Fruit tea
Fruit tea is a tea-like infusion drink. There are classic fruit teas made from a single plant species, such as rose hip tea , and blends of different fruits. The flavors depend on the fruit palette used and accordingly range from fruity to flowery, sweet, spicy or delicately tart. The taste can determine the tea or is determined by an intended (for example medicinal) effect. Commercial mixes are often fortified with flavors or vitamins . Fruit teas are caffeine-free and almost calorie-free.
definition
Fruit teas are called "tea", but are legally "tea-like products". They are aromatic drinks made from dried parts of plants, such as fruits or fruit parts of apples or rose hips or even leaves and flowers. The tea is made from these parts of the plant as a drink by pouring boiling water over it. Fruit teas are also called tea drugs . The term drug comes from the Dutch droog , which means dry, and originally referred to simply dried parts of plants. Various mono drugs (from the Greek word for alone ) such as rose hip tea and mixtures of different fruits are offered.
The distinction between fruit and herbal teas is not sharp; in the end, herbal teas are also made from certain parts of the plant. The delimitation is therefore preferably in the intended use or application.
With fruit teas there are gradations in the degree of crushing of the fruits and herbs used. One speaks of coarse cut when parts of plants are cut to a size of 2 to 15 millimeters, and of fine cut when they are between 0.2 and 2 millimeters in size. There are also parts of plants that are not cut at all, for example because they are naturally the size of the rough cut, such as fennel seeds or juniper berries. The cut size has basically no influence on the taste and aroma of the fruit tea, it is based on the way it is prepared. While the "loose tea" is offered in a coarse cut, the infusion bags are usually made with finely chopped fruit. There is no difference in quality between the two types of offer. As a general rule: The coarse cut is practical when preparing a whole pot of tea; the pre-portioned tea bag is ideal for a cup.
Cultivation
Most of the fruits used in teas are grown. Some fruits are still uncultivable , that is, they cannot be grown and have to be collected as in the past, like rose hips. Fruit teas are natural products. The quality of the plant parts used is influenced by the climate, soil and weather. It can therefore vary from one season to the next - even if the parts of the plant come from the same growing area. The respective parts of the plant are harvested, collected and dried in the growing country. Before they are further processed in Germany, they go through strict quality controls. Only then are the goods cut and mixed according to the recipe.
The plants for fruit teas are grown both conventionally and controlled organically . The proportion of organic fruit teas grown in a controlled manner was five percent in 2010.
Ingredients and additives
Plants basically have numerous different ingredients: essential oils, which largely determine the taste and smell, as well as vitamins, minerals, trace elements and polyphenols. Fruit teas are suitable for meeting the daily fluid requirement with low calories. Spices and aromas are added to flavored fruit tea in order to refine or change the taste.
From November 28, 2020, it is forbidden in Germany under threat of punishment to market the herbal or fruit teas for infants or small children that have long been popular and that contain sugar, syrup, fruit juice, honey, malt or the like.
history
The use of fruits as a drink for pure enjoyment and to cover the fluid requirement was rediscovered in recent history, but has been used for a long time. The supply bottlenecks for coffee and tea in times of crisis meant that local fruits were used for infusion drinks. The fruit tea market has grown steadily since the 1950s. The increased health awareness of consumers in the 1980s brought a significant expansion of the range. In addition to classic varieties such as apple or rose hip tea, there is an expanded range, with fashion influences also causing a temporary change in taste and the increased use of fruits such as sea buckthorn or cranberries .
Storage and preparation
The appropriate storage of fruit teas is important for a consistent taste, the fruit properties require a cool and dry storage, in addition, they should be stored in a dark and airtight place. The fruit tea supply loses quality in the presence of other strongly smelling herbs and spices. Accordingly, opened packs must be used up quickly.
For commercial offers, a heaped teaspoon, corresponding to the tea bag, per cup is sufficient. Since the taste intensity increases with the amount of fruit, the amount is of course subject to individual requirements. The water has an influence on the quality of the fruit tea infusion; fresh water with as little lime as possible is recommended, which is poured over the fruit tea while boiling. As a rule, the optimal taste is achieved after 8 and 10 minutes, with tea bags a little shorter. There are instructions on the packaging for the manufacturer's recommendations.
The preparation form of the iced tea also came from the southern states of the USA , whereby the freshly prepared drink is made ready to drink by cooling it down quickly, for example with ice cubes.
Individual evidence
- ↑ BMELV: New version of the guidelines for tea, tea-like products, their extracts and preparations from January 26, 1999 [1]
- ↑ Thorsten Dresler u. a .: Dr. Oetker Food Lexicon . 4th ed. Dr. Oetker Nahrungsmittel KG, Bielefeld 2004
- ↑ Max Wichtl (Ed.): Tea drugs and phytopharmaceuticals: A manual for practice on a scientific basis . 5th edition, Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft, Stuttgart 2009.
- ↑ Angela Bechthold: Herbal and fruit tea - trendy drink with medicinal properties? . In: 2005, nutritional theory and practice, nutritional review: B46 – B48 ( PDF )
- ^ Evaluation and information service for nutrition, agriculture and forestry: coffee, tea, cocoa, herbal tea , Bonn 2000.
- ↑ Economic Association of Herbal and Fruit Tea : Market Report 2010 . Archived copy ( Memento of the original from February 27, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Kerstin Köhnke: The water balance and the nutritional significance of water and beverages. 2011, Ernähr-Umschau, pp. 88–95
- ↑ BMELV: New version of the guidelines for tea, tea-like products, their extracts and preparations from January 26, 1999 [2]
- ↑ Section 8, Paragraph 2, Sentence 2 and Paragraph 4, Section 11, Paragraph 1 of the Fruit Juice and Soft Drinks Ordinance
- ↑ Monika Beutgen: Herbal and Fruit Teas: A product group in search of their legal identity . In: Festschrift for Michael Welsch . Pages 385–394, Behrs Verlag, Hamburg 2010
