What is mint tea good for?

Menthol is what you smell the moment a mint leaf is bruised, and it gives the finished cup its cool edge. That single note is why many people pour mint tea in the afternoon instead of another black or green brew. The leaf reaches the cup three ways, fresh, dried or in a bag, and each one behaves a little differently. Water just off the boil and a covered pot keep the result bright rather than bitter.

Key takeaways:

• Cooling, not warming: menthol is the compound behind the cold sensation and it carries the flavour of every mint infusion.
• Caffeine-free on its own: a cup brewed from mint alone has none, though blends built on other leaves can.
• Three starting points: fresh leaves, dried mint and tea bags all work, with the quantity adjusted to each.
• Water off the boil: around 90°C and six to eight minutes under a lid protect the aroma.
• Peppermint or spearmint: the first is sharp and cold, the second softer and sweeter.

What are the benefits of mint tea?

Mint earns its place on the tea shelf on flavour: a strong, cooling taste with no caffeine, as easy to drink at ten at night as at eight in the morning. The same leaf carries a steaming January cup and a chilled July jug, so one box covers the whole year.

It is also one of the simplest brews to get right, whichever form of the leaf you have to hand. Both packs we list under mint tea are single-herb, so nothing else joins the cup and the flavour stays squarely mint.

Is fresh mint tea good for you?

Fresh mint gives a lighter, greener cup than dried leaf, and that is the main difference between them in practice. It is still only leaves and water, with no sugar and no caffeine unless you add them, and the strength sits in your hands: more leaves and a longer steep make a bolder cup.

Does mint tea have caffeine?

A cup brewed from mint alone contains no caffeine, whether the leaf arrives loose, fresh or in a sachet. Mint is a herb rather than a leaf from the tea plant, so there is nothing in the pot for caffeine to come from.

Company changes that. Mint is a popular blending herb, and a mixture built on yerba mate, green tea or black tea carries the caffeine of that second ingredient, so the ingredient list on the box answers the question far better than the word mint on the front.

How do you make mint tea?

Mint tea is made by steeping leaves in water that has come off the boil, under a lid, for six to eight minutes. A rolling boil scalds the leaf and pushes the cup towards bitterness, while the lid keeps the aromatics in the pot instead of the kitchen. What changes between the three forms is quantity rather than method.

Mint tea from fresh leaves

Bruise the leaves before the water goes on, pressing them between your fingers or against the side of the cup, so the oils are released rather than left locked inside. Water at around 90°C goes on next; cover the cup and give it six to eight minutes before straining. Fresh mint comes from the garden or the greengrocer rather than the tea shelf, and a handful goes further than it looks.

Mint tea from organic dried mint

Dried mint is far more concentrated than fresh leaf, so the same cup needs a much smaller volume, a teaspoon or two rather than a handful. Brewing time stays similar, and a fine sieve keeps the smallest pieces out of the cup. Loose dried leaf rewards anyone who prefers to judge the strength by eye rather than by sachet.

Mint tea from tea bags

With a sachet the measuring is already done, so the box becomes the instruction: take the brewing time and water temperature printed on it rather than guessing. The two we stock hold 20 sachets of 1.6 g and 25 of 1.5 g, the everyday format most people reach for on a work morning.

When is the best time to drink mint tea?

No hour suits mint tea better than another, because nothing in the cup will keep you awake; what changes through the day is the strength you want. A short steep gives a light, fragrant cup in the morning, while the full six to eight minutes builds the colder note that stands up after dinner. In summer the same infusion, cooled and poured over ice, becomes a different drink.

Can you drink mint tea on an empty stomach?

Mint tea is a light infusion, so most people drink it before breakfast without a second thought. A long steep does make it noticeably more assertive, and if that is too much first thing, a shorter brewing time or a cup after the meal settles it.

What can you add to mint tea?

Mint carries additions well, because its flavour stays recognisable underneath them. A spoonful of honey is the classic, though it belongs in a brew that has cooled for a minute or two, since high heat flattens the aroma of honey; lime, acacia, multiflower, honeydew, coriander and raspberry each pull the cup a different way.

Beyond honey, the usual companions are easy to keep at home:

• Lemon or lime: a slice sharpens the cup and lifts the cold note in the leaf.
• Fresh ginger: two thin slices in the pot set warmth against that coolness.
• Soft fruit: raspberries or sliced peach turn a chilled jug into a summer drink.
• Ice and a sprig: the simplest change of all, and the one that puts mint on the table in July.

Sugar works too, but the more of it goes in, the less of the leaf you taste.

Can you mix mint with other herbal teas?

Mint blends more happily than most herbs, which is why it appears in so many mixtures. The yerba mate with mint blend on our shelf sets mint at 16% against yerba mate at 41.5%, with liquorice root, lime and lemon peel; because yerba mate carries caffeine, that particular cup is not caffeine-free. Put mint next to nettle tea instead and you stay on herbal ground, grassy leaf against cold snap.

What is the difference between peppermint and spearmint tea?

Peppermint and spearmint come from two different plants, and menthol is what separates them. Peppermint, Mentha piperita, holds the higher menthol content and delivers the sharp, almost cold hit that most people picture when they think of mint.

Spearmint, Mentha spicata, is softer and sweeter with none of that chill, which is why it is the mint of Middle Eastern cooking and of the sweet tea served in Morocco. When a peppermint cup feels too bracing, spearmint is usually a better answer than a shorter brew.

Who should drink mint tea?

Mint tea suits anyone who wants a cup with real character and no stimulant in it.

Preferences, more than anything else, decide who reaches for it:

• Anyone cutting back on caffeine: an afternoon or evening cup that does not compete with sleep.
• Drinkers who like bold flavours: a long steep of peppermint is one of the strongest things hot water alone can produce.
• Households that drink iced tea: mint keeps its shape cold, where many infusions turn flat.
• Anyone building a herbal shelf: mint blends with almost everything else standing on it.

It suits least the people who find a strong aroma tiring, and for them a shorter brew or a spearmint pack usually settles the matter.

A daily cup of mint tea: what to remember

Mint fits a daily routine because it asks so little: one form of the leaf, water off the boil and a few minutes under a lid. Rotating it with other herbal teas keeps the palate from settling into a single flavour, and mint is the leaf most of the others blend with anyway.

A good cup comes down to the leaf you start with, the water temperature and the minutes you give it, and none of the three is hard to get right.

Frequently Asked Questions about mint tea

How many calories does mint tea have?

A plain infusion contributes practically nothing, since leaves and water carry no meaningful energy. What you stir in is the part that counts, and a spoonful of honey or sugar is where the calories in the cup actually come from.

Can you drink mint tea every day?

A daily cup is an ordinary habit that needs no planning. Most people find it more interesting to rotate mint with other infusions across the week, so the flavour keeps its edge instead of turning into background.

How many fresh mint leaves do you need for one cup?

Around ten leaves to 250 ml is the usual starting point. Add more if you like it bracing, and bruise them first, because a pressed leaf releases far more aroma than one dropped in whole.

Is mint tea good for digestion?

Mint has traditionally been served after a meal in many cuisines, but that is a culinary custom rather than a proven effect, so the cup is not a remedy. If digestive complaints are a regular problem, a doctor is the right person to ask.

Can you make iced mint tea?

Brew it as usual, let it cool and pour it over ice with a slice of lemon or lime. For a smoother result, leave the leaves or sachets in cold water in the fridge for a few hours; a cold brew comes out milder and less tannic.

Who should avoid mint tea?

Pregnancy, breastfeeding, regular prescriptions or any doubt at all are the moments to ask a pharmacist or GP first. Beyond that it is a question of taste, since a strong aroma does not suit every palate.