Cold Brewed Usucha (Rei Usucha)
Have you ever whisked your matcha with cold water? While matcha is traditionally whisked in hot (~80-90C) water, it is refreshing to whisk with cold water in the summer! There is actually a name for this kind of usucha brewing technique: Rei Usucha (冷薄茶), or cold thin tea. It's a nice way to keep cool and have a refreshing drink!
Water temperature has a significant effect on matcha brewing. Heat is what extracts more flavor, and in particular, catechins (bitterness compounds), so whisking your matcha with cold water will leave you with a smoother result, but also limits the extraction of the more complex or delicate notes of your tea.
Also, with cold whisking, it can sometimes be more difficult to create a microfoam, so your chasen technique really matters here! With cold water, achieving a stable, thick microfoam is more tedious, as cooler liquids have higher surface tension, so the act of “stretching” the liquid and trapping small air bubbles inside is much harder. However, it is not impossible at all - I find that I can achieve a really nice microfoam when I use a quality whisk. Japanese chasen with thinner tines and a higher number of prongs make the task much more approachable.
Rei usucha offers a different flavor experience, and so it is very fun to try in the summertime! The result is a smooth, cool bowl of matcha that is deeply refreshing on a hot Wazuka afternoon! I highly recommend you give it a try.
Rei Usucha
2g high quality matcha powder (we used our handpicked Gokou)
80-90ml cold water
- Sift your matcha powder into your chawan (even better if it is summer themed!)
- Add 15ml of your water and knead in circular motion to make a paste.
- Add the rest of your water and vigorously whisk in M/W motion to aerate your matcha and create microfoam. A high quality whisk is helpful!
- Add ice cube for an even cooler drink! We ended up pouring ours over ice.
