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South China Morning Post

Japanese matcha has social media in a froth. Can we all just calm down a bit?

There has been a much-documented global shortage of matcha over the past year, with many reports pointing the finger at a certain set of vacuous, superficial influencers for the drink's surge in popularity. I don't think I've seen such rage and navel-gazing over a cup of tea since early 2024, when an American chemist enraged Brits by saying the best way to brew tea was to add a pinch of salt to it. Some of the macha huffing and puffing that has been circulating on my side of the internet includes a post by the platform QissaGoi (whose bio reads: 'Bringing Eastern stories to life'), who made a statement that immediately resonated with me. 'Matcha didn't go viral because of its taste. It went viral because it looked good.' Mic. Drop. Part of QissaGoi's post about matcha going viral. Photo: Instagram/ The post goes on to say: 'Before it was content, matcha was ceremony. It was prepared with stillness. Served with silence. A deep part of Japanese culture and care. Now it's iced, oat-milked, branded for 'balance'. Spirituality sold in a takeaway cup.'