Mint Tea Challenge

Visitors to this year’s Cam & Dursley Flower and Produce Show were invited to take part in the Mint Tea Challenge.

They were offered two different mint teas and asked to decide which they favoured. Their choice was sealed by dropping a bead into their chosen tube, for Tea A, or Tea B.

Blind tasting

The teas were tasted blind, but you’ll want to know what was in each pot:

Tea A was made with Twinnings Pure Peppermint tea bags, which state their ingredients simply as ‘Peppermint’.

Tea B was made with freshly picked garden mint, combining peppermint with spearmint.

Clear favourite

Of the two teas, Tea A received 1/3 of the votes, while Tea B was preferred by 2/3 of those who sampled them.

Those preferring Tea A commented on its sweeter flavour. Those preferring Tea B liked its freshness, and reminders of spearmint chewy sweets or chewing gum.

Ideal choice

Mint tea is a great choice for drinking after dinner as it helps digestion. For this application, both spearmint and peppermint are effective, so drink whichever you prefer. Both act on the muscles of the digestive tract, but through different constituents working in different ways. In peppermint, its menthol that relaxes the muscles; in spearmint carvone helps reduce muscle contractions.

Mints are used in many other helpful ways too. If you’re wanting a mint to help ease a cold, virus or sore throat, peppermint’s the one to go for, as found in the classic EYP tea (elderflower, yarrow and peppermint). If you’re wanting to treat oily skin and acne, spearmint may prove more effective because it has greater anti-inflammatory properties.

Tea making tips

Whether you’re using a handy tea bag or a local source of fresh mint leaves, always take time to warm the pot before you begin, patiently steep the tea for at least three minutes, longer is often better, and keep a cosy on the pot to maintain the heat.

Blend it yourself

The beauty of using your own mint is that you can create a blend exactly suited to your taste. There are over 120 species, cultivars and hybrids of mint so you’ve plenty to chose from. Jekka McVicar (‘Queen of Herbs’) uses a blend of three mints and uses the general rule of thumb of two parts spearmint to one part peppermint. When visiting her herb farm near Thornbury I was recommended to combine the spearmint (Mentha spicata) variety Tashkent with a classic peppermint (Mentha x piperita).