The
Good Life
Matcha Byron
Non-alcohol options Simon Haslam
Victoria Cosford The cornerstone of traditional Japanese tea ceremonies for centuries, matcha is enjoying a burst of popularity for its health benefits. It’s finely ground green tea – its vibrant colour is due to the leaves’ high chlorophyll levels, and it’s supercharged with antioxidants. At the Mullumbimby farmers’ markets you can now find Ayumu Kishimoto, smiling from behind his Matcha Byron stall. After some six years in the Byron region, Ayumu started his business in late 2022. ‘I initially arrived in the Gold Coast,’ he tells me, ‘but couldn’t forget this place after visiting once. So I came back.’ Ayumu sources his matcha from Uji, a region on the south-east border of Kyoto which is renowned for its tea and is the birthplace of the Japanese tea ceremony. Its matcha powder is considered the highest grade in Japan, prepared using the youngest leaves. It’s typically whisked into either water or milk and offered as a beverage, and at Ayumu’s stall there’s a variety of ways you can enjoy it: matcha latte (the most popular, according to Ayumu), roasted green tea, toasted green tea latte, iced latte and bubble (or boba) tea – with tapioca pearls. You can select what type of milk you prefer – cow, almond, oat or soy – the sweetness level, and the topping, be it whipped cream or boba. ‘It’s truly enchanting,’ Ayumu tells me, ‘to have the people in Byron Bay, whom I love, appreciate and enjoy the matcha from Kyoto that I also love.’ He says that the response so far has been positive, with most people coming back each week, ‘drawn by the rich aroma and deep flavour of matcha, appreciating
Ayumu Kishimoto of Matcha Byron sells the finest-grade matcha, a healthy, ground Japanese green tea, harvested from the youngest leaves in a premium region south-east of Kyoto. Matcha muffins pictured right. For recipe, see facing page.
the unique balance of bitterness and sweetness.’ In addition, he has customers who come ‘specifically for the potential health benefits of matcha, and they report experiencing positive effects after consuming it.’ Ayumu’s past experience as a chef in Japan means there’ll also often be his beautiful green muffins on offer, examples being the bush matcha ones, studded with white chocolate and pecans, or the vegan ones with adzuki beans, gluten- and sugar-free. Once it cools down there’ll
be soba noodle soup with matcha incorporated. I have to ask Ayumu if he himself consumes matcha, in some form, regularly. His reply? ‘To be honest, I’ve fallen in love with coffee ever since I came to Australia, and since I drink coffee every morning I only drink about one matcha latte a week. Haha!’
Whether you’re going alcohol-free for a period, or just managing your consumption, the better your non-alcoholic drink tastes, the more likely you are to stick to your strategy. While I’m not a big beer drinker, at my local pub I’ll always grab a beer, and the other night I found the Hiatus Non-Alcoholic Pacific Ale, with its classic tropical aromas, but a little bitterness, perfect for the warm summer evening. Brookie’s Byron Bay distillery has also just released: a non-alcoholic G&T premix with Pink Grapefruit, inspired by their classic dry gin and tonic; and a non-alcoholic Blood Orange Spritz, which they say has a hint of bitterness like an Italian aperitivo, with low calories and of course no stevia. As someone whose favourite alcoholic drinks are the negroni and the G&T, I’m glad they started with these two options! The name of this Brookie’s range, ‘Free Spirited’, alludes to ‘normalising mindful drinking, leading a balanced lifestyle, and elevating the non-alcoholic drinks category’ without, as CEO Eddie Brook says, ‘getting too Byron Bay yogi-centric on you’ it’s about ‘keeping your vibes high and your sprit free’. Another local mixer I’ve been enjoying, simply on ice or with tonic and lemon, for example, is the concentrated Etota Bittersweet Aperitivo, which is also distilled in Byron. These are just a few of the welcome range of quality options becoming available locally – for those avoiding alcohol, the more the better!
Matcha Byron is at Mullumbimby Farmers Market every Friday from 7 to 11am.
Friday arvo beers Stone & Wood’s Byron HQ has a 31-tank brewery, so locals and visitors can have both their Stone & Wood favourites as well as exclusive pilot batches, and good food. Each Friday there are cold beers and live music in their leafy beer garden from 3:30pm to 6:30pm in the warmer months. They also have a great menu of meals and snacks presented by Byron Bay food legends 100 Mile Table. It’s a great chance to catch up with your friends and the local community – even the doggos are welcome! 100 Centennial Circuit, Byron Bay www.stoneandwood.com.au
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