As we have said before, the relaunch of Schweppes Premium range contains new references for its main botanicals and countries of their origin. Schweppes Matcha has Matcha tea as its main botanical, which comes from Japan. Kyoto, to be more precise. Attentive to the phenomenon which a long time ago implanted itself in countries such as Spain, unswerving England, and which in Portugal is already just as concrete, Schweppes created this new mixer which brings the world of tea to the cocktail. The novelty isn’t exactly in the use of tea or the infusions of it for use in cocktails, but in the availability of a ready to use product.
For us to better understand this new mixer from Schweppes we must first understand its main botanical ingredient. So, what is Matcha? It is a tea which, just like green, white or black tea is extracted from the tea plant (Camellia sinensis). All originating from the same plant, it is their treatment which gives each type of tea its distinctive qualities. Matcha is obtained from young leaves which are protected from the sun, to increase their levels of chlorophyll. They are then harvested and ground very slowly in a stone mill until they are powder.
All the essence of Matcha tea is captured in the new Schweppes mixer. Its vibrant green colour immediately jumps out, as does its markedly astringent flavour. The use of tea and quinine together makes for a more bitter and herby taste, even though balanced with a little sugar.
Only slightly noticeable on the nose, the more citrus side of this mixer finds new life in the mouth, mainly one mixed with some alcohol. The freshness of lime gains a new dimension and it is that which punctuates the palate, while maintaining the greener and rougher touch of the Matcha tea.