Extra Sleepy Bear is a caffeine-free herbal blend for the end of the day, and the strongest of the three evening blends we make. Valerian root and hops are what set it apart from the other two, and hops are the flower brewers use to bitter beer. Both are bitter enough that we put stevia in to balance them. Milk suits it. Europeans were drinking warm milk at bedtime for centuries before tea ever reached them.
If the valerian and hops are too much, Starlight Calm uses the same herb base without either of them. Gentle Twilight drops the stevia as well and gets its sweetness from licorice root instead.
The label features a cute koala, even though koalas are not technically bears. We couldn't resist the adorable design, and "Extra Sleepy Arboreal Herbivorous Marsupial" just didn't have the same ring to it!
Three of the herbs in here are named after things that have nothing to do with tea. Skullcap is Scutellaria, from the Latin for a small dish, after the little cap on its seed pod that reminded botanists of a medieval helmet. Lemon balm is Melissa officinalis, and melissa is Greek for honeybee; European beekeepers rubbed the leaves inside an empty hive to persuade a swarm to move in. Passion flower was named by Spanish missionaries in South America who read the bloom as the instruments of the Passion, counting the three stigmas as nails and the ring of filaments as the crown of thorns.
Hops are in Cannabaceae, the same plant family as cannabis, and they are what makes beer bitter. Catnip is in the mint family, and nepetalactone, the compound cats react to, is what gives the leaf its faintly musky smell in the cup; it was an ordinary European garden herb, drunk as a tea, long before anyone thought of it as a cat toy. The stevia balancing all of it is a leaf from Paraguay, where the Guaraní called it ka’a he’ê, sweet herb. Its sweet compounds are a couple of hundred times sweeter than sugar by weight, which is why a small amount of leaf offsets a lot of valerian.
Bring filtered or spring water to 212°F. Add 1.5 tsp of tea leaves to an 8oz cup. Pour boiling water over the tea leaves and let steep 7 minutes.
Ingredients:
- Organic: chamomile, valerian root, scullcap, catnip, peppermint, stevia, spearmint, passion flower, lemon balm, lemongrass, lavender, hops
Disclaimer:
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Discontinue use if you experience difficulty breathing, hives, or skin irritation. If you are pregnant or nursing consult your healthcare professional before use. Combining certain herbal products with prescription or over-the-counter medications may not be advised.
