loose leaf herbal teas

Shop online for gourmet herbal teas and tisanes blended in-house using whole pieces of flowers, fruits and herbs. Herbal varieties include Chamomile, Peppermint and many other exciting flavours. Herbal infusions have been consumed nearly as long as written history extends. The wide array of aromas and tastes delight the senses, while their healing properties have been lauded by traditional medicine for centuries. Our direct-trade sourcing ensures superior taste, freshness and value.

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Wellness & Detox Teas

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portions sampler - herbal teas

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yuletide toddy

rating: 94

11p / cup

chamomile

rating: 96

12p / cup

lemon grass

rating: 94

12p / cup

peppermint

rating: 98

13p / cup

blood orange

rating: 94

11p / cup

fruit medley

rating: 93

11p / cup

peach bellini

rating: 93

11p / cup

samurai mate

rating: 96

11p / cup

turmeric bliss

rating: 95

13p / cup

berry blues

rating: 94

11p / cup

lemongrass ginger

rating: 95

15p / cup

wild strawberry

rating: 95

11p / cup

foxtrot

rating: 96

12p / cup

berry blast

rating: 95

11p / cup

spearmint

rating: 96

13p / cup

double ginger

rating: 94

15p / cup

bonfire

rating: 88

11p / cup

berry creme compote

rating: 95

11p / cup

lavender lemon

rating: 95

13p / cup

What Is Herbal Tea?

Herbal tea — technically called a tisane — is any hot or cold beverage made from the infusion of flowers, herbs, roots, bark, fruit, or other plant materials that are not Camellia sinensis, the tea plant. Black tea, green tea, oolong, white tea, and pu-erh all come from Camellia sinensis. Herbal teas contain none of it. They are entirely separate botanical infusions — which is why herbal tea is naturally caffeine-free, whilst all true teas contain at least some caffeine.

The term "herbal tea" is something of a misnomer — technically, a tea without Camellia sinensis isn't tea at all. But the name has stuck, and the category is as broad and varied as the plant world itself. Chamomile flowers, peppermint leaves, hibiscus calyces, dried fruit pieces, roasted barley, lemon verbena, lavender, rose hips — anything that can be steeped in hot water and produces a pleasant drink qualifies. Adagio's loose leaf herbal collection spans all of it.

The Loose Leaf Herbal Tea Collection

Chamomile

The most consumed herbal tea in the world and the one most people think of first when someone says "herbal tea." Adagio's loose leaf chamomile uses whole chamomile flower heads — not the ground chamomile dust that fills commercial chamomile teabags — which produces the gentle, apple-like, naturally sweet cup that chamomile is actually supposed to deliver. The difference between whole-flower chamomile and teabag chamomile is immediate and significant. Long associated with relaxation and digestive comfort in herbal traditions across the world.

Peppermint

Clean, cooling, and instantly recognisable — loose leaf peppermint tea uses whole or large-cut peppermint leaves rather than the ground mint fragments in commercial teabags, producing a genuinely mentholated cup with natural cooling character that grocery store peppermint teabags rarely match. One of the most versatile herbal teas in the collection: an invigorating morning option, a post-meal digestive herb, a cooling afternoon drink in summer, and a relaxing evening option that works at any hour without any caffeine concern. Cold-brewed peppermint is one of the most naturally refreshing iced teas available.

Blood Orange

A fruit-forward herbal blend built around blood orange — one of the most vibrant and aromatic citrus ingredients available. The deep orange-red colour and bright, slightly tart citrus character make Blood Orange one of the most immediately appealing herbal teas in the collection on sight and smell before the first sip. A natural cold brew performer — cold-brewed Blood Orange is one of the most vivid iced herbal teas in the range.

Lemongrass Ginger

The warming classic of the herbal collection — bright lemongrass and ginger alongside citrus notes in a cup that has been used as a home herbal remedy across dozens of cultures for centuries. Lemongrass Ginger is one of the most practically useful herbal teas in the collection: it tastes genuinely good and delivers the warming, gently invigorating character that people reach for when they want something comforting and purposeful in equal measure.

Wild Strawberry

A bright, naturally sweet strawberry herbal blend with vivid colour and the fresh-picked character of good strawberry fruit rather than artificial strawberry flavouring. Wild Strawberry is the gateway herbal tea for anyone who finds chamomile and peppermint too botanical and wants something fruit-forward and immediately accessible. Cold brewed, it produces a naturally sweet, lightly pink iced tea that works with nothing added.

Samurai Mate

The notable exception in the herbal collection: Samurai Mate blends naturally caffeinated yerba mate with green rooibos and a lively mix of spices — producing an energising, characterful cup with approximately 70–80mg of caffeine per 250ml. Unlike the rest of the herbal range, Samurai Mate is not caffeine-free. For anyone who wants the herbal tea format with a genuine caffeine boost — and a more complex, spiced character than plain yerba mate — Samurai Mate is the right choice.

Herbal Tea Health Benefits

Herbal teas have the longest tradition of use as wellness beverages of any beverage category — documented records of chamomile as a calming remedy date to ancient Egypt; ginger's digestive applications appear in Chinese medicine texts from the 4th century BC. Modern research has explored many of these traditional associations with varying results. Here's what the key ingredients in the collection are traditionally known for:

Chamomile

— long associated in herbal traditions with relaxation, sleep support, and digestive comfort. Chamomile is one of the most studied botanicals in herbal medicine, and its traditional use for calming and digestive ease has a substantial history across many cultures.

Peppermint

— one of the most widely used botanicals for digestive comfort, with a long tradition of use for bloating and general digestive discomfort. The menthol in peppermint is responsible for its characteristic cooling sensation, produced by activation of cold receptors in the mouth and throat.

Hibiscus

— an ingredient in several blends across the Adagio range, hibiscus is naturally rich in vitamin C and anthocyanins — the antioxidant compounds responsible for its vivid red colour. Vitamin C contributes to the normal function of the immune system.

Ginger

— traditionally used to support digestive comfort and ease feelings of nausea, with a history of use in culinary and herbal traditions across Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. Ginger's warming character comes from its gingerol compounds, which are the subject of ongoing research interest.

Is Herbal Tea Caffeine-Free?

Almost always — with one notable exception. The vast majority of herbal teas contain no caffeine whatsoever because they contain no Camellia sinensis, the caffeine-producing tea plant. Chamomile, peppermint, blood orange, lemongrass ginger, wild strawberry, and the great majority of Adagio's herbal collection are completely caffeine-free.

The exception: Samurai Mate. This blend combines yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis) — a South American plant that produces its own caffeine compounds independently of the tea plant — with green rooibos and spices. A cup of Samurai Mate contains approximately 70–80mg of caffeine per 250ml. It is clearly labelled as caffeinated.

For anyone who drinks herbal tea specifically to avoid caffeine in the evening or due to caffeine sensitivity, every herbal tea in the collection except Samurai Mate is a safe choice at any hour.

Herbal Tea vs. Decaf Tea: What's the Difference?

This is one of the most commonly confused distinctions in the tea category, and it matters for anyone who avoids caffeine:

Herbal tea

— contains no Camellia sinensis and therefore no caffeine by nature. Not decaffeinated — naturally caffeine-free because the plant it comes from doesn't produce caffeine. Chamomile, peppermint, blood orange, and most herbal teas fall into this category.

Decaf tea

— made from Camellia sinensis (true tea) that has had most of its caffeine removed through a decaffeination process. Still tastes like black or green tea because it is black or green tea — just without most of the caffeine. Decaffeinated loose leaf tea typically retains 2–5mg of caffeine per 250ml cup, compared to 40–70mg in a standard cup of black tea and 95–200mg in a cup of coffee. See Adagio's decaf loose leaf teas for the full decaffeinated range.

The practical guide: if you want something that tastes like black tea without caffeine, you want decaf. If you want something that tastes like chamomile, peppermint, or fruit, you want herbal tea. They're different categories serving different needs.

How to Brew Loose Leaf Herbal Tea

Herbal tea is the most forgiving category to brew — no temperature sensitivity, no bitterness from over-steeping, no special equipment beyond boiling water and an infuser:

Water temperature

— fully boiling (100°C) for all herbal teas. Unlike green or white tea, herbal ingredients benefit from maximum heat to extract their full flavour — particularly roots, bark, and harder botanicals like ginger and cinnamon.

Leaf quantity

— one heaped teaspoon (2–3g) per 250ml. Herbal ingredients are often more voluminous than tea leaves; measure by feel rather than by strict weight.

Steep time

— 5–10 minutes (and beyond). Longer than true teas; herbal ingredients release their character more slowly and don't develop bitterness with extended steeping the way tea leaves do. Chamomile and peppermint can steep even longer without any penalty.

Sweetener

— most herbal teas are naturally sweet enough to drink without sweetener. A small amount of raw honey complements chamomile, lemongrass ginger, and fruit blends particularly well without masking the herbal character.

Cold Brew Herbal Tea

Cold brewing herbal tea is one of the most effortless ways to make genuinely great iced tea — herbal ingredients cold brew naturally and consistently, with no bitterness risk and no temperature management required:

Add two heaped teaspoons of loose leaf herbal tea per 250ml of cold water to a pitcher or jar
Refrigerate for 8–12 hours
Strain and serve over ice

Blood Orange and Wild Strawberry cold brew into some of the most vivid, jewel-coloured, naturally sweet iced teas available — they look spectacular in a clear glass and taste exactly as good as they look. Peppermint cold brew is one of the most naturally cooling drinks of any category. Chamomile cold brew is a gentle surprise — naturally sweet and honey-like in a way that the hot version only hints at.

Cold-brewed herbal iced tea keeps in the refrigerator for up to four days — make a pitcher on Sunday evening and have naturally sweet, caffeine-free iced tea available through Thursday. See the full herbal iced teas collection.

Herbal Tea for Sleep

"What tea should I drink before bed?" is one of the most searched herbal tea questions — and the answer is more specific than "any herbal tea." The herbal teas with the strongest traditional associations with sleep support:

Chamomile

— the most widely used herbal tea for sleep support, with a long tradition of use as a calming, pre-sleep herb across European and Middle Eastern herbal medicine. A cup of chamomile 30–45 minutes before bed is one of the most established herbal tea evening rituals.

Lemongrass

— traditionally associated with relaxation and calm, lemongrass appears in several calming herbal blends and is one of the most pleasant evening herbal options in the collection for its clean, citrus-fresh character.

Lavender blends

— lavender has a long tradition of use for relaxation and sleep support; Adagio's Lavender Lemon blend combines lavender with lemongrass for a gently floral, calming evening cup.

For the most targeted sleep support, Adagio's Wellness Teas section includes blends specifically formulated for sleep and relaxation — combining chamomile and other calming botanicals in purpose-made sleep blends rather than single-herb infusions.

Herbal Tea for Digestion

Several herbal teas have particularly well-established associations with digestive comfort — the category where herbal tradition is most consistent across cultures:

Peppermint

— one of the most widely used herbs for digestive comfort, with a long tradition of use for bloating and general digestive ease. A cup of peppermint after a meal is one of the most practical herbal tea applications in the collection.

Lemongrass Ginger

— ginger is traditionally used to support digestive comfort and ease feelings of nausea, with a history of use stretching across Asian, Middle Eastern, and European herbal traditions. A cup after a heavy meal is one of the most useful herbal tea applications in the range.

Chamomile

— double-duty as both a sleep herb and a digestive herb. Chamomile has a long tradition as a post-dinner tea for digestive comfort across European herbal medicine, and its gentle, apple-sweet flavour makes it one of the most pleasant ways to end a meal.

Herbal Tea as a Gift

Loose leaf herbal tea makes one of the most thoughtful and universally appropriate gift categories in the Adagio range — suitable for any recipient regardless of whether they drink caffeinated tea, entirely appropriate for pregnant recipients, and accessible to all ages. A selection covering chamomile, peppermint, blood orange, and a fruit blend gives the recipient the full range of the category from a single gift. Pair with a ceramic infuser for a complete herbal tea gift that includes everything needed to brew the first cup.

Buy Loose Leaf Herbal Tea Online

Browse the full loose leaf herbal tea collection above — chamomile, peppermint, blood orange, lemongrass ginger, wild strawberry, samurai mate, and many more caffeine-free botanical blends. Order loose leaf herbal tea online and have it delivered from our UK warehouse with free UK delivery on qualifying orders. Also available as herbal iced teas and in pyramid teabags.

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