Traditional Medicinals offers a variety of tea blends to help ease whatever ails you. I got an opportunity to try their Raspberry Leaf blend. I most often encounter raspberry leaf as a component in other tea blends, but this time I am brewing up a cup of pure raspberry leaf on its own.
Raspberry Leaf is supposed to help ease the discomfort many women feel during that time of the month. I can’t speak to how it affected my discomfort, but I can reflect on its flavor. This tea brew up a yellow amber color and tastes, mildly fruity and slightly nutty. It has a surprisingly full mouthfeel, with just a hint of black tea astringency. There is a slightly more vegetal aftertaste that I don’t prefer, but it mellows out nicely when mixed with a dash of honey.
I like this tea as an herbal alternative to the usual herbal tea suspects of ginger, mint, and chamomile. The ease of their sealed tea bags makes this an easy choice to pack when traveling or stash in your desk at work.
Browsing the Traditional Medicinals catalog, I see many other flavors I want to try and ailments I would like to treat. Even if the healing effects are more mental than physical, I love the comfort of a flavorful cup of tea.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Traditional Medicinals
Description: Of course, the delectable fruit of Rubus idaeus is a well-known and well-loved summer treat, but it’s the raspberry leaf you’ll find in this tea. With a silvery under leaf that is reminiscent of the moon’s glow, European and Native American women have used raspberry leaf for thousands of years for menstrual support, menstrual cramps and during pregnancy as a healthy tonic to help prepare the womb for childbirth.* We love this tea for its gently nurturing properties, and its robust taste, which is reminiscent of a delicate and mildly fruity black tea.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
You Glow Bro or You Glow Girl from BlendBee. . . .
BlendBee is a tea shop that gives you the tools and tea staff to help blend a perfect custom brew. But beyond their customer tea blending services, they have plenty of standard blends ready to go in their shop. You Glow Bro (or You Glow Girl) is one such blend.
This rooibos blend boasts lots of complexion-aiding herbs and berries, meant to be consumed before bed and help you wake up glowing. I ordered this blend with fresh new year’s resolutions in mind, looking for a more glowing tea and skin experience. I can’t say that I noticed a different in my skin, but drinking more herbal tea is always good for the hydration and relaxation that come along with it.
This blend is driven by the bold red rooibos and sweet honey extracts. There was a bit too much honey for my tastes, but the rooibos might be too sour without it. I think I would have rather added my own honey next time, rather than have it pre-flavored. There are hints of other spices in the blend like cinnamon or licorice root, but they are hidden beneath the rooibos.
This is a great blend for when you’re on a cleanse and want to feel clearer in skin, body, and mind. The bold rooibos will be the perfect taste to help you feel the herbs working their magic and helping you glow!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: BlendBee
Description:
This earthy blend was expertly crafted to give you that youthful glow. Best to drink before bed. Wind down & let it work it’s magic.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Cold and Flu Relief from Virginia Tea Company
Sometimes you need an herbal tea with lots of roots and leaves and ingredients to make you feel like you’re brewing up a cup of healthiness. With peppermint, yarrow flower, ginger, echinacea, and elderberry this Cold & Flu Relief blend from Virginia Tea Company really fits the bill. I’m not a doctor, but if you buy into this kind of thing, these herbal ingredients promote all kinds of benefits like aiding in digestion (mint), settling a nauseous stomach (ginger), and boosting your immune system (echinacea). There’s also a little pop of vitamin c from the tart elderberries.
This naturally decaf blend is good to drink any time of day, especially if you’re feeling under-the-weather and are getting ready for a midday nap. The overall flavor is smooth and minty, cooling on an itchy throat, with a slight sweet, licorice root undertone from the yarrow flower. Though there is ginger in this blend, the spice is very mild. You’re not drinking this tea for a kicked-up spicy chai. This is the perfect cup to drink when you need something soothing and gentle, or need a warm beverage to mix with honey to soothe a sore throat.
Whether you aren’t feeling well or are just having a hard day, this blend will help you find some relief and comfort.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Virginia Tea Company
Description: Mother always said the best thing for the flue is to drink something hot! Even better, this hot liquid also includes healing herbs to help your immune system fight your illness.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Francesca from Sicilian Tea Company. . . .
It’s always good to have a chamomile blend or two in your tea cabinet for those when you need something extra comforting and caffeine-free. Francesca from Sicilian Tea Co. could be the perfect choice for your evening cup of tea.
Some people consider herbal teas to be medicinal, with herbs like lavender and chamomile to help combat stress. Both of these fragrant blossoms are in abundance in this blend, bringing their lovely color and shape to the dry leaf, and the lemony and floral scent of the brew.
There are also cinnamon sticks, Saint John’s Wort, and licorice root in this blend. The cinnamon adds just a hint of spicy warmth, rekindling thoughts of spiced baked goods. A touch of licorice root adds smooth sweetness to the brew. As an added bonus, licorice root can help soothe a scratchy throat, so the ingredient helps make the brew extra restorative.
I’m not sure that Saint John’s Wort adds much flavor, but the herb is rumored to help heal against depression. I’m not sure if I felt those effects or not; brewing a cup of tea is always my happy place, and helps me out of a dark mood.
This tea is all herbs and blossoms, so it’s completely caffeine-free and full of natural flavors. If the licorice root isn’t sweet or soothing enough, it wouldn’t hurt to add a dollop of honey to your mug for a little extra sugar. After brewing a cup of Francesca blend, there’s not much left to do but sit back, relax, and have a sip of tea.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Sicilian Tea Co.
Description:
Naturally caffeine free, this chamomile blend won’t keep you up all night like some other sleepy time treats.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!