You may have heard the recent buzz about North America’s only native caffeinated plant, yaupon. Yaupon (Ilex vomitoria) is making a resurgence, and it took concerns of tariffs and increased tea and coffee prices to bring this domestic caffeinated plant into the mainstream eye. However, Mountain Rose Herbs’ interest in this plant preceded the tariff-driven trend, and we are delighted to share more information about the relationship we've developed with this plant over the past 7 years.
Yaupon is in the holly family, along with its more famous drinkable cousins, yerba maté (Ilex paraguariensis) and guayusa (Ilex guayusa). Yaupon is very pleasant to drink, thanks to its lack of tannins and theobromine and theacrine content. Yaupon also does not get bitter, no matter how long you steep it. It yields what some may call a "velvety" tea with a really nice mouthfeel. Many people on the Mountain Rose Herbs Team particularly like this smooth tea to help with focus and energy, without the jitteriness that can come from other types of caffeinated beverages.
Yaopon holly likes well-drained, sandy soil and is often found in marshes, maritime forests, and forested wetlands. It typically grows from the Eastern Shore of Virginia south to Florida and west to Texas and Oklahoma. It also grows in Chiapas, Mexico. The wild-harvested, Regeneric Organic Certified Yaupon that Mountain Rose Herbs sources comes from Texas, which is a special terroir for the flavor and body of the tea.
Today, some consider yaupon a particularly obnoxious, dense weed that gets in the way of forestry operations, which makes us love it all the more. Hearty plants that have a strong drive for survival typically possess strong wellness benefits. When you can work with such a prolific plant that actually benefits from being harvested, it makes the relationship all the more special.
In addition to the incredible flavor profile of yaupon sourced from this region, we are also supporting a woman-owned, Indigenous-owned farm partner who is doing incredible work to harvest and roast this abundant plant to perfection, while also raising awareness about this sustainable tea.
There is no doubt you are wondering why a tea with so many benefits has such a terrible species name, Ilex vomitoria. And well, it’s complicated!
There were a number of reports by Europeans who reported that Native Americans would drink yaupon tea to the point of vomiting for purification and ritualistic purposes. Despite yaupon having no more emetic qualities than black tea or coffee, the new name created fear about potential side effects and drove down interest and trade of yaupon. We’ll never know whether or not this decision was vindictive and politically motivated to support the British tea trade or was simply unfortunate.
That travesty pushed yaupon to the far reaches of human memory, to be forgotten for more than a century and a half. Until now…
As an advocate for yaupon, we know there is still a lot of work to do to raise awareness about its abundant and sustainable wellness benefits. We're happy it is now getting the recognition it deserves, and our hope is that this trajectory continues.
Our Products Director, Christine Rice, is passionate about supporting this mission and has come up with creative ways to introduce it to more tea lovers. One of these innovative solutions was to curate a sampler set with yaupon's popular cousins, yerba maté and guayusa teas. Since launching the sampler, there has been a lot more interest in yaupon, and we know more people will fall in love with this truly special US-grown tea.