Rooibos

Here at BMT co. we're not fond of decaffeinated plants. If something has caffeine naturally (good 'ole camellia sinensis aka... tea), it needs to undergo a chemical process to remove that caffeine.

To meet your demand for great tasting "tea" without the jitters, we offer a LARGE selection of rooibos blends! We use the rooibos base to create all your fave flavours without the caffeine rush.

But there is so much more to this amazing plant than just offering a caffeine free option… let’s take a look!

 

What is rooibos?

Also known as red bush tea or African red tea, rooibos derives from the plant Aspalathus linearis - meaning it’s not technically tea.

(Check out our "What is Tea" blog for more on that!!)

Originally from South Africa, rooibos means “red bush” in the Afrikaans language.

Rooibos is characterized by its deep red colour and long needle shaped leaves. Red rooiboshas been oxidized (like black tea) whereas green rooibosi s the un-oxidized version of the plant (like green tea!).

 

Why rooibos?

 

Rooibos is a wonderful option for imitating the base of a black tea without the caffeine. It has just enough body to also hold some milk or honey if you wanted to add that, without any curdling - as we often get with other caffeine free options, like herbal blends.

As an example, we carry a 'rooibos earl grey' in store. This is red rooibos, soaked in cold pressed bergamot oil. So, you get your cup of earl grey with a spot of milk and honey, just the way you like it, sans caffeine!

 

• Rooibos tea is packed with important minerals like calcium, iron, magnesium, zinc and alpha hydroxyl acid. 
• Rooibos grows nearly exclusively in a small mountainous area of the Western Cape province of South Africa.
• Rooibos is super high in vitamin C!
• Mothers in South Africa feed it to babies in bottles to soothe colic. This is due to it’s anti-spasmodic qualities that activate potassium ions throughout the body
• Rooibos has more antioxidants than green tea!

 

 

Rooibos has a delicate & sweet flavour. With some earthy notes, slightly nutty and very subtly smoky undertones.

This makes it a beautiful beverage on its own but also very easy to disguise in a blend.

 

We use rooibos as a base for a lot! From our 'Hakuna Matata Chai' to our citrus/cardamon 'Thornbury Rooibos Sunset' blend which is also wonderfully refreshing iced and dare we say it, as the base of a cocktail paired with gin!

 

 

Rooibos is an amazing plant with wonderful health benefits.

If you have shied away from rooibos before, come by and chat with us, we are sure we can find the right blend for you!