I think some tea purists would shudder at my love of tea blending. And I understand.
I understand that there are some teas that need to be enjoyed on their own, without additions. I love the simple elegance of a quality jade green tea sipped from beautiful china.
I also love the humble kitchen-garden herbs of rural America that bloom anywhere, sometimes in the most unwelcoming conditions. I love their healing, nurturing qualities, and the simplicity of an herbal tea in a pottery mug, sipped at an old kitchen table. I love the way they live and play together in the garden. I love how some herbs release the medicinal qualities of another herb, or brighten its flavor.
I’m not an isolationist. I love both worlds and I mix both worlds, blending the teas I love with the herbs I love.
Teas are just like people. When our beautiful differences can shine unashamed by each other, we all bring life and nourishment to the world in a beautiful togetherness that doesn’t ask us to become like others are, but lets us each live in our own authentic way.
Tea Medicine
Tea began as a medicine and grew into a beverage, wrote Kakuzo Okakura in The Book of Tea. To me, and to many others, it is both medicine and beverage. Plants were the first medicine, and they still play a vital role in nourishing body, mind, and spirit. Sometimes, they come together into something that feels extra-special.
The tea blends I’ve developed focus on this synergy. For example, one of my favorite blends combines green tea with the energy of Yerba mate and Tulsi, and is flavored with orange peel and mint. For a morning blend, dandelion root and Tulsi joins a spiced Assam tea base. And there is nothing like a heart-soothing blend of red rooibos, elderberry, hawthorn, rose petals and rose hips. Hawthorn and roses for the heart – the color of red, just like the heart itself.
A few of my favorite plants
Aztec Sweet Herb is a naturally sweet herb I started from heirloom seeds. I love to use it for its gentle sweetness. It’s more subtle than stevia, though I do use stevia leaf at times.
Rooibos is an herb from South Africa, and is my go-to choice for caffeine-free blends. Rooibos is high in antioxidants and vitamins, is anti inflammatory, and is good for the immune system, digestion and skin. Its gentle, relaxing properties are also good for encouraging restful sleep.
Oatstraw is a favorite inclusion in any of my relaxing blends. Hildegard of Bingen, the renowned Benedictine abbess and healer, called oatstraw her “happiness herb” and for good reason. Oatstraw is a mild grass full of supportive nutrients, trace minerals, and vitamins. It’s a calming herb for the central nervous system, and especially good for a body that carries deep-rooted fatigue.
Tulsi is another favorite that features in quite a few of the teas in the shop. Tulsi, or holy basil as its sometimes called, is rich in anti-oxidants and has an immediate calming effect upon the body, helping to bring it back to a state of homeostasis. Tulsi eases the effects of oxidative stress, and is also known to soothe anxiety. It’s a mild and safe adaptogen for all seasons of life.
Hawthorn, which is in the same plant family as the rose, is nourishing to the heart, and soothes the effects of grief at both the physical and emotional level. The renowned herbalist, Rosemary Gladstar, says this of hawthorn: “It is specific medicine for those who have a difficult time expressing their feelings or who suppress their emotions. Hawthorn helps the heart flower, open and be healed.” In mythology, the hawthorn tree was the tree of love and protection – energies that speak directly to the heart. When I use hawthorn in a blend, it’s likely to be accompanied by rose petals, for roses and the heart are forever intertwined. The rose is the age-old symbol of love and, in the Ayurvedic tradition, is said to awaken inner beauty.
Black currant berries are another favorite, for they are exceptionally rich in vitamin C.
Lemon balm is a simple favorite. It has a lovely light lemon scent, and it’s also been known throughout herbalist history as a nervine plant – a plant that eases tense nerves. Lemon balm is known for boosting mood and mental clarity. In my tea blends, it’s often accompanied by calendula petals, which dance with a bright, cheery energy.
I’m always looking to expand my herb gardens and try different varieties of herbs using heirloom seeds. And I share more about my tea-growing and tea-blending process on my Instagram page, so feel free to follow along there if you like.
I have a dozen tea blends for sale in the online tea shop, and others on the way. But between you and me, there is nothing like drinking a cup of tea that you have just picked from your own garden. Almost anyone can grow a little tea garden. I love to see people doing that more than anything, and that’s my hope with all the tea wisdom and healing gardens inspiration I search out and share.
Tea has a way of softening us, making us vulnerable and receptive, writes Frank Hadley Murphy in The Spirit of Tea. If we take the time and continue to sit quietly in our chairs, savoring the taste and the moment, we may remember not only where we mislaid our spectacles but also where we have mislaid our dreams.
Here’s to The Tea Life. Cheers!
