There was probably no way I could have a place called Sweet Tea & Sage and never make a cup of sweet sage tea.
The funny thing is, sage isn't the first herb most people think of when they think about tea.
I certainly didn't.
I knew sage in the kitchen as the soft, silvery-green herb that belonged with roasted vegetables, butter, chicken, dressing, and the foods that start appearing when the weather gets cooler.
It smells warm and earthy.
It tastes unmistakably herbal.
And if you use too much of it, sage will absolutely take over whatever you've made.
So naturally, I wanted to know what would happen if I put it in a teacup.
The answer was that sage needed a little company.
Honey softened it. Lemon brightened it. And a couple of fresh peppermint leaves made the whole cup feel fresher without covering up the sage.
What came out of the Kitchen was something I didn't expect.
A tea that actually tastes like it belongs here.
What Does Sweet Sage Tea Taste Like?
Sage tea isn't delicate in the way that chamomile can be.
Sage has personality.
It is earthy, aromatic and slightly savory, with that unmistakable fragrance you get when you rub a fresh sage leaf between your fingers.
That's why I wouldn't simply steep a large handful of sage and add sugar.
I want to taste the plant without feeling like I'm drinking Thanksgiving dinner.
Honey rounds out some of sage's sharper edges. Lemon gives the cup some brightness. Fresh peppermint lifts everything and brings in that cool, refreshing note peppermint does so well.
The result is herbal, lightly sweet and refreshing enough that I enjoy it both warm and poured over ice.
Although I'll admit that “lightly sweet” depends entirely on who's holding the honey jar.
I like mine sweet.
Sweet Sage Tea Recipe
What You'll Need
2 cups water
5 to 6 fresh sage leaves
2 fresh peppermint leaves
Honey, to taste
1 to 2 thin slices of fresh lemon
Extra sage, peppermint or lemon for serving, if you'd like
How to Make It
Bring the water to a boil, then remove it from the heat.
Add the fresh sage and peppermint.
Cover and allow the herbs to steep for about 5 to 7 minutes. I like starting around five minutes and tasting from there. Sage can become quite strong when it's allowed to keep going.
Strain out the herbs.
Let the tea cool slightly, then add honey to taste.
And when I say to taste, I mean it. Use as much honey as you'd like to sweeten it. I like to use a lot.
Add fresh lemon to taste.
That's it.
You have sweet sage tea.
To Make Iced Sweet Sage Tea
This may actually be my favorite way to drink it.
Prepare the tea using the same method, but make it slightly stronger by adding an extra sage leaf rather than steeping it for a very long time.
After straining, add your honey while the tea is still warm so it dissolves easily.
And again, I'm not going to tell you that one teaspoon is the correct amount of honey.
Your tea. Your honey.
Sweeten it the way you actually want to drink it.
Let the tea cool and refrigerate until completely chilled.
Pour it over plenty of ice and add fresh lemon, peppermint and a sage leaf if you want to make the glass beautiful.
For a larger pitcher, simply increase the ingredients proportionally.
And because this is Sweet Tea & Sage, I think a beautiful glass is mandatory.
Well, almost mandatory.
If You're Using Dried Sage
You don't have to have a sage plant growing outside your Kitchen door to make this.
Dried culinary sage can work too, but you'll need much less of it because the flavor is concentrated.
Start small.
I'd rather make a cup that's a little too mild and add more next time than make one so strong that I never want sage tea again.
Make sure you're using sage intended for culinary use and not decorative sage, incense, essential oil, or another product that isn't meant to be consumed.
The same goes for the peppermint. If you're using fresh peppermint from the garden like I am, make sure you know what you're growing and that it hasn't been treated with anything you wouldn't want in your tea.
Why Sage?
The more I study plants, the more interested I become in the lives they had before they reached my kitchen.
Sage has been valued for centuries as both a culinary and traditional herb.
Its name is connected to the Latin salvia, from a family of words associated with health and well-being.
But I also love what sage has come to symbolize.
Wisdom.
Longevity.
Protection.
Cleansing.
Those meanings have shifted across places, cultures and traditions, as plant symbolism often does.
I don't need a cup of tea to promise me any of those things to appreciate the story.
Sometimes the symbolism itself gives me something to think about.
When I make this tea, wisdom is the word I keep coming back to.
Not knowing everything.
Not having every answer.
Just learning to pay attention to what experience has already taught me.
That seems like a pretty good thing to contemplate over a cup of tea.
Make It Your Own
Once you've made the basic recipe, this is where I think it gets interesting.
Add another peppermint leaf if you want that cool freshness to come through more.
Add another squeeze of lemon if you like brightness.
Use less honey if you want the sage to be more pronounced.
Or, if you're like me, ignore that suggestion entirely and add more honey.
Try orange instead of lemon.
Add a small piece of cinnamon when the weather turns cold.
Or make a pitcher, chill it, fill a glass with ice and take it outside while the weather is still warm.
That's one of my favorite things about working with plants in the Kitchen.
A recipe gives me somewhere to begin.
The plant usually gives me somewhere else to go.
I have to admit that I love having a recipe called Sweet Sage Tea in the Kitchen.
How could I not?
But I think I love what it represents even more.
Sweet Tea & Sage has always been about taking ordinary things and looking at them a little differently.
A meal can become a way to care for yourself.
A plant can become something to study.
A fragrance can change the feeling of a room.
A season can teach you to pay attention.
And apparently an herb I once thought belonged mostly beside roasted potatoes can end up in a glass of iced tea.
I like that.
There should always be room in the Kitchen to discover that something can be more than what we first thought it was.
Even sage.