A Natural An-tea-dote

“Tea tempers the spirit and harmonizes the mind; dispels lassitude and relieves fatigue, awakens thought and prevents drowsiness,” Lu Yu, the Sage of Tea.

Tea is steeped in culture and history, its roots dating back to ancient China. According to Chinese legend, tea was created more than 5,000 years ago when leaves fell into the boiling water of Shen Nung, an early emperor. From there, tea became a popular drink, gaining a culture all its own.

So what, then, are the qualifications for a drink to be labeled as a tea? According to information from Jan Acker, community relations manager, Stash Tea, “true teas” are made from the dried leaves of the tea plant (Camellia sinensis), which was first cultivated in China and found growing wild in India. Different processing techniques are used on the leaves of the tea plant to produce different styles. Green tea is produced by steaming fresh-picked leaves before heat-drying; black tea is produced by allowing the tea leaves to ferment completely before firing; partially fermenting the leaves before firing produces oolong teas; and white tea, the least processed of all the teas, is not oxidized or rolled, but dried by steaming.

The other “tea” is known as herbal tea: “Anything that doesn’t contain the Camellia sinensis plant is an herbal tea,” said Shane Hart, category manager, Bija. Herbal teas contain a collection of herbs and spices and are often used for health purposes. The popular herbal tea rooibos, or “red tea”, uses a plant indigenous to South Africa. According to Marideth Post, minister of enlightenment, Republic of Tea, red tea is full of polyphenols and flavonoids, “which help reduce cellular damage caused be free radicals that weaken natural defenses.” Red tea also contains many beneficial vitamins and minerals. The Republic of Tea has utilized the health benefits of rooibos and created several different herbal tea blends for different health issues. Its Get it Going Tea blends rooibos, ginger, senna and anise to gently promote regularity and reduce cramping and gas. Other herbal tea blends include tea for various symptoms such as PMS, energy, weight control and detoxing.

Bija Teas created an herbal tea blend comprised of astragalus, cranberry, rooibos and three types of echinacea to help support the body’s natural defense system; its pure peppermint blend helps alleviate digestive disorders and insomnia; and Holy Basil tea helps alleviate stress, lowers cortisol levels and promotes a sense of well-being. “We’ve looked at traditional uses around the world for specific herbs and have taken that information and compared it with modern, scientific research,” Hart said. “We’ve come up with amounts and ratios of ingredients to put together into a [tea] formula to make it effective for people’s health.”

Yogi Tea has developed several different teas that use traditional Ayurvedic herbs. “ In developing our teas, we use ancient Ayurvedic principles. Each ingredient has a purpose; the herbs and spices improve well-being and contribute to an active, balanced and heal thy lifestyle,” explained Parampal Singh, director of marketing, Yogi Tea.

When creating an herbal tea, companies look at several different aspects of the ingredients. Hart noted Bija first considers how the herb is used in traditional medicine. “The criteria we use when selecting herbs has a lot to do with the medicinal value of the herbs,” Hart explained. “For example, with peppermint, there are different menthol ranges, and you need to look at the levels of menthol in the herb for it to have the maximum benefits on health,”

Higher quality herbs mean a higher price for the star ting bulk materials and for the finished tea product. Where the herbs are grown, how they’re grown, and how they are harvested are extremely important to tea makers, who want the best quality available for their tea formulas. Bija Teas obtains its ingredients from an organic herb farm in Chile, as well as contracted farms. “What’s really important to us is that the herbs are organic and if they’re not organic, they’re wild-crafted. If they are wild-crafted, they go through our quality control procedure to make sure there’s no chemical pollutants, heavy metals or toxins in them,” Hart said. Fair-trade is also important to Bija: “The herbs must be ethically obtained and produced and there are a number of herbs that we pay a premium for, so they are fair-trade herbs and we make sure the growers and harvesters are treated fairly.”

The cut of the herbs is especially important when creating teas. Hart said the new trend in tea packaging featuring see-through filters displaying aesthetically pleasing whole herbs and flowers may look nice, but is ineffective.

In order to have effective, healthful teas, herbs must be tea bag cut (TBC), meaning they are small enough to broken down and, in the shortest period of time, all the valuable components can be extracted out of the herbs. Herbs should be large enough that they don’t pass through the filter bag and leave residue in the cup.

Herb quality and freshness is perhaps one of the most important components when creating tea. When doing training sessions for Bija Tea, Hart will often open Bija teabags and their leading competitor’s teabags and compare the contents. Hart said the color of the herbs should be vibrant, and the smell should be obvious; the brighter the color, and the stronger the smells mean the fresher the herbs and the more effective the tea will be. Subsequently, the older the ingredients are and the more the ingredients are allowed to oxidize, the more the potency of the tea is reduced.

Retailers can help promote different types of teas and pique interest by asking consumers what symptoms they are looking to alleviate and helping them choose a tea that corresponds with their ailments. In-store seminars explaining the different health benefits of both true and herbals teas, along with samples of several different types of tea will help consumers choose teas that will not only quench their thirst but enhance their health.

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