NORA | Nettle, Oatstraw, Red Raspberry & Alfalfa

Green, grassy and faintly sweet, closer to a garden than a dessert. NORA is named for what is in it: Nettle, Oatstraw, Raspberry and Alfalfa.

It belongs to the nourishing herbal infusion method, brewed strong and long rather than quick. That method is not ancient, whatever gets said about it. It was set out and named by the herbalist Susun Weed and taught on from there through the 1980s and 90s, and the four-herb NORA combination is a later coinage on top of it. Forty years is long enough to have proved itself and short enough to be honest about.

What's In It

Nettle Leaf, warding and consecration, and the deep green backbone of the blend, rich and almost savoury. Oatstraw, replenishment and slow restoration, soft and hay-like, rounding the nettle's edge. Raspberry Leaf, a women's herb of long standing, plain and black-tea-like in flavor. Alfalfa, steadiness and long-term abundance, mild and green, filling out the middle of the cup. Lemon Balm, lifting the whole blend and keeping it from going flat.

Spiritual Properties

A blend for endurance rather than a quick fix. Worked with through long seasons, steady effort and the kind of work that asks you to keep showing up.

To Brew

One tablespoon per cup for an ordinary brew, or a quarter cup of leaf per quart for the long infusion this blend is really built for. Pour boiling water over it, cover, and leave it four hours or overnight before straining. The long steep is what pulls the green weight out of nettle and oatstraw, and it is why the tradition brews it that way.

Good to Know

Caffeine free.

Drink It With

The four herbs are all on the shelf loose if you want to adjust the ratio yourself: nettle, oatstraw, raspberry leaf and alfalfa. Wise Woman is the bitterer blend for a harder season. Browse the rest of the tea shelf.

Important Notes

The associations described here are traditional and folkloric. This is a tea, not a drug, supplement or medicine, and nothing here is meant to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent anything.

Contains raspberry leaf and nettle. Both have long folk histories around pregnancy, and the traditions disagree with each other about when in a pregnancy either belongs, so speak to your midwife or doctor before drinking this if you are pregnant or trying.

Contains alfalfa, which is high in vitamin K. If you take warfarin, keep your intake steady and mention it to whoever manages your dosing.

Sold in 2 ounce packages.

THIS PRODUCT WAS PRODUCED IN A PRIVATE RESIDENCE THAT IS NOT SUBJECT TO GOVERNMENTAL LICENSING OR INSPECTION.