I’ve discovered a new rooibos tea and love it and want to share it with you! It’s rooibos tea with a chocolate twist: Numi Organic Tea – Chocolate Rooibos with smooth vanilla notes.
When I shared this image on facebook here are two comments I got:
- I drink Numi’s Rooibos everyday, but I didn’t know they made CHOCOLATE!
- CHOCOLATE…I’ll have to find that one!
Notice that both people wrote CHOCOLATE in upper case! I have no doubt that the word “chocolate” will get many more people trying this healthy herbal tea. But I must give you an advance warning – the chocolate taste is very subtle. And if you’re sensitive to the caffeine in chocolate like I am you may find you can tolerate this – I certainly can.
You may recall my interview with rooibos researcher, Dr. Amanda Swart, in season 1 of the Anxiety Summit: A Functional Food in the Management of Stress. We discussed the role rooibos plays in the maintenance of normal cortisol levels, the influence of rooibos on cytochrome P450 enzymes, and the amazing array of polyphenols and flavonoids found in rooibos. Wow, a simple beverage that can help reduce stress and anxiety! And so much more!
Here is some new rooibos research:
- For diabetes: Antidiabetic effect of green rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) extract in cultured cells and type 2 diabetic model KK-Ay mice.
- For bone growth: Rooibos flavonoids, orientin and luteolin, stimulate mineralization in human osteoblasts through the Wnt pathway.
- For inflammation: Aspalathin and Nothofagin from Rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) Inhibits High Glucose-Induced Inflammation In Vitro and In Vivo.
Just read the description on the back of the box and see if you can resist it:
Smooth South African rooibos is enveloped by creamy vanilla beans, sweet honeybush and rich cacao. This sensual treat is a delightful, soothing beverage you can melt into.
The vanilla gives it a naturally sweet taste which you may need if you don’t enjoy straight rooibos (an acquired taste for some)
Let me give you a few more reasons why I recommend this product – other than the delicious taste and wonderful health benefits:
- It’s organic
- It uses fair trade ingredients
- It uses non-GMO biodegradable tea bags
- It’s a herbal tea so is caffeine-free
- It doesn’t have any artificial or even natural flavors
I’m a skier and Brad snowboards and I like to be prepared with “padkos” (South African for food-for-the-road) and one nice treat is hot herbal tea for the drive up and for the drive home. For the trip up to the ski resort, I make it in a large stainless steel mug with lid and we sip it as we drive. I take an extra teabag and a thermos flask of boiling water and make a new batch to sip on the trip home. It’s so yummy and so warming, plus it keeps us well-hydrated which is important with all that exercise.
Check out the Numi site. I love this company and their vision: “Numi inspires well-being of mind, body and spirit through the simple art of tea. Our company is rooted in the principle of creating a healthful product that nurtures people and honors the planet. In all of our company initiatives, we strive to foster a healthy, thriving global community while bringing you the purest, best-tasting organic tea.”
You had me at chocolate – lol. I, too, LOVE teas and I’m going to try this one! I always appreciate your thorough and informational posts, Trudy. You ROCK!
Yes, chocolate is going to be the big draw on this one! enjoy!
Be still my beating heart – we can’t get this in Oz – but I’m coming to the USA mid year – I will need to stock up!!
Yes, I perked up when you said CHOCOLATE but that the caffeine doesn’t affect you. I already looked it up online because I get your newsletter 🙂 Also, thank you for the link to the insomnia pre-sleep yoga MP3. I did it before bed last night.
Jessica
I’d suggest going slow and seeing how you do – very sensitive people may be affected by the cacao. I’d love to get your feedback once you have tried it
Glad you enjoyed the insomnia pre-sleep yoga MP3!
Trudy
I love roiboos tea. I was familiar with red roiboos and green roiboos but had not heard of the chocolate version until you posted it. I don’t have a sensitivity to caffeine but I do have several clients who do so I’m going to suggest this to them.
The difference may be that the cacao hulls provide theobromine, not caffeine. Still a nervous system stimulant, but much gentler. I’ve also heard that theobromine does not have the same addictive qualities that caffeine does.
Thanks Mira – I’d love to hear how your clients do on this and if they tolerate the cacao.
Trudy, thank you so much for sharing information about this tea! I am a tea lover and you were the first to tell me about this kind of tea. The chocolate is a bonus!
Trudy,
Thanks for the information on this tea! We are heading into
SoHo this week and there is a tea shoppe off Spring Street we will need to visit!
I’ve never been a fan of roibos, but I am a fan of CHOCOLATE; so, I might just give this a try! XO, Katherine. 😉
wonderful Katherine!
Hi,
Please be aware that Rooibos Tea has not been tested by Monash University for FODMAP levels.
IBS sufferers should sample with caution.
Only safe, tested teas are green, white, peppermint, 8.82 oz of black tea, dandelion, weak chai no milk.
High FODMAP tested teas are chamomile, fennel, black tea in excess of 8.82, Oolong, fruit & chicory teas.
This Monash app is indispensble for FODMAP quick reference-
http://www.med.monash.edu.au/news/2012/fodmap-app.html
Hi Lisa
Thanks for sharing this valuable information about FODMAP levels and the quick reference app! I’d love to hear from people who have issues with FODMAPs – how does rooibos affect them? I personally have issues with many FODMAPS foods but seem to do fine with rooibos.
But now you’ve got me thinking about oxalates and salicylates too…I’m going to ask Julie Matthews of BioIndividual Nutrition Institute to come and comment on all of the above.
Trudy
Rooibos is high in salicylates but low in oxalates. FODMAPs is a bit of an unknown as Lisa points out – though I’ve found that chicory and the like seem much higher in FODMAPs than rooibos, however some sensitive individuals may have a very different experience.
Thanks Julie – this is good to know! and it fits with my response too (as you know I have an oxalate issue). I do fine with rooibos and am SO glad I do because I do love it. But as always, we each need to see how well we tolerate anything we consume – biodindividuality is key.
I’d love to know your salicylate/oxalate source as I don’t see it on http://www.lowoxalate.info/
Thanks
Trudy
Wow, that looks good! Nice find Trudy, thanks for sharing.
we can get it in the UK at eye watering prices…£37.43 for 12 bags…more expensive than gold….oh well we can dream.
That’s so funny Meme – “eye watering prices” – but you’re right, that price – wow!!! could you make your own with regular rooibos tea and some carob or cacao?
I definitely have issues with FODMAPs. I adhere religiously to a low-FODMAP because, if I don’t, the familiar albatross of my GI symptoms inevitably follows almost immediately. Two days ago I picked up some rooibos-pomegranate tea (not for the rooibos but for the pomegranate, mind you–which begs the question, why can’t they leave the ingredients simple for people like me who want some variety but can’t tolerate the “extra stuff” they throw in there?). Anyway, I have gone through three teabags of it since then (each one reused 2-3 times), and this morning I started to have trouble. This evening it was worse. And it finally occurred to me that it might be the rooibos in the tea. I couldn’t come up with any other explanation as to why I have gone downhill so quickly today (I finally called my tutoring client this evening and told them I was sick and then went and lay down for the last few hours). So I looked it up to find it hasn’t been tested yet, but a few people commented for some reason that they expect it will turn out to be high in FODMAPs. Well, frankly, now I do, too.
Carlos
Thanks for sharing – I’d love to know if it’s the rooibos or pomegranate? Are there any other ingredients like flavors? I have a number of clients eating low FODMAPs who do fine on rooibos although I know some people do fine on some low FODMAPs foods and others don’t
Thank you, Trudy.
Actually, I may have been wrong in blaming it on the tea. Only a couple of days later, both my fiancee and her daughter were having gastrointestinal flu symptoms. So I may have had a mild case of the same thing. It’s just hard to distinguish a “stomach” (or g.i.) flu from the symptoms I get when I eat something high in FODMAPs or a reaction of intolerance, since, after two-and-a-half decades of then-unresolved problems, my intestines are, it seems, now permanently sensitized and overreactive.
Warm wishes,
Carlos
…Still, since I suffered those symptoms soon after I started drinking the tea, now I’m afraid to try it again!
I love a treat at the end of the day but I’m allergic to soy and iodine. Just checking, does this have either of these ingredients in the NUMI Chocolate Rooibos tea?