PRIME TIME
28 November 2016
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osen, D
llie R
O
Herb
Doc
M
Shellie Rosen is a Doctor of
Oriental Medicine. She can
be reached via her website
at Bodyvolve.com
F
all is the perfect time for
a warm, woodsy flavored
honeybush herbal tea known
as a tisane. A tisane is a hydrating,
nutrient-rich, satisfying experience.
Each sip takes you to the “terroir,”
or soil, where the plant was rooted.
Drinking tea and tisanes can be as
sensual as drinking wine, perhaps
even more so, as the senses remain
fully engaged throughout the
experience.
A “tisane” is a French word
(and the correct word throughout
the world) for herbal infusions
not containing “tea leaves” of the
plant Camellia sinensis. Camellia
sinensis is the plant variety behind
green, black, white, oolong and
pu-erh teas. Tisanes include most
other varieties of herb-infused
beverages like mint, ginger,
hibiscus and chamomile. Tisanes
are “gentle giants.” They are
caffeine- and sugar-free, packing a
lot of flavor and nutrients without
disturbing blood sugar or the
nervous system.
Many drinks hide calories and
caffeine without offering much
more. The Harvard School of
Public Health states that dangers of
sweetened beverages are partially,
the lack of satiety and dietary
quality they provide.
To experiment with tisanes
and explore the tastes of South
Africa, honeybush is a wonderful
adventure. Given the name for
the honey-flavored flowers that
grow from the bush, this sweet
and woodsy honey flavor carries
through in its fermented leaves
and stems. Honeybush contains
antioxidants like polyphenols
and flavonoids that assist the
body in numbers of ways such as
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Happy
Tisanes
Giving!
Lessons
in Herbal
“Tea”
reducing blood lipids, blood sugar
and balancing hormones. It has
been traditionally used in African
medicine as a cough syrup, which
is argued, but not fully proven, to
be due to its content of pinotol, an
expectorant.
Honeybush is very similar in
taste and properties to rooibos
and is often mixed with rooibos
in blends. Both are caffeine free
and perfect as an evening drink.
Honeybush is low in tannins so it
can be brewed for a long period
of time without tasting bitter.
The longer it brews, however,
the stronger the flavors, so if you
prefer just a hint of flavor, brew it
for a few minutes and then reuse
the herbs for a second or third cup.
Honeybush is perfectly sweetened
with the sugar-free natural herbal
sweetener stevia. Adding a bit of
coconut or almond milk doesn’t
work with many tisanes, but with
honeybush it creates a smooth
dessert drink you will begin to
crave.
For the perfect hostess gift
for holiday events, visit a local
tea shop (listed below) and find
a honeybush blend you can
feel proud to gift. New Mexico
teashops are experiences in
themselves, especially the Tea
House in Santa Fe, where they
will prepare for you the perfect
honeybush chai upon request.
Smell into the many canisters of
herbal blends to find the flavors
that invoke the spirit of the season
for you. This is the season for
generosity. Have a happy tisane
giving. Abundant Blessings.
Shellie Rosen, DOM, L.Ac.
Only honeybush is listed, but
these companies have many other
flavors as well:
New Mexico Tea Company –
Organic Honeybush
Figments Tea- Carrot Cake (a
dessert tea with chocolate, fruit
and honeybush)
Fragrant Leaf – Organic Rooibos
(the perfect honeybush partner)
Tea House (Santa Fe) –
Honeybush and rooibos with
chocolate
Artful Tea (Santa Fe) – Rooibos
varieties