Coffee shops of today provide more choices for our morning drink than they did years ago. There are many more teas to choose from than simply green and black; espresso cocktails abound, coffee is served hot and cold.
Coffee shops routinely have international favorites on menus; while the olive oil-based Oleato was a fiasco for Starbucks, matcha has become rather popular.
Matcha has been a staple beverage in Asia for hundreds of years, especially in Japan, but you might be wondering if it has the same kick as your usual morning latte.
Starbucks claims that sixteen ounces of its grande matcha latte has sixty-five milligrams of caffeine. The grande espresso latte at the café has 150 mg by contrast. It is not so clear-cut though.
Therefore, how does matcha have so much more caffeine than a normal cup of brewed green tea if it is merely ground-up green tea leaves? Mostly, the difference is in the section of the tea leaves you are consuming.
Usually supplied loose-leaf or in a tea bag, regular green tea is produced from hot water soaking leaves from the Camellia sinensis plant. The actual leaves are filtered away whether you remove the bag from your cup or pour the steeped tea from a kettle.
Conversely, matcha powder is derived from entire leaves. The viscosity of the drink may vary depending on the water you use; the powder is blended with hot water until it frobs. From there, you may add milk and sugars to create a latte or whatever sort of cafe drink you enjoy.
Matcha powder tastes somewhat bitter, thus usually all you need is one teaspoon or two. You can calculate how much real powder is in a Starbucks large matcha latte by knowing that that quantity roughly equals 70 mg of caffeine. A small bit goes a long way.