A Greener Start to the Day

This morning as I walked, still bleary-eyed, into the kitchen, I was hit by a horrible realisation: we had run out of milk. Although this didn't pose a major problem for breakfast - fruit, yoghurt and granola is my preferred option at the moment - it did mean I couldn't start the day with my usual cup of tea. In the old days I used to like a latte first thing in the morning, but over the past few months I find I just can't wait for that first cup of lovely, refreshing tea. A fairly strong black tea with milk is now, definitely, my preferred way to start the day.

But this morning, with no milk in the house, a rethink was needed. Obviously there was no shortage of other options, as anyone who has seen my somewhat chaotic tea-cupboard will tell you. But what to choose? A white tea? An oolong? A pu-erh? Or a green tea? In the end I decided to go for a Genmaicha, for no reason other than the fact I just fancied it. For those of you that don't already know, Genmaicha is a Japanese green tea that is blended with roasted brown rice. It was traditionally seen as a cheap tea - and certainly considered to be of a lower grade than some other Japanese teas such as the revered Matcha - as it has always been drunk by Japan's poor; the rice serving to bulk out the tea leaves and keep the cost down.

Today though, Genmaicha is widely drunk in Japan by people of all classes. And it's also a real favourite in my house. I absolutely love the combination of the grassy green tea and the nutty roasted rice. I find something very comforting in the flavour, although it has been known to divide opinion wildly. For instance, Coffee Boy is not at all keen, or at least he wasn't on the one occasion he tried it, but other friends I've made it for have absolutely loved it and vowed to buy their own tin forthwith.

Anyway, this morning, Genmaicha was my breakfast brew; and do you know, I really enjoyed it. It was just the right combination of refreshing and gutsy with a lovely rounded flavour and I didn't miss my usual breakfast blend at all. Although my consumption of non-black tea has been steadily increasing (from about 5% of my tea intake a year ago, to about 40% more recently), I haven't really changed my breakfast routine. But after this morning's experience that could change. At the very least, I no longer need to worry about running out of milk - although latte obsessed Coffee Boy may feel differently...