Barley tea vs roasted rice
The two roasted grains of Japanese daily drinking, one drunk alone by the jug and the other almost always blended with green tea.
botanical
What is being compared
Point by point
| Aspect | Mugicha | Roasted rice |
|---|---|---|
| The grain | Barley, native to western and central Asia — a Near Eastern crop. | Rice, which GRIN records only as cultivated, with no native range at all. |
| How it is drunk | Alone, hot in winter and cold in summer, in place of water. | Almost always blended with green tea as genmaicha. |
| Flavour | Toasty and clean with a light body and faint sweetness. | Popcorn-like and nutty, sweeter than barley. |
| Caffeine | None. | None from the rice. Genmaicha contains caffeine because it contains green tea. |
| Dosing | Two to four grams per hundred millilitres — twice a leaf infusion. | As part of a blend, so the blend’s ratio governs. |
| Where it is drunk | Japan and Korea, at enormous scale. | Japan, and increasingly wherever genmaicha is sold. |
The short answer
Barley is the water-replacement drink and roasted rice is a blending component. The common confusion is assuming genmaicha’s caffeine comes from the rice.
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