Traditional Herbal Drinks Still Loved Today

Chamomile is one of the oldest documented medicinal herbs in the Western world. Evidence of its use appears in ancient Egyptian records; it was cultivated in monastery gardens across medieval Europe; and it remains, today, the most widely consumed herbal tea in the world by most estimates.

Its longevity is easy to understand once you taste a well-brewed cup. The flavour — gentle, apple-sweet, faintly floral and warming — is immediately pleasant and entirely accessible. It suits any time of day and almost any season, though it is most beloved as an evening drink.

The traditional preparation is unchanged from what it would have been centuries ago: dried chamomile flowers steeped in hot water for five to six minutes. Simple, effective and beautiful to look at. Our full chamomile tea guide covers the history, flavour and brewing in depth.

Peppermint has been used as a culinary and medicinal herb since antiquity. Dried peppermint leaves have been found in Egyptian tombs; the Romans used mint to flavour food and drink; and in European folk tradition, a pot of peppermint tea after a heavy meal was standard domestic practice across many countries.

The flavour is brisk, clean and unmistakably cool — the menthol that gives peppermint its character is one of the most instantly recognisable flavour compounds in the plant world. A well-brewed peppermint is vivid and refreshing, with a lingering coolness that can last long after the cup is finished.

Brew with water just off the boil for six to seven minutes and use a generous amount of herb — peppermint rewards confident brewing. Our peppermint tea guide has everything you need.

Ginger root has been used in Asia for over three thousand years and was traded into Europe and the Middle East via ancient spice routes. It appears in Traditional Chinese Herbalism, Ayurvedic practice and in the folk customs of almost every culture that came into contact with it.

What makes ginger remarkable as a botanical drink ingredient is the range and adaptability of its character. Fresh ginger simmered in water produces an intensely warming, peppery, bright infusion quite different in character from dried ginger — which is hotter, more concentrated and slightly smoky. Both have their place depending on the season and what you are pairing it with.

Ginger is also one of the most forgiving herbs for a beginner: it is hard to brew badly, keeps well when dried, and is almost universally appealing. Our ginger tea guide covers fresh versus dried in detail.

Rooibos has been harvested and brewed by the indigenous Khoisan people of South Africa's Western Cape for an unknown length of time before it came to international attention in the twentieth century. The plant grows only in the Cederberg mountain region — an extraordinary degree of botanical specificity for such a globally loved drink.

The flavour is smooth, slightly sweet and warm with a woody, honey-like character that is unlike any other herbal tea. It has no bitterness, brews well at full boil and is famously tolerant of over-steeping — making it perhaps the most forgiving herbal tea to brew. It is also entirely caffeine-free.

Rooibos is now drunk across Europe, North America and beyond, often with milk and sugar in the South African tradition or as a base for spiced blends. Our rooibos tea guide covers its history and character in full.

Hibiscus (Hibiscus sabdariffa) has been cultivated and brewed across Africa, the Middle East, the Caribbean and Latin America for centuries. In Egypt it is karkadé; in Mexico it is the agua de jamaica; in Senegal it is bissap; in Sudan it is karkadé too. The same plant, the same dried calyces, beloved across half the world under different names.

The flavour is vivid: deeply tart, cranberry-like, with a long, fruity finish. The colour is a spectacular deep ruby. Hibiscus can be drunk hot in winter or iced in summer and is among the most versatile herbal tea ingredients available.

Traditional preparation varies by region — from the heavily sweetened cold drink of a Mexican market to the strong, barely sweetened hot cup of a Sudanese household — but the herb itself is constant. Our hibiscus tea guide covers hot and cold brewing methods.

Sage has a long European folk history as both a culinary herb and a brewed infusion. The Latin name Salvia comes from salvere — "to be in good health" — a reflection of how highly it was regarded in classical and medieval herbalism. Sage tea was drunk across Mediterranean and Central European households for centuries.

As a drink, sage is savoury, slightly resinous and pleasantly bitter — a flavour profile quite unlike the sweet and floral herbs that dominate most modern herbal tea shelves. It is an acquired taste for some, but those who enjoy it tend to drink it enthusiastically.

A simple sage infusion — a few fresh or dried leaves steeped for four to five minutes in near-boiling water — is one of the most underrated cups in the herbal tradition. Pair with a strip of lemon peel and a small spoon of honey to balance the savouriness. Our sage tea guide explores this characterful herb.

Linden flower tea (from the flowering parts of the linden or lime tree, Tilia species) is one of the most beloved traditional drinks in France, Germany and Central Europe. In France, tilleul is sold in every pharmacy and supermarket; in Germany, Lindenblütentee is the quintessential cosy evening infusion.

The flavour is honeyed, softly floral and very gentle — often described as similar to honey itself, but lighter and more fleeting. It is one of the most delicate herbal teas available and is best brewed at around 90°C for four to five minutes to avoid any bitterness from the fine flowers.

Linden blossom is harvested in early summer — a brief window — dried quickly and stored for the rest of the year. Good dried linden blossom should smell strongly honeyed and floral when the jar is opened. If it smells of nothing, it has faded and a fresh supply is worth seeking.

What makes these drinks traditional is not simply age but continuity — the fact that people across generations, cultures and climates kept making them because they kept being worth making. That is a meaningful signal about quality.

You connect with this history not through any grand gesture but through the small act of brewing a cup carefully, with good herbs and the right temperature, and paying attention to what you taste. That is all tradition ever asked of you.

Explore individual herbs in depth through our guides library. Discover which traditional herbs match your palate with the Herbal Tea Finder. Or browse the full blog for more history and context around the world's botanical drink traditions.