J-Word for the Day

mugicha -- barley tea

Question: What do you take with you when you go to the toilet?
A*ibachan: Barley tea!

Note to self: What the hell is barley tea?

I found out over the weekend at Tokyu's food department. There it was, the words Barley Tea dominating the upper portion of a cereal-sized box. So this is barley tea, I thought perusing it. "Caffeine-free", it proclaimed, noting in its nutrition facts that it's even safe for kids to drink.



I love tea. Lemon, camomile, jasmine, ginger... though I hate those fruity ones. They somehow take the joy out of drinking tea.

So off the box of barley tea (16 tea bags, the box said) went into my cart. Did I say that it was recommended to drink it cold, as much as hot?

When I got home, I took out one of those glass pitchers that I have been using as a vase but had been out of commission since I stopped buying fresh flowers (too taxing for me to do every weekend) and filled it with cold water from the fridge. Then I dropped a bag of barley tea (the tea bags were huge!) and let it cool some more in the fridge.



I retrieved it half an hour later and poured me a drink. Erm, caffeine-free you say? It tasted like tepid coffee to me.

I checked the box again to make sure I didn't pick by accident diluted coffee (who knows they might be selling that now too though you might also buy it from your friendly neighbourhood cafe).

"Barley tea is a refreshing drink known in Japan for hundreds of years. It does not contain any caffeine, a great drink for kids! House Barley Tea (that's the brand) has a blend of light and deep roasted barley that provides a fragrant aroma, flavorful taste and toasty nuttiness."

That probably explains the coffee-like taste. Or maybe I haven't drank coffee in an awfully long time that I am confusing it with barley.

So do I take barley tea with me to the toilet? I'm not as baka as A*ibachan :)