We've been blending tonic teas for over a decade, and they remain one of our favourite ways to work adaptogenic herbs into a daily routine. Crafted from whole leaves, roots and flowers and rooted in the same traditions as the herbs we've always loved, our seven loose leaf blends are brewed the way they were always meant to be. This guide covers why loose leaf matters, and what's in every blend.
🍵 Raw Living Herbal Teas: Whole Leaf, Whole Story
Being British, we're the biggest fans of a good old cup of tea! That's why you'll find seven varieties of loose leaf herbal tea in our Raw Living range.
We've been blending these teas for well over a decade. Ever since we first discovered the wonders of adaptogenic herbs like Reishi and Ashwagandha, we've loved including them in our daily routines in the way they were traditionally enjoyed; brewed as a nourishing tea.
🫖 Why Loose Leaf?
When we think of herbal tea in the West, we tend to picture those pale, flavourless blends in bleached teabags, with "natural flavouring" added back in. Most mass-produced brands are made from the dust of the herbs: the leftover particles that break off during harvest and processing. The teabags themselves are often treated with chlorine, sometimes contain polypropylene (a type of plastic), and can't be easily composted or recycled.
For good reason, loose leaf teas are having a renaissance, and unlike some of the more questionable health trends that come and go, this is one we can fully get behind.
🌸 What Makes Ours Different
Our herbal teas are crafted with whole leaves and flowers, preserving their natural oils and life-force. You can actually see the beauty of what you're brewing: the delicate petals, the dense roots, and the vibrant leaves. The colour, texture, and vitality are visually stunning in a way a teabag could never match.
Each cup offers a richer, more complex flavour, and you can enjoy multiple infusions from every serving, making them far better value for money than standard teabags.
If you love your herbs and want to experience everything they have to offer, making a tonic tea ritual part of your self-care routine is the perfect place to start.
Brewing your tea becomes an invitation to slow down, to connect with the plants, with nature, and with yourself. That quiet ritual is part of the nourishment you receive.
🛠️ How to Brew
We love to prepare a big 2-litre pot of tea to sip and share throughout the day. Any leftovers go straight into bottles and into the fridge for a refreshing iced tea alternative. But sometimes, you just want a quick cuppa - and that's where the balls and bags come in handy.
New in! These Stainless Steel Tea Ball Infusers and Organic Cotton Reusable Tea Bags are here to make brewing even easier. Try them out and let us know what you think!
🍃 The Raw Living Herbal Tea Range
All our Raw Living branded loose leaf teas are crafted from whole ingredients, created with specific purposes in mind. Here's a quick summary of each:
Clariteea is made from gingko, a mild, nutty-tasting leaf with a long traditional association with balance and focus; fair-trade organic moringa leaves, which offer a distinct, earthy flavour and are rich in a wide range of essential nutrients; and goji berries, which offer a natural sweetness and juicy flavour as well as being nutrient-rich in their own right.
Feminiteea was, as the name gives away, specially formulated with women's wellbeing in mind. It's made with damiana leaves, raspberry leaves, rosebuds, shatavari root and goji berries. Damiana has a flavour profile similar to that of chamomile; it's slightly sweet, mild and earthy, but holds a more distinct, assertive punch. It has a long history of traditional use in herbal medicine. Shatavari has quite a mild flavour, but a long history of use in Ayurvedic medicine as a traditional women's tonic.
Eterniteea has a rich coffee-like flavour and is designed specifically as a tonic for winter wellbeing. Its ingredients include reishi mushroom, which has been prized for centuries in TCM and revered as one of the premier tonic herbs, it's also a key part of the blend's distinct earthy flavour; fo-ti root offers another earthy-yet-sweet flavour profile and a TCM classic with a long traditional association with longevity; cinnamon bark giving it that classic winter flavour; and finally, schizandra and goji berries both offering sweet tangy notes and a dose of essential nutrients.
Infiniteea is the lightest, most refreshing blend on offer. Ashwagandha is the star adaptogen here; a key staple in Ayurvedic medicine with a long traditional association with resilience and vitality. It's accompanied by goji berries and lemon peel, giving the tea its zingy, refreshing flavour.
Imuniteea is another great soothing winter drink, bursting with vitamin C from its hibiscus base. The goji gives a great balance in flavour, offering a sweetness that contrasts the hibiscus tang. These are combined with star anise and schizandra to create a really delicious and warming blend.
PMTeea is a potent blend with a unique flavour. Due to regulations we can't share too much on the benefits of the ingredients. It's made from black cohosh, a root with an earthy, slightly nutty or mushroomy flavour, and a long history of traditional use in TCM, Native American and Western traditions; St John's wort has a bitter, uniquely aromatic flavour, its research has revolved around its relationship with mood; angelica has a slightly sweet, distinctly aromatic flavour reminiscent of anise or celery, and a long history of use in both Eastern and Western traditional medicine.
Sleepiteea is the perfect brew for a nightly wind-down ritual, utilising herbs with a long traditional association with relaxation. It features lavender, chamomile, ashwagandha, goji berries and Tulsi (also known as holy basil). Tulsi is revered in Ayurvedic traditions and has a complex flavour; slightly peppery and minty, with subtly sweet clove-like notes.
Check out the full range of Raw Living Herbal Teas here. Why not pair it with one of our stylish mugs?
🍵 Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How do you brew loose leaf tea without a teapot? A: Our new Stainless Steel Tea Ball Infusers and Organic Cotton Reusable Tea Bags are designed exactly for this. Fill with your chosen loose leaf blend, pop into your mug, pour over hot water and steep. No teapot, no mess, no fuss. We love making a big 2-litre pot to sip throughout the day, but for a quick solo cuppa the balls and bags are perfect.
Q: Can you reuse loose leaf tea? A: Absolutely, and this is one of the great advantages of quality loose leaf over teabags. Whole leaves and flowers can typically be infused two to three times, with each brew offering a slightly different flavour profile. The second infusion is often considered the smoothest and most balanced. This also makes loose leaf considerably better value for money than it might first appear.
Q: Are teabags really made from plastic? A: Many are, yes. A significant number of mass-produced teabags contain polypropylene - a type of plastic used to heat-seal the bag - which means they can't be fully composted or recycled. The bags themselves are also often bleached with chlorine. It's one of the less well-known stories in the world of everyday food packaging, and one of the reasons we've always preferred loose leaf.
Q: What is a tonic tea and how is it different from herbal tea? A: All tonic teas are herbal teas, but not all herbal teas are tonic teas. A tonic tea typically refers to a brew made from adaptogenic or tonic herbs - plants with a long history of traditional use in systems like TCM or Ayurveda, such as Reishi, Ashwagandha or Schizandra. Where a standard herbal tea might use a single, familiar herb like chamomile or peppermint, a tonic tea tends to be a more considered blend, drawing on the traditional pairing wisdom of those herbal systems. Raw Living's teas sit firmly in this tradition.
Loose leaf, whole ingredients, over a decade in the making. The Raw Living Herbal Tea range is waiting for you, browse here:
