Beverages

Looking at beverages, Japanese green tea, sake and shochu are drinks which compliment Japanese cuisine.

Japanese green tea has been a favourite since the Edo period in Japan and is produced by steaming freshly picked tea leaves to prevent fermentation. In today's context green tea is considered a health-food due to the rich balance of vitamins which help prevent colds, lifestyle-related illnesses and…enhances complexion! It is not just used as a beverage but is used in a powdered form in sweets and desserts. There are a few varieties of green tea, sencha, gyokuro and matcha.

A unique tradition of Japan is her famous tea ceremony. This is not just about the consumption of tea, but is a ritual, which is a comprehensive art.

It includes, decorating the tea room for guests and expressing sincere hospitality to them. Matcha is served, which are tea leaves grown out of direct sunlight and then steamed and dried with crumpling the leaves. The leaves are then ground into powder using a stone mill. Sencha is the most popular green tea and is made by steaming, crumpling and drying freshly picked tea leaves. Gyokuro is the highest grade of green tea, which has a distinct sweetness that comes from growing the tea leaves by shading them from the sun.

Sake is a rice based fermented liquor, consumed with a meal and helps bring out the flavour of the food. Sake comes from various regions of the country and the flavour and aroma of each type of sake is experienced best in certain ranges of temperature – chilled, room-temperature, warm or hot.

A distilled liquor found in different varieties, in each region and includes rice liquors, wheat liquors and awamori. It can be enjoyed in many ways – on the rocks, mixed with hot or cold water, or with tea, soda or fruit juice, and is creating a lot of interest, especially among young people in Japan. If kept cool, in a shaded place, it can be stored for decades.