Organic Women's Tea

Directions: Pour 200 ml of boiling water over 3 g of tea and let it steep for 5-8 minutes.

Allergens: According to the raw material specification, it contains no allergens requiring labeling under Annex II of Regulation (EU) No. 1169/2011.

Storage: Store in a cool, dry place, do not freeze, and protect from direct sunlight.

The dewdrop on the lady's mantle

The water droplets on the edge of the leaf are not dew. In moist soil and high humidity, the plant actively pushes excess water out through small openings at the edge of the leaf, a process called guttation. That is why the drops also appear on nights without dew formation.

Because the leaf surface is finely hairy and water-repellent, the drop stays on it as a perfect sphere instead of running off. Alchemists considered this water especially pure and collected it; hence the botanical genus name Alchemilla, the little alchemist's herb.

Three composite flowers in one blend

Yarrow, chamomile, and calendula all belong to the composite flowers, the most species-rich plant family of all. What looks like a single flower is actually an entire flower head: the yellow center of a chamomile consists of hundreds of tiny tubular florets, and the white petals on the outside are separate ray florets.

Yarrow bears the name Achillea after Achilles. Its species name millefolium, thousand-leaf, describes the finely divided leaves. Anyone who is sensitive to composite flowers will find the note on this in the Usage and important information tab.

St. John's wort and its perforated leaves

If you hold a leaf up to the light, it is covered with bright dots. They are not holes, but translucent oil glands in the leaf tissue. The species name perforatum, the perforated one, comes from this.

If, on the other hand, you rub a flower between your fingers, they turn red. The color pigment hypericin is responsible, which is why an oil infusion of the plant is traditionally called red oil. It blooms around St. John's Day, June 24, which gave the plant its German name.

Steeping time and bitterness

Yarrow and hops bring bitter compounds, and they dissolve more slowly than the essential oils. In the first three minutes, lemongrass and chamomile therefore dominate; after that, the more astringent side comes to the fore.

If you prefer it milder, steep for less time; if you want the bitter note, let it steep longer. The recommended range of five to eight minutes is therefore not an imprecision, but a margin of flexibility. And because bitter compounds dissolve better in hot water, the water temperature also makes a noticeable difference in taste.