DOSE:

1 cup

oral

Ilex vomitoria

(tea)

BODY WEIGHT:

200 lb

Yaupon Holly Tea

I read about the ritual use of yaupon by indigenous Americans, and was fascinated there was a plant containing significant caffeine native to the U.S. It was also weird that no one I talked to had heard of it given the popularity of caffeinated beverages; coffee, tea, soda, etc.

I have relatives in coastal North Carolina, and used a visit to take the opportunity to look for the plant in question, yaupon holly, an evergreen shrub that grows near the coast, usually very close to the water. Surprisingly, I found the plant within minutes of beginning my search. It is everywhere in tidal marshes. Comparison to images online help to correctly identify the plant.

I picked a handful of green, fresh leaves and returned to the house where I was staying. The leaves were put on foil and placed in a toaster oven for drying. Drying only took a minute or two, and the leaves attained a light tan color, and became crispy dry. Placed in a ziplock bag, the leaves were easily crushed by hand.

A coffee cup was filled with tap water and microwaved to boiling. A tablespoon of crushed yaupon was stirred into the water and allowed to steep for several minutes. Conveniently, the leaves settled compactly on the bottom of the cup leaving a very dark, black coffee-dark, liquid. I sipped the hot liquid and found it pleasant tasting; kinda like green tea but with much more body. There was no bitterness. Very soon I began to feel a very noticeable caffeine buzz, and my ears began ringing as they'll do after a good caffeine dose. I felt enjoyably energized.

I have every intention to harvest more yaupon for tea whenever I visit the southeastern US coast.

Exp Year: 2012	ExpID: 102159
Gender: Male
Age at time of experience: 56
Published: Dec 12, 2017	Views: 1,532
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Ilex vomitoria (827) : First Times (2), Alone (16)