schurko recently presented the Japanese Tea Ceremony to about a dozen eighth-graders at a public library. Complete with bonsai trees, a scroll with Japanese calligraphy, traditional kimonos with sash, the ceremony demonstrated the calming effects not just of the tea but of the ceremony itself. What I enjoyed was the comments the students had about the matcha afterwards: Alex Dattilo, 14, of Brookline, said he liked the texture. Megan Jones, 15, of Beechview, said the tea was “bitter at first but good at the end.”

Another one here: Carpenter-Carse Library in Hinesburg on Nov. 19th. “Lights were dimmed and items were strategically placed in the community room that served as a makeshift chashitsu, a room designated for a Japanese tea ceremony,” writes the Burlington Free Press. “It was the first time participating in a Japanese tea ceremony for Hinesburg couple Monte and Gloria Stokes. “It was a cultural experience and I learned quite a bit,” Monte said. Gloria added, “We Americans have a tendency not to slow down long enough to enjoy something like this. I am sure glad we came tonight.”

Finally, I’ll leave off with a link to a recipe I found on how to make a Matcha Green Tea Biscotti! Yes! It’s true! A biscotti ~ made with Matcha!

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The Colors of December

December means cold weather and holidays to most of us north of the Equator.

The colors red and green tend to be popular in decorations as well as food. Great time to take your favorite white or yellow cupcake recipe and add a couple scoops of Matcha Green Tea powder to it. Drop a treat in the middle of each ~ maybe a red strawberry ~ and frost it with a colorful design as well. I’ve seen decorators topping them with everything from snowy coconut to warming sunflower petals.

Another December 1st world-wide trend is to panic. The holidays can be sheer madness for many of us and we treat the late December holiday feasts as something to prepare for with several weeks of grandiose attempts at fasting and binge dieting. Needless to say, your immune system will take a hard hit if you are prone to exhausting yourself in your attempts at redemption.

Matcha Green Tea is a great way to pre-tox. Nourish your body in preparation for the parties that bring you up and crash you the next day. When you’re at the party of choice and the holiday beverages that warm the adults up while driving them into completely irresponsible behavior take their toll, your body will recuperate quicker because you didn’t spend weeks ahead of time thinking you could punish your beltline into submission.

Balance yourself as a lifestyle and don’t play the rollercoaster game with your health. You’ll be able to party longer and stronger if you eat the way you know you’re supposed to. Include Matcha GT in your beverages. Your stamina will notice the difference.

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Matcha Meet ‘cha

The latest marketing craze
is mobile food trucks,
powered by social media.

As reported in the L.A. Times, the Orange County Register, Campus Circle and who knows where else, people are getting advance notice of where the mobile truck will be that night. Different location each time. People come from other cities, other counties and are willing to wait for hours.

For what? For Korean BBQ? What would make the crowds build with such enthusiasm?

The answer is simple as this: a new marketing trend. Yes, it’s great food but so are the rest of the restaurants, tea houses and smoothie bars. What makes the attraction is the fact that it’s a group thing! Where’s ‘the group’ going?

Twitter and Facebook people are group people who show up to events in flocks. Oh, we’re all going out to Pasadena tonight? Corner of this and that street. I’ll be there. Me and everyone who follows the news on Twitter and Facebook to name the most popular.

“The first weekend we rolled out we couldn’t sell a taco,” says Alice Shin of Kogi. But now  that they update their blog daily and announce their whereabouts on Twitter, the crowds are simply having to wait in line!

Welcome to the new Culture Craze. It might be a fad but it’s a fad that’s keep business rolling in. The question of how to attract customers to your place from another county? Drive down to theirs! Give them a taste! Word of mouth is often the best advertisement.

Now the Kogi Korean BBQ really is reported to be gourmet food, not the common lunch wagon stuff, and yet still a good value. And what if people aren’t following on Twitter? They’ll turn in where the crowds are, just to have a look see if nothing else.

What’s that got to do with Matcha you might ask? Because Matcha is that ingredient, that drink, that flavor, that intrigue that will make your restaurant talked about. Not everyone sells it. It is that niche that get’s your place Twitterable. Start a social networking angle and you’ll have free advertising to a group that’s bigger than you can comprehend.

Get Talked!!

http://matchagt.com/
http://www.smoothieessentials.com/
http://matchagt.blogspot.com/
http://smoothieessentials.blogspot.com/
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