Holy Basil Purple Leaf (BH02)

Tea of the late afternoon…..

Turns out we have strep at our house. Or at least my son does. He went to school Wed., Thurs. and today because the quick strep test came back negative on Tues. after missing the first two days of school this week. He is actually feeling pretty well today and was planning his weekend when the docs office called that he has strep according to the more accurate long test. I guess we will be in for at least a day. All of that could explain my slight sore throat and lethargy. Let’s hope I don’t actually get it too, and these are just sympathy symptoms.

Anyway, this tea helps whatever is ailing me. I feel a little better already. Now for a nap….

1-1/2 tsp, 8 minutes, 2 tsp honey

I’m testing and comparing all of Upton’s Holy Basil (Tulsi) choices tonight. After loving Organic India’s Vanilla Tulsi, which is a blend of 3 types of tulsi and a few other things, I wanted to see where the flavors came from, in hopes of duplicating the blend.

When I smelled this in the bag, there was no obvious aromas that stuck out. When measuring, there was a little bit of clove/cinnamon and a hint of mint. Brewed, the clove note is coming out first, but not as strongly in the Organic India blend. There is definately a minty note coming through too, but the clove tramples all over it in the aftertaste.

This is good. Not as good, but good. Weaker tasting, even with an 8 minute steep vs. 5.

It would probably be a bad idea to drink caffeinated tea at 10pm, so I’ve switched to herbal. I love this tea.

This is my second tasting of Holy Basil. I am going to make this and Celestial Seasons Tension Tamer my late-night relaxation brews. This is rich and complex in flavor and definitely something for later in the evening. I brewed this one day in the afternoon and I could not figure out why I was so mellow, bordering on sleepy. Thanks to all of the Steepsterites who turned me on to this herb.

Made some for my mom, brother and me after a delicious meal of Middle Eastern: hummus, mujaddara, falafel, baba ghanouj, tabbouli…yum!
This works well as a ‘digestif,’ light, soothing and refreshing
Most obvious to me was the smell of cloves that filled the kitchen while it was steeping.
Spicy anise, cloves and an end note of mint. Has a medicinal quality but not unpleasantly.
I think it’s pretty fantastic, mom likes it well enough, although thinks it’s probably an acquired taste, and my brother said he likes the smell better than the taste.
I think the mixed reviews are pretty indicative of the highly unusual and unique flavor..it’s definitely interesting!

Edit: I didn’t use sugar or milk with this one, don’t think it needs it. I would definitely drink it again but my family was more ambivalent, so I averaged out ratings. For me personally I’d put it at an 85.

This was the first holy basil I sampled, and I loved it. Since then, I’ve tried holy basil from a number of other companies, and also tried Upton’s green leaf (BH06), but I strongly prefer this one. It’s warm and balanced, rich, complex. Aroma is balanced, and mostly of spice. I also find this herbal tea to be very relaxing.

Amazing herbal tea. I will definitely have to add this to my permanent stock…
So relaxing!
(By the way, I love the name. Holy basil!)