Tea Addicted Witch
Yes, it took me over a year of having a blog called “Tea Addicted Witch” to actually blog about tea. What can I say, I wanted to be less predictable.
I’m very fond of tea. I have a million teas for pretty much every occasion. I have a tea infuser (well, a few), an electric kettle (virtually unheard of in American households for some obscure reason), and drink it on a regular basis.
There’s the tea I drink because I want tea and it tastes good, there’s the tea I drink because I have a problem and I wanna solve it, and there’s the tea I drink because it’s themed well with a particular magical working, pagan holiday, or deity. Some teas I make myself while others I buy special online.
Some nice tea basics: some teas go very well with nothing added, others taste good with sugar or stevia. Some also do well with milk in them. I enjoy almond or soy milk in various types of black tea along with stevia or sugar, but usually stevia when I can. Green tea I usually drink plain or with lemon. Herbal teas I drink plain or with stevia. Chai is a well known type of tea which literally means tea but refers to a specific type of tea made with Indian spices and taken with milk and sugar. Chai lattes done with soy milk are among my favorite types of tea. I also love T2’s New York Breakfast with unsweetened vanilla almond milk and stevia. There are some rules and conventions that people follow based on what pairs well with which. When in doubt, go with the experts when first tasting and see what you enjoy.
Steeping times will vary according to what type of tea and personal preference. When in doubt, read the packaging and set the timer accordingly. Some teas can be oversteeped without ruining the tea while others will get bitter very quickly.
When getting into “tea for different purposes” besides enjoyment and flavor, you get into tea for the sake of medicinal purposes and of course herbalism–which brings us back to witchcraft and tea. I grew up drinking tea because of my father, who loves both tea and coffee. When I first started drinking herbal tea it confused him, as he sees herbal tea as strictly medicinal. As always, your mileage may vary.
Here are some easily found teas and what you can drink them for:
- Chamomile: insomnia, sleep aid
- Lavender: stress, insomnia, anxiety
- Peppermint: nausea, indigestion, gas, bloating
- Ginger: indigestion, muscle cramps, nausea, vomiting
- Turmeric: anti-inflammatory
- Bay leaf: anti-inflammatory, muscle relaxant, digestive aid, can soothe bowels
- Dandelion: water retention and bloating, digestion, mild constipation relief
- Elderflower: coughs, allergies, colds
Certain deities have particular herbs which are sacred to them, but you want to be careful with some of those herbs as not all of them are suitable for consumption and some can’t even be touched without adverse effects. Interestingly, while Hekate is associated mostly with poison herbs also has lavender sacred to her. Lavender is sacred to Hermes, too. Bay laurel is sacred to Apollo and also can be ingested or drank as a tea. If you want to learn basics and need a good starting point, I recommend Cunningham’s book on magical herbs. As always with anything you do, be extremely careful and go with acquiring herbs which are clearly labeled as safe for consumption.
There are many wonderful places online which you can buy teas which have been custom made for different magical purposes and deities. Here are a few good ones:
- Blackthorne Hoodoo Blends: I recommend their Apollo, Hecate, and White Magic teas.
- Moon Goddess Magickal Apothecary
- Sabbat Box
If you know of any other places online, feel free to recommend them in the comments below! I’m always looking for more places to shop for tea, and you can never have too much.
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