Bergamot

The herb bergamot, or Monarda, is used as a substitute for making herbal Earl Grey tea because early settlers once considered it to be similar in flavor to the original bergamot fruit. This has caused some confusion over the years but provided you like the flavor, that's all that really matters.

Earl Grey tea, believe it or not, is not its own category of tea. It falls into the category of flavored teas. Flavored teas include any type of tea—white, green, oolong, black—that has been scented or flavored with fruit, flowers, spices, oils, extracts, and natural or artificial flavors.

Earl Grey is one of the most recognized flavored teas in the world. This quintessentially British tea is typically a black tea base flavored with oil from the rind of bergamot orange, a citrus fruit with the appearance and flavor somewhere between an orange and a lemon with a little grapefruit and lime thrown in.

The bergamot herbs of the genus Monarda are persistent plants native to North America. Monarda didyma was used as a beverage by the Oswego tribe of American Indians and was one of the drinks adopted by American colonists during their boycott of British tea. The leaves are used to flavour punches, lemonade, and other cold drinks. M. citriodora (lemon bergamot, or lemon bee balm) and M. fistulosa (wild bergamot) are also used as flavourings and in teas.

 

Prepare Earl Grey Tea (Bergamot Herbs):

 

·        Place the handful of bergamot herb leaves and flowers into a teapot. If you want the flowers to be on show, use a glass teapot or glass jug able to handle heat.

·        Pour boiling water over the herbs. Pour enough for at least 2 cups of tea. Cover the herbs well.

·        Let steep for 5 minutes.

·        Serve immediately. It should still be hot.

·        Add sweetener if needed, such as a dash of honey or a tiny bit of sugar.

 

Prepare Earl Grey Tea (Bergamot Orange):

 

·        Locate some Bergamot oranges. These may be available at your local farmers market or a specialty grocery store.

·        Clean the Bergamot orange. Peel into several small strands. Dry the peel either by air drying or using heat. Air drying is simple: Arrange the peel on a tray lined with parchment paper. Leave in a warm spot. The peel should be dry within 12 to 24 hours.

·         Peel can be dried in a dehydrator.

·         Peel can be heated in a low temperature oven for 30 minutes to an hour or so.

·        Add the peel to a jar of loose black tea leaves. Leave for a few days to infuse. Tea readily absorbs flavors it is in touch with (hence the reason for storing it in separate, airtight containers).

·        Make tea as usual. The flavor of the peel should come through into the tea.

Keep experimenting. It is recommended that you keep trying different amounts of peel to see how much produces the flavor that you find the most pleasing.

Jemma Catt.