Rooibos
Rooibos (pronounced ROY-boss), also called Red Bush, is from South African’s Cape Town. Rooibos tea contains no colors, additives or preservatives, making it a natural beverage without caffeine.Rooibos becomes popular because its high levels of antioxidants. According to studies conducted in South Africa and Japan, Rooibos has been shown to aid in health problems such as insomnia, irritability, headaches, nervous tension, and hypertension.
Historical Background
More than 300 years ago, indigenous inhabitants of the mountainous regions of South Africa’s Western Cape were the first to collect wild Rooibos and use it to make tea. These people discovered that they could brew a sweet, tasty tea from Rooibos leaves and stems that they cut, bruised with wooden hammers, fermented in heaps, and then sun-dried. Botanists first recorded Rooibos plants in 1772 when they were introduced to the tea by the Khoi people.
Rooibos became a cultivated crop by the early 1930s, has been grown commercially since World War II, and now is exported to countries worldwide, including Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, England, Malaysia, South Korea, Poland, China, and the United States. The small towns of Clanwilliam and Wupperthal, north of Cape Town in the Cedarberg region, have a long history of Rooibos cultivation; these towns are popular tourist stops because of their beautiful rural scenery and their role in the rooibos industry.
Fermenting and Processing
When Rooibos is cultivated commercially, the needle-like leaves and stems are usually harvested in the summer, which corresponds to January through March in South Africa. The plants are cut to about 30 cm (1 foot) from the ground at harvest time and begin another major growth cycle the following spring. The harvested Rooibos is processed two different ways, producing two types of tea. The green leaves and stems are either bruised and fermented or immediately dried to prevent oxidation. The traditional fermented tea is processed today in much the same way as the indigenous people processed it hundreds of years ago, including the sun-drying step, but the tools are more sophisticated now.
The fermented type is called red tea because fermentation turns the leaves and the resulting tea a rich orange/red color; this distinctive color led to the Afrikaans name rooibos, which means "red bush." The unfermented type, often called green rooibos, contains higher levels of polyphenol antioxidants because fermented Rooibos loses some antioxidants during the fermentation process. The unfermented type was developed to maximize antioxidant levels in response to recent interest in the health benefits associated with the antioxidants found in C. sinensis teas. Unfermented Rooibos tea is a tan/yellow color rather than the rich reddish color of fermented Rooibos.
Both types of Rooibos tea are available plain or flavored, loose or in tea bags, organic or conventionally grown. Rooibos is graded according to color, flavor, and cut length, with the highest grade labeled "supergrade." The tea has a smooth, non-bitter flavor that is pleasant hot or chilled. The unfermented variety has a very mild "green" taste reminiscent of green tea but without the astringency; the fermented type is quite different, with a stronger sweet and fruity taste. The mild flavor of Rooibos has made it popular in multi-ingredient herbal tea blends.
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Disclaimer: The benefits of tea are based on the thousands of years of human practices. However, please consult your doctors for any scientific approves. Teas are not the substitues of your medicinces.