チューブ流 = Chubu Ryu
Japanese matcha is one of the most mesmerizing teas in the world and the Chubu Ryu frothing method can help you whisk up a perfect matcha if you are not a Japanese tea ceremony master.
Matcha powder is made of finely ground tea leaves. The cultivation of these requires special skills, which we can fortunately leave to Japan’s most capable tea farmers. (All [real] tea comes from the Camellia Sinensis plant, but for matcha the same sub-species as for gyokuro is used. The plant also needs shading in the last three weeks before picking, and after steaming, the leaves are de-stemmed and de-veined to obtain a pre-product called tencha. Often tencha is stored for several months up to one year to allow for age-ripening).
Stone-milling tencha into its powdered form is another highly specialised skill, which we can fortunately leave to Japan’s craftsmanship. (Already the cutting of fine grooves into the stones that will mill the tea is an art mastered by only a few in the world).
Lastly, the vivid green powder needs to be made into a frothy drink. A few of us are lucky enough to have been served matcha by a Japanese tea master (in a 4-hour Japanese tea ceremony, or in a reduced Japanese tea ceremony, or in a demonstration ceremony). Some have also taken courses to improve their matcha serving skills and thus elevate their guests’ matcha experience.
Most Westerners, however, struggle with the preparation of matcha. It is for these that I have invented チューブ流 (Chubu Ryu frothing method). This preparation style is simple enough for matcha lovers to successfully prepare a bowl of this lovely drink, yet it retains a number of elements from the Japanese tea ceremony so that outsiders can still enter this wonderful world.
You will need
- A chawan (a small bowl to drink from)
- A chasen (a whisk, preferably with its stand, the kusenaoshi)
- A chashaku (a Japanese tea spoon)
- matcha powder
- a small amount of hot / hottish water
- a small pitcher / vessel to pour your hot water into before pouring it into the chawan
If you think this is a lot (for example compared to preparing a simple cup of black tea), then you are right. However, preparing matcha means entering a different world (and the attention to detail that normally goes both into tea, tea selection, utensil selection, tea preparation, attire, tea house design – yes, all just for the preparation of a bowl of matcha – is from another universe).
Chubu Ryu is a tea preparation style that concentrates on giving you a high chance on successfully preparing matcha and you won’t even have to go through the fukusa sabaki routine 5x during the preparation of your drink. (You can also seriously improve your chances of obtaining a beautiful layer of foam by sieving your matcha beforehand or when you receive it. It’s particles are just a few microns in size and they tend to cling together electrostatically).
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Take your utensils out and make sure they are placed as in the diagram, i.e. with the chasen (whisk) positioned in the chawan (bowl). If you follow one of the Japanese tea schools, this will not do at all. Having said this, Chubu Ryu is not intended for professionals but for people who want a frothy matcha as if they were professionals ;-)
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Pour hot water into a small, separate vessel. Any temperature above 75° will do as long as it is not boiling water. Chubu Ryu will automatically guide you to the correct water temperature required for a frothy matcha.
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From the intermediary vessel, pour all the water except 60ml to 70ml into the chawan.
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Your chasen now takes a hot bath while your “matcha water” is waiting for its turn in the additional vessel. At the same time, the chawan starts to warm up.
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Enjoy the zen moment: Wrap your hands around the chawan and feel the heat rising in the bowl wall. When the heat has risen to about ring finger or middle finger height, it is time for the next step.
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Discard the water that you used to pre-heat chawan and chasen.
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Add 2 chashaku (Japanese spoons, approximately 2x 1g) of matcha powder. (“Less powder for Europeans, more powder for Japanese people”, Sosei-sensei suggested when she introduced me to the tricks of the trade).
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Have a quick sniff, but do not tarry or the heat will escape from the chawan.
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Now pour your 60ml – 70ml of water. The heat of the chawan and the heat of the remaining water will balance each other out to a perfect frothing temperature of 70° to 80° regardless of the initial water temperature.
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Whisk your matcha, first softly to loosen up any lumps, then as quickly as you can in M-motion, reduce the speed in order to break up large bubbles (keep in m-motion), and finish in style with one last move clockwise as if writing a Japanese の before pulling out your chasen.
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Wash off any residues and place your chasen onto a kusenaoshi. (Buy one, or your chasen will deteriorate quickly or even become mouldy).
Time to enjoy your perfectly whisked bowl of matcha !
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