is herbal tea real tea?



I think I understand the basics. Tea is when you take leaves from the tea plant, and put hot water over them. Infusion is when you take leaves from a different kind of plant and put hot water over them, is that right? So ‘tea’ is actually used as a proprietary name when in fact it’s generic? Sort of like when we say ‘can I have a Kleenex’ when we mean a tissue? If this is the case, how can you make your own herbal teas? The reason I ask this is, I recently bought something that was called ‘anise’ and looked like seeds from the produce market. Just as an experiment (and because I didn’t know what else to do with it!) I put it in a teapot, poured hot water over it, and then made ‘tea’ from it. It was delicious. Is this in fact how they make herbal tea? And must it be seeds? For example, to make orange tea, would you use orange seeds? Or orange peel? Or orange leaves? How about mint tea? I have mint in my garden. Do I just take some of the leaves and add hot water?


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8 comments a “is herbal tea real tea?”

yes it’s real not imaginary
mint tea usually is mint infused into tea blends

Technically speaking, tea is made from tea leaves. The others called herbal teas are actually infusions of various herbs steeped in boiling water.

You are exactly right. I make mint tea all of the time, using the mint, washed of course, out of my garden. There are so many different types of tea, that a search engine on tea would be easier than having me list all of the different varieties and how to make them.
Tea made from tea leaves is the original tea, and the white tea is the best for health reasons…the antioxidants. Next is green tea and then various black teas. All are good, but if you want the best that tea has to offer try the white or mixed white/green teas.
Herb teas are made from herbs, as it states. Be careful, though, because some companies use such a small amount in the bag. It is best to buy loose tea, if you are really getting into teas, as you get the best concentrate.
Have fun, and know that you are drinking healthy drinks with tea.

Go for it. Try not to make tea of non-edible plants.,but feel free to experiment with all the eatable ones. Also, some teas are fermented, that is, bacteria is allowed to grow on the leaves and change the taste characteristics. Black tea is in fact fermented green tea. Have fun, read medieval herbology texts, become an expert!

Not only is herbal tea real it is healthy. Many teas help with minor ailments: stress, headaches, digestive problems, and more.

You’re right, herbal “teas” are actually herbal infusions, and can be made from many things.

The word tea is misused for these things, as tea is actually an infusion of the Camellia sinensis plant.

Herbal teas can be made from different parts of the plant, and each part will tend to taste different.

Mint leaves are steeped to make mint tea. Usually, dry leaves are used, but you might try using fresh.

You can add orange peel to other teas, but the peel is oily and a tea that’s stron enough to have a lot of flavor would probably be oily and unpleasant.

Anise or fennel seeds are good, as you know.

Slices of raw ginger, or ground ginger makes a lovely tea.

Lavender flowers are good. Chamomile flowers are also nice.

Experiment, mix different things together. Try new stuff. :o )

No. It is a tisane, technically. Real teas comes from camellia sinsensis leaves.

Tisanes and infusions are similar; but they are NOT teas.

As you said tea is l leaves and there are various kinds, each one has its own flavour. They are recommended for various uses and the herbalist would advise. Orange tea would be made with leaves, all the kinds are made with leaves including the Mint tea

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