As promised, I have put together a step by step guide for making Pine needle tea! I have seen a lot of pine tea go to waste, because many people are steeping it in hot water and allowing it to sit for 30 minutes. This is all fine and great, HOWEVER pine and other conifer need a bit more coaxing to get out all of the good stuff! This method will make approx. 1 liter jug of tea-
First, Boil a medium sized pot of water on the stove. Bring the water to a rolling boil.
2. Add in 3 tablespoons of pine needle tea directly into the boiling water, and count to 30. DO NOT GO ANY HIGHER you will destroy the magic inside the pine needles if you BOIL IT- and end up with turpentine.
3. Once you reach 30 seconds, turn the heat down to the lowest setting for simmer. You can remove the pot from the heat for a few minutes to allow it to cool off quickly, then replace back onto the burner.
4. Now the hard part starts! You have to leave this pot on very low simmer/steep for 1 hour up to 6 hours! I have even let mine simmer for 24 hours! The longer your tea simmers, the more constituents are extracted out. It should look something like this at this point. ( think murky green soup)
5. After a few hours of simmering, the liquid should start to change color. Mine turns into a rich pinkish red color. Did you know that conifer tea turns this color ? Most people don't! It truly is magic!
6. After your desired amount of time has passed for simmering, strain out your tea! I bought a cheap hand strainer from dollarama, and some can use a cheesecloth if you want to rid all particles. At this point, It looks something like this:
Notice the beautiful pink color !! So delicious! And there you have it ! 1 jug of pine needle herbal tea, Made the Alberta Way!!
I always recommend that you pour hot tea into glass only, plastics will leach chemicals into your herbal tea. You can enjoy this tea warm, with some lemon or honey, or fill a glass cup with ice and enjoy a cold brew on a hot summer day ! My family will go through about a full jug a day, or after being outside with the general public, I will brew a jug and drink it periodically throughout the day. If you are using pine needle tea specifically for suramin, 3 to 6 cups a day is perfect! Please buy from a trusted and safe source, and learn your species before you pick !
If you have any questions regarding pine needle tea, dont forget you can message me anytime, on my site, or on facebook ! ENJOY!