Making Tea: How To Know You’re Doing it Right

Teas are the very most popular way to take herbs in most other cultures of the world, but the herbal tea habit hasn't completely caught on here yet, especially where I live in the coffee drenched Northwest. Its popularity is growing, though. In the traditional cultures that were the origins of natural medicine, teas, broths and soups are a daily part of life. That's why Yogi has been educating people about herbal healing tea for over 30 years, and encouraging us to drink healthy tea every day. Not to mention that all 60 of our Yogi teas taste delicious...there's no reason why your daily dose of medicine shouldn't taste good, too.

Tea is the form of choice if the herbs are mild; it is also usually the least expensive way to get in an herb. Some advantages of tea use:
• The entire herb is usually used
• No binders, additives or alcohol
• Inexpensive
• Easily swallowed (especially when the flavors are balanced and taste great)
• Convenient for high doses

There are many ways to make an herbal tea or broth. The two most common are infusions and decoctions. In an infusion (which includes tea bags-more on that later) you steep the herb in water that's been boiled; in a decoction you simmer the herb in a covered pan.

Technically, a cup of tea made from an infusion (steeping) or decoction (boiling) of herbs, other green, black or oolong teas is a tisane, but tisanes are also commonly known as herbal teas, herbal infusions or infusions. They are not technically "teas," but we all call ‘em that, anyway, just to thumb our noses at convention (and because it's less confusing to say tea, of course).

Infusions are best for delicate flowers, soft leaves, berries, and herbs that contain active volatile oils. Nettle leaves, passionflower, and gotu kola are in this category. To make an infusion, pour water at boiling temperature over herbs in a container and seal the container tightly (this will prevent volatile oils from escaping). Keep in a warm place and steep for a minimum of 30-60 minutes (or for a maximum of 24 hours). The active ingredient in most herbs comes out in the first hour of steeping-often in the first few minutes, depending on the herb and how finely it is chopped.

Decoctions are best for sturdy, coarse, tough herbs that need to be broken down-roots, barks, tougher leaves and stems. Astragalus, dong quai and willow bark are good examples. Herbs with volatile oils are usually not decocted because the volatile oils are dissipated by evaporation. To make a decoction, place the herbs directly in a pot of water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer, and simmer covered for 30 to 60 minutes. The water volume may decrease by up to one half.

For either tea preparation, squeeze every bit of tea out of the herb before sipping.

For convenience, you can make either bulk infusions or decoctions in large batches and store them, refrigerated, for up to a week. Keep the brewed tea in a tightly sealed container, preferably glass. Allow your daily dose to warm to room temperature and drink it, if you like, although for certain illnesses a warm (reheated, if necessary) tea is more effective, such as to reduce chills or induce sweating.

For some herbs, cold water, milk or other substances are actually more effective at drawing out the active ingredient than hot water. Gotu kola is famously decocted in milk in Ayurveda, for example. With some herbs, the active ingredient is not soluble in water, so tea is not an ideal preparation. (Goldenseal is an example of that category.) It takes some sophistication to understand these nuances as you get further and further into herbal medicine. A professional herbalist can educate you about the more intricate distinctions involved in preparing the herbs you use.

A plunger-style French press is a great appliance for infusions (pouring boiled water over the herbs and steeping, then pressing).

Teas prepared in tea bags are for conveniently preparing infusions. With our Yogi teas, the herbs in the tea bag have been specifically selected for this format, and are chopped to a very particular size to maximize rapid extraction into the water, allowing for the fullest healing dose.

To get the most out of a tea in a tea bag, put the tea bag in your cup and add 6-8 ounces of boiling water. Let the tea bag steep for up to 10 minutes, depending on your taste. Most of the active ingredients come out pretty early, but the longer you steep it, the more phytochemicals will be drawn into the water.

For green tea, limit the steeping to 3 minutes. The actives come out quickly, and most everyone agrees that the taste is, shall we say, not improved by longer steeping (green tea can get bitter if steeped too long - the health benefits remain but we like our tea to taste good too).

Be sure to squeeze out the tea bag after it's steeped-there're a lot of goodies in there!

Teas suitable to be brewed mildly (beverage strength), such as the Yogi selection of healing teas, can be taken in doses as high as 4 to 10 cups a day for adults, depending on the condition. A daily cup is perfect for prevention but if you really want to see results from a DeTox herbal tea, for instance, it's perfectly safe to sip multiple cups and to double up on tea bags.

I'm not sure if I've said this before but I'm more than happy to answer any questions you have about teas, specific herbs, preparations etc. Just ask in the comments and I'll respond! What's on your mind?