Wild Rooibos is not exactly tea and it's not like anything you've ever tried before.
This is real bush-tea from the Cedarburg Mountains of South Africa.
I buy it from a farmer who is also the local GP. Dr Strauss is an amazing man who is not just interested in saving people but also the endangered Cape Leopard .
Here is a film I made for Guardian Travel about the farm.
By leaving the mountains uncultivated or grazed the delicate ecosystem survives intact. The plants in this arid region are unique and perfectly adapted. Among them is rooibos.
Growing in its natural habitat it needs nothing to flourish unlike its cultivated counterparts. It needs no pesticides, no herbicides and no irrigation. For fertilizers it has leopard shit. This is far beyond organic farming. Stopping to make a small fire and brew tea it all makes sense. The taste is incredible. Its deep rich berry flavours are incomparable to the bland, commercial crop.
This is no ordinary tea harvest. But then rooibos (Afrikaans for 'red bush') is no ordinary tea. Strictly speaking a legume, the needle-like leaves produce a deeply delicious caffeine-free drink. It has been drunk for many thousands of years by the people of this area. It's sold loose not because I'm a ridiculous snob but because I didn't want to grind it into dust just so it wouldn't tear a tea-bag.
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Henrietta Lovell and Dr Jas Strauss
Our teas:
Royal Air Force Tea | Introduction Collection | Lost Malawi | White Whole Leaf Tea | White Whole Leaf Refill Pouch | Emperor's Breakfast | Emperor's Breakfast Pouch | Silver Tip White Tea | White Silver Tip Refill pouch | Jasmine Silver Tip Tea | Jasmine Silver Tip Refill pouch | Oolong Tea | Oolong Refill Pouch | Green Leaf Tea | Green Leaf Tea Refill pouch | Earl Grey Tea | Flowering Silver Tip Tea | Wild Rooibos |