How to drink koicha, and what thick tea is like
By Mio.KShare
Koicha, thick tea, is not drunk like a cup of tea. It is thick enough to cling to the side of the bowl, and in a tea room one bowl of it is made for several guests, who drink from it in turn. Each person takes a few slow sips, wipes the rim, and passes the bowl on. At home, it is simply drunk slowly, in small sips, because a little goes a long way.
The short answer: drink koicha slowly, in three or four small sips. In a tea room it is shared: one bowl is kneaded for all the guests, each drinks their own share, wipes the place they drank from, and passes the bowl to the next guest. It tastes intensely savory and smooth, and much less bitter than people expect, because it is made from a sweeter, gentler tea. It is meant to be drunk on its own, not in a latte.
I study tea in Tokyo, in the Urasenke school, where thick tea is at the center of a formal gathering. Here is what to expect when it is put in front of you.
What koicha is
The name means "thick tea." It uses roughly twice the powder of thin tea, usucha, in much less water, and it is not whisked to a foam but kneaded slowly into a smooth, glossy paste, closer to warm cream than to a drink. There is no foam on top. I explain the difference in usucha and koicha, and how to make it in how to make koicha.
What it tastes like
Deep, rounded and savory, with a long finish. People expect it to be harshly bitter, because it is so concentrated, and are surprised to find it smoother and sweeter than thin tea. The reason is the tea: koicha is made from matcha chosen to be sweet and gentle, so it can stand being that strong. A harsh, bitter koicha usually means the powder was not suited to it.
How it is drunk in a tea room
In a formal gathering, thick tea is the heart of the occasion, and it is shared. The host kneads one bowl for all the guests, and it passes from hand to hand. The details differ between schools, and a host will always guide a newcomer, but the shape is the same:
- Receive it with thanks. The first guest takes the bowl, bows, and lifts it slightly in thanks, as with thin tea.
- Drink your share. Turn the bowl so you do not drink from its front, then take your share in a few small sips. Leave enough for the guests after you: if there are three of you, you drink about a third.
- Wipe the rim. Clean the place you drank from, usually with a small damp cloth or paper, so the next guest receives a clean bowl.
- Pass it on. Turn the bowl back so its front faces the next guest, and hand it to them.
- Look at the bowl. When everyone has drunk, the bowl is returned and the guests look at it, as they would after thin tea.
Sharing a bowl can feel strange the first time. In the tea room it is the point: everyone drinks the same tea from the same bowl, made once, for them together. The sweet comes before it, as it does before thin tea.
Most visitor experiences serve thin tea, not thick, so you may never be offered koicha unless you attend a full gathering. I describe what happens at a thin-tea visit in what happens at a tea ceremony.
Drinking it at home
At home there is no one to pass the bowl to, and that is fine. Make a single small serving, sit down with it, and drink it in three or four sips while it is warm. A sweet before it helps, as it does in the tea room, because the sweetness sets up the depth of the tea. Making koicha for yourself is practice rather than ceremony, but it is a good way to taste what a matcha is really like.
Koicha or usucha for a latte?
Neither preparation belongs in a latte, strictly. A latte uses matcha as an ingredient, mixed with milk. Kneading koicha and then pouring milk over it hides exactly what makes it worth the effort. If you want a matcha latte, make it from a little powder and hot water; how to make a matcha latte has the method. Save koicha for drinking on its own.
Questions I get asked
How do you drink koicha?
Slowly, in three or four small sips. In a tea room one bowl is shared: each guest drinks their share, wipes the rim and passes the bowl to the next guest.
Is koicha bitter?
Less than people expect. It is intensely savory and smooth, because it is made from a sweeter, gentler matcha. Harsh bitterness usually means the powder was not suited to koicha.
Do people actually drink koicha?
Yes. In the tea ceremony it is the most important tea, served at the center of a formal gathering. Many people who study tea also make it at home.
Why is koicha shared from one bowl?
Because it is made once for all the guests together. Drinking from the same bowl is part of the meaning of the gathering.
Can I use koicha for a latte?
You can, but it wastes it. The depth that makes koicha worth making disappears in milk. Use a little matcha and hot water for a latte instead.
Where this fits
Koicha is kneaded rather than whisked, and it is hard on a whisk; a hand-cut Takayama chasen with springy tines copes best, and a sifter matters even more than for thin tea, because there is no foam to hide a lump. The method is in how to make koicha.
Written by Mio.K, who chooses everything in this shop by hand in Japan.