Everyone who has ever visited the Netherlands will recognize this sight: people in cafes and restaurants ordering hot water with ‘plants’.
So what do you do when you can’t grow your own tea plant (Camellia sinensis): you create your own type of tea and make sure it becomes popular enough to represent your country.
‘Fresh’ herbal tea
One of the most popular tea drinks in the Netherlands is ‘mint tea’ (munt thee), meaning hot water with fresh leaves from a mint plant (served with honey). Upon receiving your drink you have to wait a few minutes before drinking for the minty taste. Whereas this drink started as a special off-menu order – every cafe and restaurant had it, but it wasn’t on the menu – this tea has now established itself as a regular on the menu.
It doesn’t stop here: ginger tea has joined the mint tea and is slowly establishing itself on the menu as well. The new off-menu order is: Ginger-Mint tea. If the cafe or restaurant has both, they are perfectly willing to combine them for you. Another popular variety: ginger with a slice of orange.
If you find yourself in a cafe more specialized in tea, they will have created their own varieties, like a cardamom, orange, turmeric and cinnamon infusion. In Rotterdam, you can try The Tea Lab!
Dried herbs, flowers and spices
Also popular among a niche part of the population (not for sale in cafes and restaurants) is tea of dried herbs, flowers, or spices. Bring out your inner witch (just joking) or herbalist and mix the herbs to optimally suit your mood or health. For example, I drink fennel or ginger tea when my stomach is upset, chamomile to feel at peace or a mix of horehound, marshmallow, thyme, and some other herbs when I feel a cold coming up. Who knows, one day I might follow an official course and become a real herbalist (instead of a semi-knowledgeable hobbyist).
Regular tea
As the Netherlands is a country that doesn’t grow the ‘real’ tea plants, there is nothing like ‘Tea from Holland’. So all green tea, black tea, and white tea is imported. That doesn’t mean these types of tea aren’t popular – on the contrary – but rather that you can’t visit the tea plantation and enjoy the taste of tea grown on Dutch soil.
Buying tea in the Netherlands
Teabags are sold in many varieties, from many different brands, for example, Pickwick, Lipton, and Clipper. Many of those are available in other countries as well. There are mixes of dried flowers (like chamomile) or spices (like fennel) without any tea leaves. You can also buy loose tea leaves from stores like Simon Lévelt and some supermarkets. You’ll find them in most big cities. If you are looking for more variety (say Oolong and Pu Erh) then you have to shop online.
Dutch tea
So what’s typical Dutch tea? The answer to that question would be ‘Mint tea’. You can easily create your own wherever you are. Just buy the herbs (or grow your own plant) and add some hot water. You can add honey for a sweeter taste.
