Want to swap out the morning coffee for something more refreshing? Lemon Balm Tea might be your answer. Lemon balm tea is a light and satisfying beverage with a mouth-cleansing flavour. Just a whiff of its steam is enough to bring a spring to your step, and make the morning feel a little fresher.
Let’s look at lemon balm tea in more detail and why it’s absolutely worth incorporating into your tea collection.
Lemon Balm’s Many Uses
Lemon balm has long been used in cooking to add a fresh lemony flavour to a recipe. You’ll see it chopped up in salads, used in marinades, and added to drinks (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic) and desserts. In cooking, it’s a great way to get the lemon smell and flavour, without the sour, bitter, and tart notes that come with actual lemon.
Lemon balm is also regularly added to body products, like shampoos, perfumes, toothpaste and soap. A little like mint, it offers a fresh, herbal smell that can inspire you to feel a little lighter and brighter.
Going back in time to the Tudor Period, lemon balm was scattered across floors to bring a fresh aroma to a room. When people trod on the lemon balm, it would release its fresh fragrance, which would help mask less-than-pleasant smells in a home. Lemon balm also served as a pest deterrent, as rodents didn’t enjoy the strong smell of lemon.
The Lemon Balm Plant
If you’ve ever walked through a patch of lemon balm in a garden, you’ll understand how potent this delicate plant is. Part of the mint family, lemon balm is rich in essential oils that give it a strong, lemon-like smell.
Lemon balm has either pale pink or white flowers, and can regrow year after year, (its hardy root system lies dormant over winter, with leaves that burst out in spring). It is self-seeding, so the seeds it drops after its flowers will germinate and bring even more lemon balm. This means it easily spreads in a garden, which isn’t a problem if you’re a fan of its smell.
Speaking of fans, honeybees absolutely adore lemon balm! So if you’re looking to attract bees to your garden, include this perennial herb in your garden beds or pots.
Lemon Balm Tea
Lemon balm has long been used in tea. When mixed with hot water, the essential oils warm up to create an aromatic and highly-drinkable beverage. It can be enjoyed on its own, but is often mixed with peppermint and other herbal ingredients to add a fresh zing to a brew.
Love lemon flavour?
Tea Tonic offers a range of organic herbal teas that include lemon balm. These include:
Luminous Calendula Tea
This tea has been popular with Tea Tonic’s customers for years. It has a slightly savoury flavour with its mix of nettle, dandelion leaf, burdock, calendula and lemon balm. Drink it between meals when you feel peckish, but don’t want to eat yet. Or start the day with it!
Lemon Myrtle and Ginger Tea
Endemic to Australia, lemon myrtle has long been used by indigenous Australians in traditional cooking and cultural practices. Smelling lemon myrtle brewing in a cup reminds us of walking through subtropical Australian forests on a moist morning. It’s fresh and rejuvenating. This tea blends lemon myrtle with lemon balm and ginger root, creating a warming beverage for cool days or quiet evenings. Mix with honey or sweetener for extra warmth and flavour.
True Zen Tea
This caffeine-free tea blends lemon balm with tulsi/holy basil, monk fruit and cornflower blossom. It tastes a little like passionfruit can be enjoyed at any time of day, but is most useful at those times when you want to slow down and enjoy a quiet moment. Maybe after that yoga session, or when things at home get hectic. This is a tea you can offer the kids (just watch the temperature)!
Lemon Zest Green Tea
Enjoy a sweet lemon zing with this blend of lemon balm, lemongrass, natural lemon lime flavour, monkfruit and green tea. Containing a small amount of caffeine, this tea adds a bright citrus flavour to the afternoon. Great for slow afternoons.
Spearmint Balance Tea
This organic tea combines spearmint, calendula and lemon balm. It offers a fresh, palate-cleansing flavour, so it’s pleasant to enjoy after meals. As it’s caffeine-free, you can even drink it before bedtime.
Evening Rest Tea
When you just want to wind down before bed, this tea has everything you need. It combines lemon balm with passionflower and lemongrass. It’s warming, and naturally caffeine free. Brew for yourself or for your dinner party guests. (Explore more After Meal Teas.)
Explore our Teaware for all the accessories you need to brew the perfect cup of herbal tea!