A lot of people think “tea” and “tisane” are just different words for the same thing, but there are actually some big differences between them.
Tea
Tea comes from steeping leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant, and contains caffeine. Common types of tea include white, green, and dark tea. (FYI, what many countries in the West call black tea, is actually called red tea in China). Lesser-known niche teas are also becoming more popular, such as yellow tea.
The colour of the tea depends on the oxidation level of the tea leaves used. Oxidation occurs when leaves are broken and exposed to oxygen from the air. The level of oxidation is controlled by the method of breaking the leaves; from gentle rolling (green tea) and tumbling (oolong), to complete maceration of the tea leaves (dark tea). Some black teas also undergo subsequent fermentation, for example pu-erh, to generate more complex flavours.
There are five main types of tea: white tea, green tea, oolong tea, black tea, and pu-erh (dark) tea. Each has its own unique flavour profile.
White tea: White teas are among the most minimally processed teas. They have very light flavour notes, and their health benefits are due to antioxidant components.
Green tea: Green teas have been lightly oxidized during processing and have more body than white teas. They are associated with improved brain function and weight loss benefits.
Oolong tea: Oolongs combine characteristics of both light and dark teas because they have been oxidized to varying degrees during processing — anywhere from 8% to 80%.
Black tea: Black teas are made from fully oxidised leaves and have a higher caffeine content. Black tea is common in most English-speaking countries, and has a stronger flavour than the previous tea groups.
Fermented black tea: these teas are both fully oxidised and then fermented.
Tisane
A tisane is any beverage that is made by steeping herbs, dried flowers, fruits, spices, or other plants in water – excluding Camellia sinensis. This biggest difference between a tisane and a tea is that tisanes do not contain caffeine. They can, however, have other stimulatory properties depending on the plants used in the tisane. The benefits of tisanes have been well and widely documented, historically and in scientific studies. Some benefits include assisting digestion (ginger root tisanes) and improving sleep (chamomile or valerian tisanes).
Herbal Tea
Herbal tea is technically not a ‘tea’ because it doesn’t come from the Camellia sinensis plant. In fact, a herbal tea is actually a… tisane! Traditionally, herbal teas have been prepared by infusion, and contain components that liberate their flavours and compounds easily, such as flowers or the soft parts of herb plants.
You’ll note that we use the term ‘butterfly pea tea’ a lot. It’s technically incorrect and the true term should be ‘butterfly pea tisane‘. However, so many refer to it as a ‘tea’ that we’re sticking with it (at least for our English-speaking readers). It’s always ’tisane’ in French – we don’t want to mess with tradition.
Infusions?
Now we get to the confusing part…
So far, it’s going pretty well. Tea = Camellia sinensis and has caffeine; Herbal tea = Tisane = any other plant, and has no caffeine. So what are ‘infusions’?!
Well, many people associate infusions with the intensely-flavoured products that pack supermarket aisles. These ‘infusions’ often have added flavours impregnated into or onto a fruit or tea component in order to enhance the flavour. These additives usually take the form of water-soluble flavourings or fat-soluble essential oils, and can either be extracted from real produce or synthesised.
We don’t use any flavourings or essential oils in Thé Paon products, which is why our tisanes are lightly flavoured and all-natural. We focus on the health benefits of the butterfly pea flowers themselves, which is why they’re at the forefront of each tisane blend.
However… infusions are also (technically speaking) any drink that has had a component ‘infused’ into it. So teas are infusions. Herbal teas/tisanes are also infusions. In fact, the way we make an infusion is by adding boiling (or near boiling) water directly onto plant material and then letting it steep. This releases flavours and bioactive components into our tisane.
The infusion method differs from ‘decoction’, where plant material is added to boiling water and then boiled further to release the flavour. The decoction method is best for thick, hard, or oily plant material such as cinnamon bark. We use the decoction method to prepare our Sky Blue Chai, which requires the spice mix to be boiled in milk or a milk substitute.
Butterfly pea flowers
Making delicious butterfly pea ‘tea’ is simple. Butterfly pea flowers make a great tisane by infusion.
Learn how to make a good cup of butterfly pea ‘tea’ bursting with antioxydants.
When using butterfly pea tea for culinary creations, make a strong tea (twice as many flowers as usual) and replace the liquid component of the original recipe with this brew. For example, if you would normally put 250mL water into a dough, use 250mL of strong butterfly pea tea.
Steeping butterfly pea flowers into other liquids, like animal or nut milks, is best achieved at low temperature for a longer time. Simply make your mixture and leave it in the fridge for 12 hours, gently swirling every now and then. This will ensure that the milk is still good to drink or use… unlike leaving it on the bench at room temperature for 12 hours.
You can also make vibrantly coloured rice and rice noodles via the decoction method by boiling butterfly pea flowers directly with them.
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