Clad in an elegant kimono of pale green, tea ceremony instructor Keiko Kaneko uses a tiny wooden spoon to place a speck of matcha into a porcelain bowl.
She froths up the special powdered Japanese green tea with a bamboo whisk after pouring hot water with a ladle from a pot simmering over hot coals.
Her solemn, dance-like movements celebrate a Zen-like transient moment, solitude broken up by the ritualistic sharing of a drink.
No wonder Kaneko and others serious about sado, or “the way of tea”, are a bit taken aback by how matcha is suddenly popping up in all sorts of things, from lattes and ice cream to cakes and chocolate.
Tea ceremony instructor Keiko Kaneko performs a tea ceremony at her tea house in Tokyo. Photo: APNo one knows for sure who started the global matcha boom, which has been going on for several years. But it is clear that harvests, especially of fine-grade matcha, cannot keep up with demand.
AloJapan.com