By Jenny Maurer

Today was going to be the day I interviewed someone for the Zines of Racine feature, but with the virus emergency, the person chose to be interviewed via email.  Hence, I have decided to instead write a brief lament on a matcha tea latte.

I have tried most of the lattes  and mochas on the menu here at The Branch, but today is the first time I have tried the Matcha tea latte. Matcha is a green powder used throughout Japan and China.  According to Wikipedia, during the Tang Dynasty, it was made into tea bricks for trading and it is currently used for Japanese tea ceremonies.  Matcha also plays a big part in the flavoring of noodles and many Japanese sweets.

  It seems, depending on what is added to the tea, it gives off different flavors. The green tea I have had at places like Sticky Rice have a milky  taste , almost like rice pudding.  The chai latte, in comparison, has a fruity sweet aftertaste. This may be because a Matcha tea latte is usually sweetened with agave syrup, at least according to a Bon Appetit recipe. However, I talked to Kristina Campbell and she told me The Branch makes it with green tea and regular milk. Overall, I really enjoyed this latte and it has made me curious about what makes the flavor of green teas so diverse.