Teavana is expensive and Celestial Seasonings is boring. So why not learn how to make your own tea blends? When I first had interest in making my own tea blends, I couldn’t find much on the topic. Then I decided to figure it out on my own. It wasn’t difficult, but it took me some time and practice. I will share my process with you here.
First, when learning how to make your own tea blends, decide on your base (main) ingredient. The base ingredient will be the main flavor of your blend…the main character in your play, so to speak. It should be what you taste most prominently.
Do your research on base ingredients and play around with different ones. Don’t use a base ingredient that you know nothing about or have never tasted before. The base ingredient is the foundation for your tea blend…so choose a good one. Put a handful of your base ingredient into a medium sized bowl. A wooden bowl is best, if you have one, but glass/porcelain works well too.
Next, add complimenting ingredients/flavors. The amount of complimenting flavors you add is up to you; however, I typically go with at least 2 and up to 4 ingredients. Remember to choose ingredients you’re already familiar with and think about how they would compliment your base ingredient. You want these flavors to support, not overwhelm your base ingredient. Like the supporting characters in a play.
Pour your complimenting flavor(s) in with the base ingredient. Blend carefully with your clean hand or a spoon. You’ll want less of the complimenting ingredients than your base ingredient. I honestly just eye it! A tablespoon per ingredient should do it.
After you’ve blended the base ingredient with complimenting flavors, taste test your tea blend! Get your water boiling and test out your first tea blend. When learning how to make your own tea blends, it’s important to sample your creations. If you find one of the complimenting flavors overwhelms the tea, repeat steps 1 and 2 but add less of
that ingredient. There are no measurements when I craft my teas, I simply go off of what feels right! So don’t stress out over measurements, just eye it! Crafting the perfect
tea blend is all about finding that heavenly balance between the base and complimenting ingredients.
Now it gets really fun! When you’ve crafted your perfect tea blend, time to add the finishing touches. Time to get creative! In addition to herbs and teas, add different fruits, nuts, legumes, and sweeteners to make your tea blend one of a kind. As far as fruit, dehydrated fruits work the best because you can mix them right into your tea blend. And your entire tea blend will stay fresh for months.
And last but not least, if you have a sweet tooth, add a sweetener of your choice. You can do this with each cup or blend it right into your tea blend to save yourself time.
I’ve been blending my own teas for many years now and have a few that are my favorite. I’ll share them with you here.
There’s a few ways to purchase your base and complimenting ingredients. I prefer to buy herbs and teas in bulk through Mountain Rose Herbs. Their products are organic and affordable. In addition, I grow some of my own herbs at home including rosemary, mint, lemon balm, oregano, thyme and bee balm (to name a few). I harvest and dry my homegrown herbs and use them often in my tea blends.
When I first became interested in loose leaf teas, I had no idea how to properly brew or dispense the tea! Sounds silly but if you’re never worked with loose leaf tea, you might be stumped. There’s a few ways to do it: you can add your tea blend to a tea ball, re-useable tea bags, OR use a tea dispenser/diffuser. I prefer the tea diffuser most, because the tea floats around freely inside and flavors the infusion thoroughly. And if you really want to make the best tea in your neighborhood, research the right temperature and steeping times for your tea blend ingredients.
NOTE: The information and other content provided in this blog, or in any linked materials, are not intended and should not be construed as medical advice, nor is the information a substitute for professional medical expertise or treatment. Seek the advice of your healthcare professional before going on any herbal or tea regimens as some herbs may interact with medications and/or with medical conditions. Your health is your responsibility.
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Lois Luckovich | 6th Jan 23
Thanks very much for the hints. I’m going to start blending my own teas this fall when my garden finishing. Maybe before if my lemon balm grows well
Sally Frances Kilpatrick | 2nd Oct 21
Thanks so much for this post! I have just started working with loose leaf teas and blending them, but I wasn’t sure about what would compliment the different bases. This was very helpful.
Jasmine | 7th Aug 21
What a lovely post and really interesting and well thought out. Thank you. I’ve been considering for a while to make my own tea. It fascinates me. 🙂