Back to Basics: Plants & Water

The beauty of tea is its simplicity - leaves and water. We witness the dance of yin-yang as we heat the water and pour the water onto the leaves, letting them sit and change over time. Another beauty of tea is that every place and culture has its own form of tea. In every corner of the world, we humans are brewing plants with water for medicinal benefits, for ritual purposes, and for connection and enjoyment.

While many of us here enjoy Camellia sinensis tea, enjoying other herbs brewed in similar fashion gives us the opportunity to experience other flavors and characteristics of plants native to where we live and to places we are connected to by culture, lineage, or curiosity. For those of you who gravitate towards herbal tisane/tea, we are excited to introduce Mt. Olympus Flowers back to Teance.

The light, fluffy flowers of Sideritis (also known as ironwort, mountain tea, or shepherd's tea) from Mt. Olympus in Greece are a delicious addition to daily drinking, offering notes of peppery spice and sweet sage with a pale-green, golden liquid color. These flowers have long been used and loved by ancient Greeks, and some studies have shown their anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. Cleansing and refreshing, this is an old favorite among our team!

Other herbal go-tos for our team members are:

Chrysanthemum Flower & Goji Berry: Great on their own and delicious together, chrysanthemum flower and goji berries are staples used in teas and food in Chinese cooking. A complementary pair, Chrysanthemum flower is supportive in detoxifying, cooling, and cleansing while Goji Berry is gently nourishing. Together, they are helpful for clearing and brightening the eyes and supplementing the Liver channel in Chinese Medicine.

Buckwheat / Qiao Mai: This warm, cozy, savory and sweet buckwheat from Yunnan, China has an aroma that fills the room upon steeping. Full-bodied and toasty, we have heard customers describe our Buckwheat tea as like drinking dessert, bread, or even peanut butter. Another customer makes an herbal hot chocolate with our Buckwheat tea!

Visit our full herbal selection here.