Walking through the store to choose a herbal tea is daunting. There are so many brands, so many types of herbs, so many benefits that are “guaranteed.” But which brands are good?
We all recognize the brands TAZO, Traditional Medicinals, Celestial Seasonings, but have you heard of “Yogi”?
This article is another one of my yogi tea reviews because I’ve recently stumbled upon a large selection at Wholefoods and one, in particular, caught my eye. Now, I have my favorites and my “go-to’s,” but I’m always up for trying new teas, especially if they offer stress relief.
The honey lavender flavored stress relief tea by “Yogi,” offers a “soothing serenity blend” of passionflower plant extract, rooibos leaf, chamomile leaf, lavender flower, and 6 other plants!
I’ve grown up with teas my whole life, from black tea to green tea, from jasmine white tea to medicinal healing tea. So I wanted to do some research and offer my opinion of this promising new tea I’ve picked up.
First Impressions
The box has yellows and purples, a clear layout, and a lot of information on the box itself (even instructions for a simple meditation exercise). The “Our Story” section is interesting enough for me to dive into some research which I’ll offer in another section below.
On the box, it states that it’s vegan, non-GMO, utilizes compostable tea bags, and is USDA organic. Their story begins in 1969 when an inspirational, holistic-living teacher gave “aromatic spiced tea” to his students. With a good story and an informative box, I was excited to try this tea in hopes I would feel its benefits.
Opening the box revealed the “Yogi Principles” that outlines their quality assurance – in summary: taste great, think before you blend, health is found in nature, combinations optimize nature, and wholes are used whenever possible (not parts).” It’s nice and comforting to know they care – let’s see if it lives up to the hipe.
I ripped open the blue tea bag and slipped it into my cup. As the water warmed, I read the inspirational quote on the attached tag: “Trust is the union of intelligence and integrity.” Not a bad quote. Some teas have very cheesy sayings that offer no insight, so this was a nice change of pace.
The first sip I took after letting it steep for 7-minutes (as instructed) was surprising. I never thought I would drink a lavender tea before. Though its smell is quite pungent (lavender is a girly smell to me!), the taste was true to its description: soothing.
I’m definitely glad there’s honey in the mix because without it I’d feel as though I’m drinking straight flowers! But the mix of lemongrass and honey, really left the entire blend to work well.
It’s definitely not a tea I would have every day, but the smell of the lavender offers a few aromatherapy benefits (as you know, lavender has calming effects). And on that note, let’s look at the benefits of this tea more in-depth.
Are the Benefits Real?
Now, I assume the benefits stem from the use of the different plants. So according to the box, the “Soothing Serenity Blend” contains”
| Passionflower plant extract
Lemon balm leaf Peppermint leaf Stevia leaf Vanilla flavor |
Rooibos leaf
Spearmint leaf Lavender flower Honey flavor |
Chamomile flower
Lemongrass Sage leaf Lemon myrtle flavor |
The types of plants in this blend offer quite a number of benefits (roughly the same as essential oils), but the strength is determined by the amount of each. Because the main ingredients are “passionflower” and “lavender,” I’ll list them first:
- Passion flower
- Known to help reduce the effects of menopause, hot flashes, and depression
- Also known to lower blood pressure, reduce anxiety, aids in ADHD symptoms, reduces insulin levels, improves sleep, and reduces inflammation
- Lavender
- Known to help improve mood, reduce stress, and support brain function
- Also known to increase antioxidants, help treat diabetes, aid in healing burns/cuts, promote healthy skin/hair, relieve pain and headaches, improve sleep, help with symptoms of cancer
- Peppermint
- Known to help relieve headaches and migraines
- Also known to help balance neurological function and help calm
- Lemon balm
- Known to boost the immune system
- Also known to antiscorbutic, antianemic, and stimulant properties
- Sage
- Known to reduce inflammation and fever
- Also known to help balance the nervous system
- Spearmint
- Known to have hepatic, cephalic, and anesthetic properties
- Also known to act as an emmenagogue
Now, these benefits are not all jammed packed into each tea bag, but it is helpful to know what each plant source can do.
From the scent and taste of the tea, the strongest plants in the mix are probably the lavender, passion flower, and the lemon (both balm and grass).
The other plants were most likely mixed in to balance taste and not necessarily meant to add benefits. The box itself doesn’t offer the “secret recipe” for the blend, so unless you befriend a Yogi tea creator, we may never know!
Company Background
To fully appreciate a tea, the brand must represent a respected company and after tasting this tea, I was intrigued to look into Yogi.
The story begins with Yogi Bhajan, an inspiring teacher who came from India to the West in 1969. He often prepared a spiced tea for his yoga students in Southern California and soon enough, these students learned to make the tea blend themselves – and thus began the evolution of the company.
Being named after a yoga teacher, makes the brand name make much more sense. It wasn’t until over 15 years later that this charming story took shape. The Yogi Tea Company was based in Springfield, Oregon and was founded in 1984. And after only two years in business, their three tea blends began distributing nationwide.
Thirty years later, the company is the most well-known and respected tea producer in the natural industry (according to their website).
Their guiding principle is:
“Feel good. Be good. Do good.”
Overall Score
This specific blend of honey lavender, meant for stress relief, received a 4 out of 5 in my book (mainly because of the taste). But don’t just listen to me!
Online ratings based on customer reviews:
- 4.5 out of 5 – Amazon
- 4.5 out of 5 – Google Express
- 5 out of 5 – Thrive Market
- 4.8 out of 5 – Swanson Vitamins
- 5 out of 5 – LuckyVitamin
- 4.5 out of 5 – iHerb
- 4.1 out of 5 – Target
The average online rating is 4.6 out of 5.
The cheapest price I could find!
Conclusions
The atmosphere this tea creates from the aromatic lavender is unbeatable. The smooth taste and the countless benefits make this tea a “go-to” in times of stress.
The taste is very much a blend of lemon and lavender, so it wouldn’t be something I drink every day, but I will definitely be drinking this tea late at night as a preparatory aid in improving my sleep.
I would highly recommend this tea, not just because of its taste, but because of the genuine purpose behind the company’s creation. I hope to try out many more of their teas from here on out.
I’m so glad I tried it!
Stay tuned for more tea reviews among other informative articles – I invite you to sign up for my newsletter at the bottom of the page!
If you’re interested in other ways to reduce stress, I invite you to continue your research with these options:
- Himalayan Pink Salt Lamps
- Himalayan Pink Salt Baths
- Essential Oils
- Natural Remedies for Depression
- Mental Exercise for Dealing with Stress
Thanks for reading. And best of luck with all your tea adventures!
Chase
Feb. 2018
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Sources
https://draxe.com/passion-flower/
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