About Matcha Sweets

Nowadays, you see matcha sweets in almost every confectionery shop you visit, but actually, these matcha sweets were not originally desserts. It all started in the Kamakura period when Eisai introduced tea culture to Japan from China. At that time, matcha was not something to be enjoyed at a cafe like it is now, but a special drink consumed by monks training at temples and by samurai. It seems it was used to prevent sleepiness and to calm the mind. After that, in the Muromachi period, matcha developed even further. Through Sen no Rikyu, the culture of the tea ceremony became popular, and matcha changed into a unique Japanese culture that values hospitality and beauty. This is where "Wagashi" (Japanese sweets) appeared. Since matcha is a bit bitter, eating sweet treats with it made it taste even better. However, at this point, there were still no "matcha sweets," and "matcha" and "sweet treats" were strictly things to be enjoyed separately.

A big change occurred after the Meiji period. Western sweets like cakes and ice cream entered Japan from overseas. Amidst that, the new idea of "What would happen if we mixed matcha into the sweets?" was born. In this way, matcha changed from a drink into an ingredient for sweets. Matcha castella and baked goods gradually spread and became popular as a flavor unique to Japan. As time moved on, matcha sweets became much more familiar. Due to the development of refrigeration technology and the spread of cafe culture, matcha ice cream and matcha parfaits became popular. Because they look beautiful and are "picture-perfect," they came to be enjoyed by many people.

And in modern times, it has become known throughout the world as "MATCHA." Matcha sweets are now a huge boom worldwide, and their popularity has skyrocketed due to their beautiful appearance and healthy image, being enjoyed in various forms such as lattes and tiramisu at cafes. On the other hand, due to this high popularity, a matcha shortage is even occurring in Japan, and current matcha sweets are becoming a symbol of Japan that the world is paying attention to.

I myself first became interested in matcha through matcha sweets. For me, as someone who is a little bit bad with very sweet things, the balance of sweetness in matcha sweets really suited my palate. The biggest characteristic of matcha sweets is the balance of bittersweetness, and it is because of the bitterness that the sweetness stands out. Also, unlike chocolate and other ingredients, matcha is a food where it is easy to tell the difference in concentration, and you could say that the large variation in appearance and flavor intensity is also a characteristic of matcha.

By Sora Nakajou.