Late Autumn Teas
Air temperatures are finally dropping, and you can feel the increasing density of the wind as it hits the body in thick, horizontal columns of chill air. It's the kind of wind that clings, then sinks beneath sweaters and into the skin. This chill, damp air will put many plants into a light stupor, slowing their growth and metabolism—halting the ripening of those last green tomatoes still hanging on the vine . . .
If exposed to damp, chill wind continuously without an ample barrier, these conditions can make our own metabolisms and digestive systems grow sluggish, which is why we naturally begin to crave warming digestive stimulants, dark and black teas that help tone and astringe intestinal dampness, and nutrient-rich herbs that nourish blood.
In general, it is important to avoid cold, raw foods and beverages during the fall and winter months, as these may significantly increase symptoms of poor digestion, nausea, bloating, loose stools, incontinence, and excess mucus in the sinuses, lungs, ears, and digestive tract. Think of your stomach and digestive system like a little cauldron. In order to break down (cook, in a sense) food efficiently to nourish our blood that nourishes every aspect of our bodies, we must keep the cauldron amply warm and at a low simmer (not a boil). If we drink cold beverages, or eat cold, raw foods excessively, we are in essence pouring cold water onto the fire that is needed to “cook,” or break down our food. Too much cold extinguishes healthy Agni (digestive fire), and can cause a large variety of digestive disorders and other imbalances.
Traditional Chinese Medicine teaches that drinking hot black teas during the fall and winter months helps to keep our digestive system warm, dry, and cozy. However, adding seasonally appropriate herbs, such as sarsaparilla, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, and citrus peels to our daily regimen goes a long way in helping to keep digestive, respiratory, and inflammatory imbalances at bay.
HUNTRESS
We love Huntress this time of year because it is nourishing and balancing to the spleen, adrenals, and digestive system, as well as mentally uplifting.
Ceylon cinnamon (true cinnamon) is gently warming, and helps increase circulation and balance blood sugar. Cinnamon is a traditional remedy for insulin resistance; cold, damp coughs; gastrointestinal upset and nausea, and poor peripheral circulation.
Siberian ginseng (eleuthro) is a superior adrenal tonic and adaptogen. In Chinese Medicine, it is considered a remedy for “damp wind” imbalances that present as arthralgias, muscle spasms, and joint pain. It is also regarded as a qi tonic for the Chinese kidney and spleen, helps improve memory and immune function, promotes feelings of well-being, and helps reduce chronic fatigue.
Lavender is one of our favorite aromatic remedies for seasonal digestive dampness, such as bloating and gas, damp stools, nervous stomach, and intestinal irritability.
Orange peel is a premier digestive herb, used to stimulate digestive enzyme production and improve digestion, relieve intestinal gas, bloating, and colic, tone the lining of the stomach, as well as help resolve respiratory phlegm.
HEARTH
Hearth is a wonderful herbal companion for late autumn, packing a lot of nutritive power while being deliciously caffeine-free. We use fine African red teas (rooibos and honeybush) as the base for Hearth, which are esteemed for their high levels of antioxidants, cardio-protective compounds, vitamins, and minerals. Red teas are also anti-inflammatory and anti-diabetic.
Chicory + Dandelion are both pre-biotic liver tonics that help increase healthy gut flora and proper bile secretion in the liver and gallbladder. They are traditional treatments for poor digestion and nutrient absorption, bloating and nausea caused by an over-burdened liver, inflammatory skin and joint conditions, and problems with high blood sugar.
Cacao is high in flavonoids, and has many important and well-known health benefits, which range from improved venous elasticity, circulation, and heart health, to increased cognitive function and stress relief, as well as notable mood elevation due to its powerful mix of beneficial natural compounds, including: serotonin, endorphins, and phenylethylamine. Hearth was created in collaboration with our friends at Illuminating Hearts, and is a feature experience during their professional Sound Healing Sessions. All of their offerings help you tune up your body, mind, heart and soul through the magic of embodied energy and resonance.
WILD LEAVES
We are madly in love with Wild Leaves for its beautifully complex body, pairing sweet and spicy sarsaparilla root with a rare Wuyi Gongfu black tea, cacao, sunflower petals, and acacia blossoms. The result is a tea perfectly in-tune with the season, whose aromas immediately fix the imagination — soft detritus, redwood, wet stone, toasted barley, dried cherry . . . This beauty continues in the way the botanicals in Wild Leaves similarly speak to the needs of our bodies, minds, and imaginations in the autumn.
Black tea is nutrient-dense (amino acids, carbohydrates, proteins, potassium, major and trace minerals, manganese, polyphenols), helps prevent cardiovascular disease and improve heart health, supports a healthy gut flora, promotes oral health, nourishes the skin, helps improve cognitive function, helps reduce stress, and prevents certain cancers.
Sarsaparilla is a superior blood cleanser (alterative) and anti-inflammatory. We use sarsaparilla in Traditional Herbalism to treat inflammatory skin and connective tissue conditions, rheumatoid arthritis and gout, leaky gut, and irritable bowl syndrome.
Black tea is nutrient-dense (amino acids, carbohydrates, proteins, potassium, major and trace minerals, manganese, polyphenols), helps prevent cardiovascular disease and improve heart health, supports a healthy gut flora, promotes oral health, nourishes the skin, helps improve cognitive function, helps reduce stress, and prevents certain cancers.
Sarsaparilla is a superior blood cleanser (alterative) and anti-inflammatory. We use sarsaparilla in Traditional Herbalism to treat inflammatory skin and connective tissue conditions, rheumatoid arthritis and gout, leaky gut, and irritable bowl syndrome.
Osmanthus is a revered flower in Chinese culture and traditional medicine. It is rich in polyphenols, carotene, magnesium, B3, and selenium, among other vitamins and minerals. The flower extract has demonstrated antioxidant, neuroprotective, and free-radical scavenging properties in clinical studies. Specifically, Traditional Chinese Medicine uses it to help reduce coughing and mucus in the lungs, to freshen the breath, and to harmonize heart and spirit.
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