Introducing ‘Pure Leith’ Mint Tea
Mint (or mentha) belongs to the Lamiaceae family, which contains around 15–20 plant species, including peppermint and spearmint. Mint plants contain an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent called rosmarinic acid, as well as menthol and trace amounts of numerous nutrtients.
The potential health benefits of mint are:
- It may help digestive issues (IBS, tummy ache, over-eating)
- It freshens the breath
- Mint may help relieve tension headaches and migraine
- It may alleviate sinus congestion
- It has antibacterial properties
- It may give you more energy (in a different way from coffee)
- It may help seasonal allergies, especially if grown locally
- Apparently it may help concentration, and making a pot of tea is an excellent procrastination technique if one is writing to a deadline.
Mint tea is a perfect health drink! Read more on the benefits of mint on this Healthline blog.
In the studio we serve complimentary fresh homegrown mint tea to clients and visitors - you can even enjoy it as you’re working out. As a PT, I personally drink mint tea all day as I find it an optimal method of hydration.
You may have seen from my sports drink blog that water with a small amount of carbohydrate in can aid absorption. The gut ‘thinks’ a carb solution is food and thus absorbs it better than plain water (that is more likely to flush through the system and make you need to go to the toilet). The logic is that if you drink flavoured water, your body absorbs it better. This seems to work for mint tea, too.
It was through serving mint tea in the studio, and the subsequent demand for it, that we are pleased to announce the launch of Pure Leith mint tea - grown organically and produced locally, in Leith. Tracy grows all the mint, then dries whole stems in the drying room (a Council-registered food packing area) adjacent to the fitness studio. When completely dried, the whole leaves are then han-picked from the stems and packaged.
Pure Leith mint tea is available from the Griffen Fitness studio
It has more character and depth than standard mint tea, and using whole spearmint leaves means you don’t need a tea strainer. As far as we know, this is the only whole leaf mint tea available in the UK. It is as unique as it is delicious.
Enjoy your tea pure, Pure Leith. The hobby of Personal Trainer Tracy Griffen is to grow mint to serve in her Leith-based fitness studio. Read more in The Leither magazine.
We had a very successful stall at Leith Market on 23 September and totally SOLD OUT of stock.
Sales return spring 2024 (when we have grown more), or book into the studio for some fresh mint tea over winter...
If you’d like to join the waitlist for new stock, please email info@pureleith.com
Here is an email from a regular client Johnny (who bought many packets before they sold out) , with his thoughts on Pure Leith mint tea:
“At the weekend I went on my training walk up Arthur's Seat (1 hour, 21 mins 7 seconds) and forgot to make the mint tea before setting-off. The disappointment was intense but I found that it infuses quickly should one have forgotten to make in advance as well as if left in the thermos flask where it does not go sour nor bitter however long it is left in.
I had already made the tea when I got your email this morning - I will get another dose of the tea when I get home, I am sure I won't be able to resist it at the studio.
I am posting packets out to my family members who do exercises, with the instructions that it is very flexible in brewing requirements, never goes bitter, keeps its scent and has only one problem - it is hard to get the smell out of a thermos flask, a small non-problem!”
Our favourite way of enjoying Pure Leith mint tea is to brew it in a tea pot, 6 to 8 leaves only per pot, for around 10 minutes. Then decant into a thermos flask to enjoy it all day long. It means you’ll be well hydrated and have hot mint tea to hand all day lon. Perfect if you’re busy or chained to a laptop for work.
Tracy selling Pure Leith mint tea at Leith Market, September 2023
