Fermented tea made from leaves of garden and wild plants (master class)

hibiscus
the name is familiar, but even with the help of a search engine I can not figure out what it is
does it not grow in the middle lane?

Like a houseplant.

Hibiscus is an Egyptian rose. A plant of the Rosaceae family, like a rose, apple, pear, dog rose, mountain ash, blackthorn, plum, raspberry, peach, apricot, strawberry ... Sour and red. We have plenty of our own rosaceae.

I didn’t get a currant ((I made black currants plus fireweed. Maybe the fact is that the currant leaves didn’t wither before freezing? Maybe the fireweed was not enough dried. fragrant, with a currant smell, but powder. Tea color is light. I will try again.

Made strawberry leaves - wilted, fermented, passed through a meat grinder, there was no time to fry, I threw it straight into the dryer. The color result is the best - dark, saturated, like black.

But still, in all teas, the mun has a herbal flavor. Is that how it should be?

[Linadoc]

And hibicus, this probably means hibiscus, or it still seems to be called a Chinese rose. I have never met such a plant live, but bought it in bags, when brewing it turns out sour tea of ​​a rich cherry color, for an amateur.

Like a houseplant.

Like a houseplant.

exactly! it's a "rose" that grows in pots in all offices)

Linadoc, Thanks for clarifying!
we will dry our rosaceae)

[Eva3]

Yes, they are so easy-going roses, so long as the root does not die out. And every spring I cut the branches, both in the teahouse and in the garden ones, almost at the root, leave 7-10 cm from the force, I see that there would be 2-3 living buds. They then swing out all the same under 2 m height and beautiful buds. And usually 3-4 more pagons are released from the ground. It is advisable to cut them off again by at least half after flowering, then the second flowering will also be violent.

Eva3, Thank you ! You have added my knowledge about roses. And then I was afraid to cut it ...

[lappl1]

lappl1, I don’t remember exactly six hours fermented, the apple suits me very much, I brew it with a mix. Rustic let's say 4 spoons and an apple 1 teaspoon I brew - a very good color and taste suits me I have a lot of Ivan-tea, I will add an apple to it and add it and I will be Happiness!
Why did I catapult strawberries onto a pile-Eh, I forgot to attach them.
A climbing rose may be worth trying, maybe the aroma will not appear, but the strength may remain?

[Mary Poppins]

I didn't succeed in currants ((I made black currants plus fireweed. Maybe the fact is that the currant leaves did not wither before freezing? Maybe the fireweed was not sufficiently dried. After the meat grinder, a fragrant powder turned out.

Mary Poppins, not withered leaves always crumble in a meat grinder. Here 1 2 3 4 I wrote about it.

But still, in all teas, the mun has a herbal flavor. Is that how it should be?

No, it shouldn't. Here is what is written about this in the book Wu Wei Xin "Encyclopedia of Healing Tea"

When withering, it is the changes in moisture under the influence of a certain temperature that determine the course of biochemical processes inside the tea leaf. Water in cells is the medium in which the interaction of substances dissolved in it takes place. It is known that at large dilutions some reactions cannot occur or take much longer to completethan it is necessary for the end of a particular production process.

That is, poorly wilted leaves not only crumble. Poor withering can be the cause of the herbal odor, since, as written in the book, some fermentation reactions may not occur due to "large dilutions" of enzymatic substances in the leaf juice water. For this, we reduce this amount of "water" by the withering process.
In addition, we read in the book:

The end of the twisting is determined by the number of destroyed cells, which after the third twisting should be in the range of 75-85%, moreover, the more cells are destroyed, the more juice appears on the leaf surface and the more extractive the teas will be. In unbroken cells, the remaining chlorophyll gives the infusion a "greenish" taste, which reduces the quality of the tea[/ b].

In fact, you did not have twisting. The leaves simply crumbled, not releasing enough juice for fermentation. So we got a herbal smell, called "greenish taste" in the book.
And further:

Organoleptic evaluation of tea aroma is formed from the successful combination of two aromatic principles: tea aroma obtained during fermentation, and aroma arising during drying, which can be described as "roasted" aroma. Teas that do not have a "roasted" aroma, characterized by a raw and herbaceous odor.
The fresh leaf has a green scent. In the process of withering, it acquires the smell of various fruits and flowers - apple, pineapple, rose and others, which is possible due to the deamination of the amino acids of the tea leaf, as a result of which aldehydes are formed. So, glutamic acid gives floral, phenylalanic acid - pink, and aspartic acid - apple odors.

Please note that the smell of tea begins to form during the withering process. And you, as such, do not have a process. And your drying is going on somehow wrong. You write yourself:

there was no time to fry, I threw it straight into the dryer.

Mary Poppins, I recommend that you read excerpts from this book. There you can find many answers to your questions. Links to the pages of this book are on the first page of the recipe in the notes.

[Oksana]

I am very happy with the apple, I brew it with a mix

Oksana, but I am more than satisfied. I adore it ... And I brew it on my own.

[Mary Poppins]

Made strawberry leaves - wilted, fermented, minced,

Mary PoppinsDid you make tea exactly in this order, as you wrote it? Or did they first wilted, then twisted in a meat grinder, and then fermented?
If you did as you wrote, then you practically could not have juice, which negatively affected the fermentation process. I hope this is still not the case ...

[lappl1]

lappl1, yes, I wrote it wrong; of course - withering-meat grinder-fermentation!

And thank you very much again for your attentive attitude and detailed explanation. I will be more attentive.
But strawberries, even without roasting, liked the tea the most. The result is very good strong granules and I liked the taste of the tea.
In the future, I will be more attentive to each stage. And now it is clearer what the essence of the process and the result of each stage are.
So by the end of the season, maybe I'll learn to make tea

Girls, you are so enthusiastic about cherries, but my tea turned out to be ordinary. probably all the same sort means a lot. I remember in my youth I was in the Vinnitsa region and they picked cherries in a forest belt, a very tall tree, dark purple small cherries, but I have never eaten such a delicious and fragrant cherry jam again.

[Eva3]

Eva3, thanks for the message about the rose. I have tea roses of dark cherry color, velvety with a delicate aroma. When do you take off the petals? At the end of flowering or as soon as the flower blooms?

[Mary Poppins]

Mary Poppins,, and you froze the strawberries? And how many hours did you ferment?

[Mary Poppins]

thanks again very much

Mary Poppins, I am glad that my answers help to better understand the process.

So by the end of the season, maybe I'll learn to make tea

No, it will work earlier. There are not so many problems: it is good to wither, to achieve a strong smell during fermentation and not to dry the tea. But we must hurry - it looks like this year the season will be short. My huge birches are all yellow and have dropped half the leaves. Garden trees still hold, but there are also many yellow leaves.

[Alla]

Girls, you are so enthusiastic about cherries, but my tea turned out to be ordinary. probably all the same sort means a lot.

Alla, probably so. Most likely, you have a cherry of noble blood. I do not know what kind of cherry my neighbors have, but clearly not. I don't see berries on it. Berries are rarely found, so you can't eat them without soreness. The leaves are very odorous, even at the stage of collection it smells so much from the bag that the head is spinning. They grow trees behind the fence. The neighbors are going to cut them down, but while their construction is underway, they have no time for cutting down. I hope that while it comes to this, my cherry trees will grow ...

[Vladimirovna]

Have you frozen strawberries? And how many hours did you ferment?

Vladimirovna, while Mary Poppins is not online, I will answer about my strawberry tea. After drying, it is famously granulated in a meat grinder. And I do not ferment it for a long time - no longer than 6 hours, and sometimes less.
By the way, I wrote that strawberries are best done in autumn, when the leaves begin to turn red. It seems that this year will have to be done now - the leaves began to turn red.

Alla, I (like Lyudmila) peel off the neighbor's cherry on the sly)) So this cherry is ordinary, the simplest (sour cherries) - it grows on its own, no one really cares for it - but Tea! it turns out !!!

[Alla]

Alla, conclusion: visit the neighbors. Surely, they have simpler trees. What is the most for our tea ...

Girls, I didn't find something in the subject, and no one made tea from felt cherries? I have a place where you can get a lot of leaves, but is it worth getting involved with "mining"?
At the very beginning of tea-making, I crumpled and smelled a couple of leaves - I did not understand the smell, the leaves are dry, they turned into crumbs when rubbed with my fingers, no juice was released. And now I started thinking, but there are no leaves nearby - maybe now from the "height of my experience" and would have treated her differently? ..

[Linga]

Linga, I don't even know what kind of "beast" it is. And no one wrote about her in the subject. Apparently, you have to be a pioneer. The fact that fresh leaves are crumbling does not mean anything. The withered should be well granulated. By the way, it is difficult to understand the smell of just rumpled leaves. Try the "batch test" - put the leaves in a bag, remember them a little and stick your nose in the bag. You will immediately understand whether it is worth doing or not.

[Linga]

and nobody made tea from felt cherries? I have a place where you can get a lot of leaves, but is it worth getting involved with "mining"?

Linga, googled about this cherry:

By its nature and biological characteristics, felt cherry is closer to plums and is crossed with plum, peach, cherry plum and even apricot

According to the description, it should be delicious tea.
And I remembered that I knew her. She once grew up with us. Only we called her Chinese cherry.



Such? Yes, you have to work hard to type the sheets. I would not have resisted, I would definitely try to make tea.

Lyudmila, the felt cherry is like a big bush, and the cherries grow right on the branch, as if clinging to it, that is, not on long cuttings like a regular cherry (or as these sticks are correctly called ...) and the berries are slightly fuzzy (felt). As a child, I called this cherry "VAlenkova".
(oh, now biologists-botanists will laugh at me for such a description)))
In short, how will it turn out to get to these bushes - I'll rip it off and report it!

Lyudmila, while writing and sending the answer, you have already found everything, and even with pictures)
I'll try to get to her tomorrow or the day after tomorrow ;-)

Eva3, thanks for the rose post. I have tea roses of dark cherry color, velvety with a delicate aroma. When do you take off the petals? At the end of flowering or as soon as the flower blooms?

I take off the leaves from the buds as needed, usually on the bush and are only opening, and at the end of flowering, that's how I get to the bush, I hardly take off everything. But for tea, I used leaves from a bush, and added a little from the buds at the end, and even then shove more leaves from the meat grinder (there was nothing else suitable next to it), there were few leaves, it was a pity to throw it into the scrap. Well, some part of the buds, respectively, got into the tea.

[Linga]

In short, how will it turn out to get to these bushes - I'll rip it off and report it!

Linga, well, we'll wait...

In the recipe, I wrote that the apple tree has a mild, sweet taste.

And the apple tree is good as a base, and it is easy and quick to collect it.

I also have a felt cherry, but the second year is overpowering. One bush did not take root. So I won't rip it off, it's a pity.

[Mary Poppins]

Mary Poppins,, and you froze the strawberries? And how many hours did you ferment?

did not freeze. Fermented overnight.
The owner of the topic told you everything correctly. And the strawberries are granulated very well.
Strawberry leaves warmed the meat grinder and the leaves were still warm. This is probably why the best fermentation I've had). In other cases, you still need to warm it up somehow, because even in such a heat, it seems to me that my teas have insufficient fermentation.

[Mary Poppins]

In other cases, you still need to warm it up somehow, because even in such a heat, it seems to me that my teas have insufficient fermentation.

Mary Poppins, you have insufficient fermentation not because of this, but due to the fact that not enough juice was obtained during curling. And the leaf just crumbled, it was dry, optimal conditions were not created for the work of lactic acid and anaerobic bacteria. artificially raising the temperature will impair the taste and aroma of the tea. It's like with our bread. if the fermentation temperature is exceeded, the bread will lose its "bread" aroma and the taste will be plain. I am quoting the same book that I constantly refer to:

The optimum temperature for the fermentation process should be considered 22–26 ° C. Below 15 ° C, the fermentation process stops, at a temperature of 15-20 ° C, it begins, above 30 ° C, part of the soluble fermentation products that give strength and "body" to the infusion becomes insoluble, while the pleasant aroma of tea is also lost.

Tested by personal experience many times. Now I have a temperature of + 26 * in my house and ivan tea from the last batch, fermented for 24 hours, turned out to be tasteless and odorless. Although earlier, at + 18 *, a gorgeous aroma and taste was obtained. At this temperature (26 *), it is not necessary to ferment for more than 12 hours. And tea from the garden is even less - no more than 6 hours.
When you twisted the strawberries, having received good granules and a sufficient amount of juice, pressed them lightly, you created an environment in the mass of tea without oxygen, which made it possible for anaerobic bacteria to work. When you rolled rolls with other teas not very tightly, did not achieve the appearance of juice in the required amount, then it is difficult to create such an oxygen-free environment in this mass. Plus - there is nothing to oxidize - little or no juice. There are no conditions for anaerobic bacteria, they die, fermentation does not occur. The only thing that can happen in this case is the souring of the mass during long fermentation. And if you add extra temperature, then this souring will happen faster.
By the way, any leaves become warm when twisted in a meat grinder. If the house is cool, then they quickly cool down to room temperature. But due to oxidative processes in normally created conditions, the mass is heated again. This heat lasts 3-4 hours. And this heat is enough for high-quality fermentation. If the leaves were poorly prepared, that is, little juice was squeezed out, then there is nowhere for oxidative processes to occur.Fermentation is poor or not at all. Hence the herbal smell and dull taste.
With strawberries, all the conditions turned out to be ideal - strong granules, a sufficient amount of juice, an optimal layer during fermentation and a good density of this layer (high for anaerobic and lactic acid bacteria), good fermentation time. Therefore, the tea turned out.
I never artificially heat the mass. When it was very cold in the house and the stove was not heated, then I could put the container with tea in the greenhouse. But that was only a couple of times. And then I fermented faster than usual. And usually in cold weather, I wrap the container with tea with blankets and jackets. The mass is self-heating due to oxidative processes. This heat is sufficient for fermentation.

[Omela]

The apple tree is also good as a base, and it is easy and quick to collect it.

Omela, exactly! Especially now that the fireweed is over ... But if this weather stays for another week or two, then the apple tree will begin to shed its leaves. There is a lot of yellowness on my apple trees. And half of the strawberries are red. So, we must hurry up with the garden ones.

And our leaves on apple trees do not seem to be yellow, but by themselves they are so dry that even when wilted, there was no such feeling that the leaves were lethargic. Although the central vein folded well. I even had to increase the drying time and cover it with a towel. Most likely this is the result of such a dry summer. Yesterday I dried apple pear and sloe tea. Scrolled without thawing, fermented for 7-8 hours. There was also dust with the granules. Sifted, wanted to throw out the dust. And then I decided to brew. It turned out to be very tasty. Perhaps it was necessary to warm the leaves before twisting. Next time I'll try to unfreeze it.

[Vladimirovna]

Perhaps it was necessary to warm the leaves before twisting. Next time I'll try to unfreeze it.

Vladimirovna, yes, the leaves could crumble due to the fact that you did not thaw them. Apple and pear are usually well granulated. And the girls didn't complain about the turn.

[lappl1]

lappl1,, Lyudmila, I dried this portion well, then put it in a bag, folded it tightly and wrapped it in a blanket for a day, then put it in the freezer. And then, after the freezer, I immediately twisted it for fermentation.

Today I asked for strawberries, I wanted to cut it by hand at my neighbor, but he decided to "make life easier" for me, mowed it and raked it. And I had to disassemble it for half a day, cut the leaves, wash it from dirt. Now it is dried in fabrics, so much work has already been invested, probably very tasty tea.

She took out an apple tree, a pear, and a blackberry from the freezer. So tomorrow we will again prepare tea.

I gave tea to many, everyone likes it, but no one wants to do it, they say it is a laborious process, and this work is a joy to me.

[Vladimirovna]

I dried this portion well, then folded it into a bag, rolled it tightly and wrapped it in a blanket for a day, then put it in the freezer. And then, after the freezer, I immediately twisted it for fermentation.

Vladimirovna, I understood this from the last message. The withered leaves should not have crumbled. This is due to the fact that they were not thawed. I did the same - dried it, then sent it to the freezer, then waited for defrosting and twisted it in a meat grinder. Nothing crumbled. The granules were strong.

[Alla]

ate by hand at a neighbor's hair, and he decided to "make life easier" for me, mowed and raked. And I had to disassemble it for half a day, cut the leaves, wash it from dirt. Now it is dried in fabric, so much work has already been invested, it will probably be very tasty tea.

Alla, and I also made strawberries for the first time - first I cut everything, and then I suffered, dismantled the "strawberry heaps". True, it was not dirty with me, since everything was mulched with hay and algae. But it did double work. Therefore, last year I first made the tea, and then cut off the leftovers.
Thank God it's raining good all day today. Maybe our sluts will live on ...
And you will have good tea, there is not even a doubt

Girls, did anyone make tea from strawberries - not strawberries, strawberries - not strawberries? ... In general, I have a large garden. And this "don't know what" grows all over the garden. The leaves are larger than strawberry leaves, but smaller than strawberry leaves. In spring it blooms like a strawberry-strawberry, but no fruit. The husband regularly mows the garden, and she grows again. The leaves are tender, as they are always in the shade. Basically, the pellets should be good. I don’t know how it will taste. I'm still going to try to make tea out of them, but my hands have not yet reached. Maybe any of you made this tea?

[Alla]

I gave tea to many, everyone likes it, but no one wants to do it, they say it is a laborious process, and this work is a joy to me.

Alla, yes, when you start explaining how to make tea, many people fall into a stupor ... But there are more words than deeds ... Look, we have already written so much ... And the topic is still not exhausted ... This process is also for me in joy. Moreover, at any stage - from collecting leaves to drying. At every stage you get your pleasure ... Well, when you drink tea or treat someone to it, you are surprised every time: "Did I really do it?"

Well, when you drink tea or treat someone to them, you are surprised every time: "Did I really do it?"

I confirm! A month has passed since I created raspberry tea. Brewed, treated ... NOBODY recognized raspberries! The taste has changed very interestingly, it was not like that right after drying.
Having filled the shelf with dried teas, I thought to slow down already. An noooo! At this rate, I won't have enough raspberry tea until the fall! Therefore, I will go and tear up the bushes.

[Tanyusha]

Tanyusha, Hi! I'm glad to see you ! Only about you I thought, how are you doing. And you wrote. Well, telepathy is straightforward .... Don't be lost! Write at least a little, but more often .... Well done, that you are engaged in tea. That's right, tear what you can. There is never too much tea. Just be careful - take care of yourself.

[lappl1]

lappl1how difficult it is
Apparently, I have dust in the currants plus fireweed due to the fact that it twisted it without defrosting? And the herbal taste from insufficient drying?
I love the currant leaf in my tea, I'll try to make it again.

And of course, thank you again!

Good day to all!
something in my brain melted from the heat (
I collected plum leaves for testing and I don’t figure out how best to prepare them for leaf tea - freeze or pre-wither in the refrigerator (do not go to wither in the air in a sheet - the tails have already attempted - if only in the air in a tied bag)
and how much then ferment - 6 hours is enough or maybe more?

[IvaNova]

I collected plum leaves for testing and I don’t figure out how best to prepare them for leaf tea - freeze or pre-wither in the refrigerator

IvaNova, I did the drain 2 times. And both times I didn't like it. But that's for my taste. The girls wrote that they liked the plum. So do it. Maybe you will like it. Both times the plum was well granulated with a meat grinder. But I wilted it well. And, of course, not in the refrigerator. I can't imagine how the leaves can be dried in the refrigerator. Withering is necessary to remove excess moisture, which will then interfere with twisting the leaves and fermenting the tea. If everything is so critical with cats, then, of course, make loose tea through the freezer. And the preparation of leaves in a tied bag (sweating) is also not for everybody. Many of our girls like it, but I like the usual withering. Therefore, you choose ...
Fermentation can be done for 6 hours in the current weather.

Thank you!
and sweating is done at room temperature?

[Mary Poppins]

Mary Poppins, the dust turned out immediately due to 2 factors - insufficient withering and not thawed leaves. The herbal taste is also because of this - a lot of juice turned out, which interferes with the enzymatic processes taking place:

When withering, it is the changes in moisture under the influence of a certain temperature that determine the course of biochemical processes inside the tea leaf.Water in cells is the medium in which the interaction of substances dissolved in it takes place. It is known that at high dilutions, some reactions cannot occur or they take much longer to complete than is necessary to complete a particular production process.

Plus - something is wrong with fermentation (the layer thickness is small, for example). And if at the beginning there was no drying 100 *.

and sweating is done at room temperature?

Yes, the girls and I did at the room. Read here about our joint experience:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Rada-dms 36-hour fermentation tea without grinder or curling

Thank you!

[IvaNova]

IvaNova, good luck! Then share the result, please.

[lappl1]

lappl1taking into account previous experience, I tried to correct my mistakes. The last tea - strawberries and apple trees - dry up in the dryer and finally, there is a smell of dried fruits, which I read so much about))
Apparently I'm on the right track

But the fireweed - frozen, hand-rolled, drying - frying pan plus dryer, had an amazing smell with a nutty taste. Both during fermentation and drying. But in the end we got loose leaf tea with a not very pronounced taste. I suspect that I need to change the fermentation - decrease or increase? How do you recommend?
After the freezer there was a lot of juice, the leaves were spinning very well.

[Mary Poppins]

Mary Poppins, I am glad that you began to get tea. I am sure that it will be the same in the future.

I suspect that I need to change the fermentation - decrease or increase? How do you recommend?

How long did you ferment the tea? Put oppression? In general, loose leaf tea takes a little longer to ferment than granulated tea. I made willow leaf tea a couple of times, so I won't say too much what went wrong with you. There is also a risk of losing taste and smell when drying in a pan, if you dry it in a large batch (the tea will simply steam out). The girls dried tea in a frying pan in small batches. And here you need to keep your ears open - do not burn the tea. You need to constantly interfere with it. And it is better to dry for 20 minutes, and then calmly send it to the dryer.
I already wrote that I lost the smell and taste of tea from the last batch of fireweed. I didn't have time to deal with it, and, as usual, I wrapped the leaves in the cloth on which I was wilting. Left in the house overnight. It would be necessary to leave the leaves somewhere on the street, since it was hot in the house. For about 12 hours he was soaring in this heap. When I opened the cloth, the leaves were hot. And the smell from the leaves was wine. It was necessary to ferment tea for no more than 6 hours in this situation, and I fermented for 24 hours (also my hands did not reach tea). The result is a very black tea, but almost without taste and smell. Conclusion - I re-fermented it.
In general, the fermentation time depends on many conditions - temperature, degree of withering, curling, layer. How everything turned out for you, I do not know. Therefore, you need to focus on the smell during fermentation. We got a strong tasty smell - you need to stop it.

Hello everyone, I returned from a week vacation. Before the vacation I thought: well, they say, I'll make some tea ... no matter how I skipped everything, the heat was confusing, I can't leave the house, where and why do we need the African heat ???
In short, I returned with 1 liter of new tea. I only do sheet. The first one was fermented for 12 hours, it turned out to be a super black tea of ​​strong fermentation. I brewed it and drank it in the bath, very aromatic tea. The second batch was left to wither on the street, but we left for water and the sun came to the table ... as a result, it was very dry, when twisting by hand there was little juice .. I decided to cut it + press right away, fermented for 6 hours. The result is again a very aromatic tea, but green in appearance.
Conclusion: NEVER HURRY TO THROW OUT ANY TEA !!! I'm sure it will be amazing tea if I mix the first and second.