I went on a trip to Toronto last weekend with a friend. Naturally, I had to head to the Tea Emporium (a friend here requested the "Garden of Eden" tea, which is a green tea with lots of berries in it. Really tasty and fragrant).
Anyways, my friend, her cousin and I perused the tea catalog for other interesting looking teas/tisanes after picking up "The Garden of Eden". We were all curious about the Ayurvedic Teas - first because we weren't sure what ayurvedic medicine consisted of and second, well, how does the tea help? :)
Trusty Wiki says:
Ayurveda (Devanāgarī: आयुर्वेद, the 'science of life') is a system of traditional medicine native to India,[1] and practiced in other parts of the world as a form of alternative medicine.[2] In Sanskrit, the word Ayurveda[3] comprises the words āyus, meaning 'life' and veda, meaning 'science'
Ayurveda stresses a balance of three substances: wind/spirit/air, phlegm, and bile, each representing divine forces.[7] According to Ayurveda, these three regulatory principles--Doshas (Devanāgarī: त्रिदॊश्)—vata (wind/spirit/air), pitta (bile) and kapha (phlegm)—are important. It is believed that building a healthy metabolic system, attaining good digestion, and proper excretion leads to vitality.[9] Ayurveda also focuses on exercise, yoga, meditation, and massage.[10]Thus, body, mind, and spirit/consciousness need to be addressed both individually and in unison for health to ensue.
So, we were all given a quiz to determine what our Dosha was and the Dosha with the least "points" was the tea that we had to drink to balance everything out.
If you want, you can take a quiz here:
I ended up being Pitta deficient, so bought that herbal infusion which is a mixture of: fennel, licorice, cardamom, cloves, orange zest, ginger, cinnamon, cocoa, linden, raspberry leaf, hibiscus, chomomile, pepper, alfalfa and rosehip.
It has a mild taste and is not disagreeable in the least :) As a bonus, it has no caffeine if you want to fall asleep.
I also tried the Kapha infusion (which was what my friend's cousin was deficient in). It had a bit of a stronger cinnamon taste, if I remember correctly. The only one I haven't tried is Vata.
In addition, these Ayurvedic infusions aren't very expensive. It's about 7$/50 g, which will last you a while. Each teaspoon is good for 2 infusions. We'll see how balanced I am after a while, I guess. Regardless, it tastes good, so I'm not complaining.
Ayurvedic tisanes Kapha and Pitta get 4 teacups out of 5 :D
Another interesting tisane I tried was something called Lapacho. It was in the same section as the Mate - and happens to also be grown in South America.
Here's what wiki has to say (i'm wiking tonight it seems):
Lapacho or Taheebo is a herbal tea made from the inner bark of Pink Ipê, Tabebuia impetiginosa.
Lapacho is used in the herbal medicine of several South and Central American indigenous peoples. It appears to have antimicrobial, antiviral, and antifungal properties, and is used topically to treat minor skin injuries, such as insect bites, as well as for other conditions such as psoriasis. Lapacho is used by herbalists as a putative treatment for cancer, HIV, candida and numerous other maladies. Studies by the U.S. National Cancer Institute showed that lapacho may prevent, delay, or treat cancer; but the oral doses needed to reach useful levels in the blood may also cause side effects such as anemia, diarrhea, dizziness, nausea, and vomiting.[1] The active ingredients such as lapachol have been found to possess significant toxicity.[2][3][4]
Taheebo is the common name for the inner bark of the Red or Purple Lapacho tree. This tree grows high in the Andes of the South American rainforest. The Red Lapacho's purple-colored inner bark was one of the main medicines used by the Incas and has been used for over 1,000 years by the Callawaya tribe, descendants of the Incas
What the lady at the store told us was that it increases your immunity, is high in minerals such as calcium and is generally good for your health. Now, I'm not certain considering what is quoted above. It seems that the verdict is somewhat ambiguous. Though, I guess in small doses it can't be all that bad. She also said it's an acquired taste. I agree there. It tasted like what I imagined brewed twigs to taste like. Not old twigs though...young, fresh twigs? It wasn't gross, just interesting. My friend was quite taken with it and so I think she'll be buying some. I'm not sure I'm sold on the tisane, but I'd probably have some if it's there.
Lapacho gets 2.5 teacups out of 5 because it tastes like twigs and has sketchy benefits :P
Finally, my friend's cousin bought Wintermelon Rooibos tisane from the Tea Emporium. Rooibos generally has a light flavor and is easily mixed with other things to give it an interesting taste. I'll probably do a more extensive Rooibos text some time later. Her cousin is big on non caffeine stuff, so this works.
This dude gets 4/5.
I'm slightly lazy and so did not include the tea cup pics. They'll come later :) (or not).
Anyways, if you happen to be in the Toronto area, The Tea Emporium is a great place to check out. The location near Bernard is in a mall and is really just a boutique with teas and tea accessories. You can also have tea to go.
If you want to sit down, drink tea and maybe have some treats, the location on Eglinton avenue is bigger and lets you do that.
There is also Davids Tea in Toronto, but I didn't check it out over there.
Happy Tea Drinking,
Until next time :)
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