The Many Benefits of Dill (Antheum Graveolens) Tea Review

This is my first tea review from the Toronto Total Health Show 2009.  It’s also my last post from Toronto, as I will be flying in a few hours to go to San Francisco then Las Vegas!  I can’t wait but I’m also in denial that I’m leaving for 16 days!  When I come back, I will be reviewing all the tea that I was sent before I left for the show.

The dill I am reviewing today is from Black River Gatehouse. Their site will be up next week, so stay tuned.  You can find Linda, the owner, Saturdays at the St. Lawrence Market North in Toronto.

It’s funny to review dill as a tea because people normally associate dill with cooking or pickles!  On the package Linda gave me, it said that dill is a:

Spicy warming herb affecting the stomach, spleen and liver.  Used as tea for children’s colicky stomach aches; also useful for adults for insomnia caused by stomach aches.

I steeped about a tablespoon and a half.  Dill is actually a perennial herb originating from Eastern Europe.  You can see from the image that it is the thick stalk that I am steeping for tea and some of the thin willowy leaves.

When I steeped the tea, I noticed a bit of oil on the surface.  Dill oil can actually be extracted from the plant.  The nose is fresh and quite frankly, reminded me of pickles and salmon!  Not necessarily a bad thing, but when you already have that association embedded into your mind, it’s hard to shake off.

The liquor turned ever so slightly into a shade of pale yellow.  On first sip I was pleasantly surprised, as the tea was very sweet.  The tea itself is very refreshing and light.  I really like it.  After a while of sipping it though, the roof of my mouth became a little numb.  I wonder why that is.

I highly doubt anyone would drink this as a regularly daily tea, unless you are some sort of pickle fanatic, but for what it does it is a great tool.  If you have stomach problems or gas, this is the herb for you.

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The Health Benefits of Calendula (Calendula officinalis) or Pot Marigold Tea

Pot marigold, better known as calendula, is a beautiful flower that also possesses a multitude of health benefits.  Rich in phytochemicals including lycopene, which is recommended to assist with the prostate and found in tomatoes, it is also rich in nutrients including – calcium, coenzyme Q10, vitamin C and vitamin E.

The actions and uses for this tea from Balch include:

Reduces inflammation and is soothing to the skin.  Helps regulate the menstrual cycle and lower fever.  Useful for sunburn, as as well as for neuritis and toothache.  Good for diaper rash and other skin problems in small children.

It is usually nonirritating when used externally.  You may notice that many ointments and pregnancy creams have calendula.  Calendula creams and ointments can be applied on wounds, bruises and burns several times per day.  Make sure the ointment contains at least 2-5 grams of calendula flowers per 100 grams of ointment.  Because of it’s anti-inflammatory properties, it is excellent for a baby that has diaper rash.

The taste and smell of this tea is sweet and flowery.  Use 1-2 tablespoons of dried flower petals per 250ml of hot water 3-5 times per day, or as required.  Flora, the brand of calendula tea that I’m drinking above says,

Calendula flower tea was traditionally used internally as a gargle for reducing inflammation of the mucous membranes of the mouth and throat, for soothing sore throats, laryngitis and tonsillitis, coughs, dryness of the lungs and digestive upsets. The tea was also used against fever, cramps and spasms of the digestive and urogenital systems. The most notable use of calendula, however, is for its use externally on wounds, burns and abrasions – and especially for rejuvenating skin and helping the body to prevent and/or overcome abnormal skin growths.

Calendula tea or a calendula tea bath is not recommended for pregant women.  You can buy organic calendula flowers from Frontier Natural Brands for about $5.00 here.

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Celestial Seasonings – Sleepytime Throat Tamer Tea Review

There are so many amazing tea companies from Colorado, and Celestial Seasonings is another one of them. I’ll be reviewing one of their caffeine free herbal supplement teas today – Sleepytime Throat Tamer.  To start, the ingredients of this tea are chamomile, licorice, tilia estrella (a flower), ginger root, slippery elm bark, spearmint, west Indian lemongrass and natural lemon and ginger flavours with other natural flavours (contains soy lecithin).  Phew what a mouthful – no pun intended.  The dosage of the first 5 ingredients are:

Chamomile (Matricaria recutita) (flowers) 550mg
Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) (root) 260mg
Tilia estrella (Ternstroemia pringlei) (flowers) 150mg
Ginger (Zingiber officinale) (root) 70mg
Slippery Elm Bark (Ulmus rubra) 35mg

The purpose of this tea is to soothe minor throat irritations that may occur between seasonal changes.  This is all too common when the harsh cold winter turns into spring!

Herbal supplement in a cup

I brewed this caffeine free tea with water that was almost at boiling point for 6 minutes or so.  With herbal teas you can always steep longer to get a stronger flavour without risk of it being too bitter.  After steeping the tea became a dark golden brown.  It smelt heavily of lemongrass and chamomile when I first dipped my nose into the tea.  Now comes the sipping.  This tea was very light in body and is very soothing.  There was a strong kick to the tea from the licorice, ginger and slippery elm.

If you’ve never had licorice as a root before, there is the possibility that you may not like this herb!  Licorice as a herb gives off a sweet and almost minty type of sensation in your mouth.  It can be very refreshing and cooling to the body.  it’s great for reducing inflammation and detoxifying.  Please note licorice root is not safe for pregnant or breastfeeding women, so if you are, do not take this tea.

Overall, I recommend this tea, if you need something soothing to sip throughout the day, in the evening or at night to sooth the throat and cool the soul.

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Two Leaves and a Bud – Organic Pomi-Berry, Peppermint and Chamomile Tea Review

I’m going to be reviewing a trio of caffeine free herbal teas from Two Leaves and a Bud today.  It’s 5pm and I really don’t want caffeine coursing through my veins if I go to hot yoga tonight.  The three teas are peppermint, chamomile and Pomi-Berry.

like a hug from your favourite grandmother

I’m starting with the Pomi-Berry first.  The ingredients are organic: chamomile, lemon balm, lavender, apple, linden flowers, lemongrass, hibiscus, strawberries, raspberries and natural berry flavor.  The tea is a nice smell of chamomile and berries.  The color of the tea is brown with a red tones underneath.  The tea tastes strongly of chamomile and apples!  There is a hint of citrus and lemongrass on the end note.  The taste is very mellow.  I think this would be a good tea to drink while you’re camping.  This tea is so down to earth and cozy, it’s like hug from your grandmother.

full fat buds

Next is the chamomile tea.  This is every sick persons favourite.  The ingredients are pure organic Egyptian chamomile flowers.  The flower heads are left fully intact in the teabag.  Many companies choose to use broken down versions of the flower heads.  This tea is silky smooth, light and super gentle.  I love their version of this classic herbal tea.

Finally we have the 100% organic peppermint tea.  Peppermint is excellent for digestion, so after a heavy heavy meal this would be the tea to enjoy.  This peppermint definitely has some body and kick to it.  Some peppermint is thin and watery without much taste.  The mintyness is akin to my mouthwash!  Wow.  It’s very nice.  Talk about peppermint umami.  I could really go for some chocolate right now to complement this cup!

7/15 down – 8 more teas to go!

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Tea Battle – Pixie Organic Dark Roast Mate versus Canarias Yerba Mate

This is tea review number 3 from the CRFA show.

Yerba mate tea from the yerba mate plant contains a wealth of health benefits.  According to the Yerba Mate Association of the Americas, some of the health benefits of this amazing cited were:

• Yerba mate is a central nervous system stimulant that provides a unique sustaining energy due to its complex combination of xanthine alkaloids including caffeine, theophylline (also found in green tea) and theobromine (the “euphoriant” also found in chocolate), as well as pantothenic acid – which prevents over-stimulation of the central nervous system.
• Yerba mate is also a rich source of magnesium, which has been proven to ease anxiety without over-stimulating.
• Yerba mate quickens the mind and increases alertness and acuity.
• The yerba mate plant contains a number of powerful phytochemicals called saponins.  These important phytochemicals, along with the many antioxidants found in yerba mate, stimulate the immune system and help the body fight disease.
• Yerba mate can reduce the severity of some allergies and hay fever.

pixie mate on left

Yerba mate tastes amazing.  I’ll be reviewing Pixie Mate’s Organic Dark Roast Mate and Canarias Yerba Mate from Brazil.  I wanted to see how an instant yerba mate would compare to the real thing.  Canarias Yerba Mate is one of the most popular brands of yerba mate in the world and one of the first yerba mate’s I tried.  I apologize in advance though as I do not have the traditional bombilla and gourd for drinking yerba mate.

Pixie mate first.  The ingredients listed are: organic yerba mate, organic Black Tea, organic roasted chicory root, organic roasted ramon nut.  The smell of the tea reminds of a stronger version of the Chinese gunpowder tea.  This tea is very clean and light; the taste reminds me of Chinese gunpowder too, but with a nuttier hazelnut finish.  Side note: Chicory root is a very popular natural substitute for coffee.  If you’re looking to kick the coffee habit you can transition using a chicory root based coffee such as Teeccino or Inka.  You can generally find this substitute in any supermarket or health food store. The brew is medium bodied, and I think it would make a fantastic iced tea with some honey and ice cubes in the summer.  Overall as a dark roast mate, it doesn’t work.  It’s too weak and doesn’t taste like yerba mate much, but as a regular tea I would get this again because I like the nutty flavour.  I would love to have this iced cold after hot yoga.  Yum!

canarias yerba mate close up shot

The Canarias Yerba Mate only has leaves, and does not contains twigs.  A yerba mate with twigs would have more bitter characteristics than a blend without.  The body is heavier than the pixie mate.  The smell of yerba mate is very earthy, bold and complex; it’s almost like smelling boiled dirt.  If you love nature and the smell of the outdoors, then you will appreciate this drink.  The color of the brew reminds me of muddy water that’s been conjured up after you accidentally step into a still puddle.  Everyone in South America consumes this drink.  It’s even common for people to pass it around family style while sharing the brew from one gourd.  The Canarias yerba mate is sweet and woody when you first drink it and finishes with bitter notes.  if you haven’t tried this, I high encourage you and a group of friends to get together and brew this.  I just used a small teapot with a built in infuser to brew it.  1 kg cost me $4 Cdn at a local supermarket.

Phew.  Too much yerba mate though will make you feel very very lightheaded.  My friend J. describes the feeling to akin to being high.  I think I need to go lie down.

I just wanted to add the Bali’s Best Tea Candy that I got from the CRFA show was really really good.  I tried the classic iced tea, the green tea latte and the citrus green tea.  The classic iced tea was my favourite.  It’s a great little candy to pop when you need something to pick you up.

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The Many Benefits of Red Raspberry Leaf Tea (Rubus idaeus)

According to the giant herbs and nutrition bible that almost everyone consults in the natural health industry, Prescription for Nutritional Healing by Phyllis A. Balch (4th edition), Red Raspberry is useful for the following:

“Reduces menstrual bleeding, relaxes uterine and intestinal spasms, and strengthens uterine walls.  Promotes health nails, bones, teeth, and skin.  Good for diarrhea and for female disorders such as morning sickness, hot flashses, and menstrual cramps.  Also heals canker sores.  Combined with peppermint, good for morning sickness.”

It is also rich in vitamins and minerals including vitamin C, calcium, magnesium and iron.  People who aren’t familiar with the many uses of herbs, always seem to find it hard to believe that one herb or tea is useful for so many different things!  Hey if you tried it and it works for you for many things then stick with it!

When I worked at a local health food store for a few months, because I thought I wanted to buy it!, I used to recommend red raspberry tea a lot to pregnant woman, women who had cramps, and people who had nausea. We carried the tea in both the tea section and the “women’s section”.  Traditional Medicinals has a good organic raspberry tea that I recommend.  Each teabag contains 1,750 mg of red raspberry leaf.  They recommend the tea as a “uterine tonic for difficult and painful menstruation and for use during pregnancy in preparation for childbirth”.

Lost of women swear by this tea and say it helped them with their pregnancy.  From American Pregnancy:

Medical studies have shown that red raspberry leaf can be consumed safely during pregnancy and can decrease the length of labor and decrease the number of interventions used such as artificial rupture of membranes (AROM), assisted delivery, and cesarean delivery.¹ Red raspberry leaf also seems to help prevent pregnancies from pre-or post-term gestation (delivering too early or too late).

There is some controversy about whether this should be used throughout pregnancy or just in the second and third trimester, so many health care providers remain cautious and only recommend using it after the first trimester.

You can buy Organic Red Raspberry Leaf Tea Leaves loose from Frontier Natural Brands for About $5.00 here.

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