Hōjicha: What Is It and Why Everyone Loves It

If your feed has been full of toasty, caramel-coloured lattes lately, you've met hōjicha. It's matcha's roasted cousin, and at DRNK we've watched it go from a quiet menu item to one of our most requested drinks in Umhlanga and Durban. Here's what it actually is, and why it's earned the hype.

What Is Hōjicha?

Hōjicha is a Japanese green tea that's roasted over high heat instead of steamed and ground raw like matcha. That roasting step is everything: it turns the leaves from bright green to a deep reddish-brown and transforms the flavour from grassy and vegetal to warm, nutty, and faintly sweet, with notes of roasted caramel and toasted grain.

Hōjicha vs Matcha: What's the Difference?

Matcha and hōjicha come from the same tea plant, but the processing changes everything. Matcha is shade-grown, steamed, and stone-ground into a vivid green powder with a bold, concentrated flavour and a solid caffeine kick. Hōjicha is roasted, which lowers the caffeine content significantly and mellows the taste into something closer to coffee or roasted oats than traditional green tea. That's why it's become the go-to for an afternoon or evening cup, when you still want a ritual but not the buzz.

Why Everyone's Suddenly Obsessed

A few reasons hōjicha has taken over: it's genuinely low in caffeine, so it works for people who are sensitive to it or just don't want a 3pm crash. The flavour is comforting and dessert-like without any added sugar doing the work, which makes it incredibly versatile: iced, steamed into a latte, swirled through soft serve, or dusted over a dessert. And visually, that toasty brown tone against creamy milk is about as photogenic as drinks get.

Try Hōjicha at DRNK

We serve ceremonial-grade hōjicha across our menu in Umhlanga, from classic hōjicha lattes to soft serve and seasonal specials. If you've only ever had matcha, it's worth ordering the roasted side of the menu next time you're in. Come find us in Umhlanga and taste the difference roasting makes.