Tea & drinks ── Nihoncha (Japanese tea)
Mugicha
Mugicha — roasted barley tea, not made from tea leaves
A drink brewed from roasted barley — not made from the tea plant at all. In the Edo period, a roasted cracked-barley infusion called mugiyu was popular among commoners, and from the Showa era on it's said to have spread as a chilled summer staple.
- Other styles
What it's made of
The raw material is barley, not tea leaf — mugicha is a drink brewed by boiling roasted barley. Though it carries the word 'cha' (tea) in its name, it uses no tea leaf at all, and containing no caffeine is a key difference from green tea. It's said to have a toasty aroma and a faint sweetness, an easy drink for moments when astringency or caffeine aren't wanted. Roasted barley brews into a liquor close to amber, and without any astringency or caffeine edge, only the toastiness and a light sweetness are said to stand out.
How it's made
Whole or cracked barley grains are roasted slowly over high heat to draw out their toastiness, then either boiled from cold water or steeped in boiling water. The depth of roast is said to change the strength of the aroma, with a darker roast giving more toastiness. When served chilled, it's often boiled and then rapidly cooled. Boiled from cold water for roughly 10 minutes as a guide, boiling it too long is said to bring out a scorched bitterness, so timing matters.
Why it took this shape
A barley infusion is said to have already existed in the Heian period, and by the mid-Edo period a roasted, cracked-barley brew called mugiyu is said to have spread as a common drink sold around town. With refrigerators spreading in the 1950s-60s, the habit of drinking it chilled is said to have taken hold, and it settled in as a summer staple under the name mugicha. Regions that grew a lot of rice and barley are said to have been where the habit of roasting surplus barley to drink took root most readily.
Before you go
Dishes in the same style
- KonbuchaA drink made by dissolving finely chopped or powdered kelp in hot water — again, nothing to do with the tea plant. Because kombu (kelp) echoes the word yorokobu (to rejoice), it's often served on festive occasions like New Year's or weddings.
- Awa BanchaA post-fermented tea from Naka and Kamikatsu towns in Tokushima, fermented by lactic acid bacteria. Coarser leaves picked from midsummer on are boiled, packed into wooden barrels, fermented for roughly 10 days to two weeks, then sun-dried — said to give a refreshing sourness.
Ingredients and dishes from this land
Contrast
- SenchaGreen tea made from young leaves grown without shading, steamed and rolled dry in what's considered the most basic Japanese tea process. It's said to account for the bulk of the country's tea production, prized for a balance of fresh aroma and gentle astringency.
- KonbuchaA drink made by dissolving finely chopped or powdered kelp in hot water — again, nothing to do with the tea plant. Because kombu (kelp) echoes the word yorokobu (to rejoice), it's often served on festive occasions like New Year's or weddings.