Rooibos History

Like so much of our planet's natural goodness, Rooibos (pronounced roy-boss) was first used by the indigenous people of South Africa. They would mash the stems and leaves of the Rooibos plants and leave it to ferment in the sun, creating a flavourful, healing drink from that result.

Rooibos was later "discovered" by some early immigrants and settlers in the region, but it wasn't until 1968 that Rooibos began to be studied for its health promoting properties. In the earliest study done on Rooibos, a South African mother Annique Theron found that Rooibos cured colic in infants. Since then, scientific research has proven over and over again that Rooibos is beneficial to people of all ages for a variety of medical ailments.

Rooibos became a cultivated crop in the early 1930's and was drunk almost exclusively by South Africans until the 1990's (South Africans drink an average of 6 cups of Rooibos per day). It's popularity as an export crop only really occurred in the late 1990's. At least 60% of the Rooibos produced in South Africa is now exported to countries worldwide, including; Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, England, Malaysia, South Korea, Poland, China, the United States, and Canada.

Historically, the word tea was used to describe beverages made from the evergreen shrub, "Camellia sinensis", black tea and green tea are examples of this. All other infusions, made from various herbs, were known as tisanes. The word tea, however, has grown to describe both teas and tisanes. Rooibos is often referred to as "Red Tea." Its' flavour is similar to black tea, only sweeter and without any bitterness.

The Rooibos plant, Aspalathus Linearis, is part of the legume family. It is a deep rooted plant that grows in the high desert regions of the Cedarberg Mountains, 200 km north of Capetown. This shrub-like bush has a central main stem covered in a smooth bark. Near the soil surface, the stem subdivides into a number of strong off shoots, followed by delicate side branches each bearing soft, needle-like leaves some ten centimetres in length. The plant is approximately one meter to one and a half meters tall. The plant thrives in its natural conditions and when left in the natural soil of its origin.

The Rooibos harvesting takes place in the summer, which is January through March in South Africa. The plants are best harvested at the hottest time of the day. The Gathering Place Rooibos is all hand-harvested.

When the plants are harvested they are cut to about 30cm from the ground and begin their growth cycle again in the spring. Once harvested, the Rooibos can be processed in two ways: to produce fermented Rooibos or unfermented Rooibos.

Most of the tea is processed in the traditional way, which is the fermented version. The fermented type is called red tea because fermentation turns the leaves and the resulting tea a rich red colour; this colour led to the creation of the name in Afrikaans, Rooibos, which means red bush.

The unfermented version is known as "Green Rooibos." The green leaves of the plant are dried quickly upon harvesting and the resulting tea is yellow in colour rather then the reddish colour of traditional Rooibos. The "green Rooibos" maximizes the antioxidant content of the plant, with no antioxidants lost during the fermentation process. This unfermented variety has a very mild "green" taste reminiscent of green tea but without any bitterness.