Whether you drink tea to start the day off on the right foot, or you gulp it down to add some antioxidants to your diet, or perhaps to take the edge off before going to bed, the fact stands that tea culture is widespread all over the globe and plays a huge part in our daily lives. But, what if we told you that you can make your tea time even more pleasant by adding some new ingredients?
Since you’re here, though, you probably already have a very particular plant in mind. The answer to whether you can make tea with CBD flowers is yes, and we can leave it at that, but if you want to learn more about the whys and the hows, read on!
Let’s start off by saying that cannabis tea and hemp tea are by no means a new fad with little to no merit and, if you have the chance, you should definitely familiarize your palate (and endocannabinoid system) with them. But, let’s cut to the chase; this is not a preachy article on cannabis tea as just another way to get high (not that there’s anything wrong with that), but rather a spotlight on the “gentler” of the two dominant cannabinoids – CBD (cannabidiol) – whilst we put it in hot water and see what it brings to the table. Let’s get into it.
What Are CBD Flowers?
With all the noise out there surrounding weed, for starters, we feel it’s necessary to discern what CBD flowers actually are. When talking about the “CBD flower”, we actually refer to the flower of the hemp plant (a variety of cannabis sativa) that’s rich in cannabidiol, as opposed to the more mainstream THC-rich plants. So, the point that we’re trying to make is that cannabis flowers and hemp flowers are not the same thing and CBD flowers refer to the latter due to their make-up.
The Benefits of CBD and How It Works
In recent years, the health benefits of CBD have been more and more acclaimed, and rightfully so. Although its role has been mainly boiled down to tackling anxiety and relieving pain, the potential of CBD goes far beyond than meets the eye. Even the FDA has become more lax and has acknowledged the possibilities.
Anyhow, to summarize why you would ever want to make tea out of hemp buds, here are the general wellness improvements that you may experience:
- It helps with insomnia;
- It helps with anxiety;
- It helps with chronic pain;
- It helps combat inflammation.
However, do note that this is by no means professional medical advice and you should always consult your doctor about any ailments or illnesses.
CBD vs. THC – The Difference in Effect
In order to clarify our previously stated health benefits, we ought to explain the differences between CBD and THC laden plants, or rather the effect they have on us. Even though we pointed out that CBD can help with a plethora of issues, its effects can’t be felt on the same level as THC. THC is a psychoactive compound that binds to CB1 (cannabinoid receptor type 1) and CB2 (cannabinoid receptor type 2) in our nervous system and provides “the high”, while CBD is not proven to directly react with said receptors. Although, cannabidiol is a phytocannabinoid and does have some sort of interaction with our endocannabinoid system.
Types of CBD
When heading over to your local dispensary, you might encounter all sorts of confusing types of hemp, cannabis, and many other THC or CBD products. The exotic names and brands certainly don’t help the less experienced with anything other than telling you how you’re supposed to feel when partaking. Of course, this is our opinion; some of you might love the floral monikers. In any case, almost all of the CBD-rich hemp flowers will fall into the daytime or nighttime category.
Even though we said that CBD can’t be felt on the same level as THC, there are some hemp strains that do cause you to feel a thing or two. Some will give you a sense of peace, others will make you more focused; which one you go for is entirely your choice, as there’s no best option that applies to everyone.
Making CBD Tea – DIY Tea Recipe
Now that we ascertained that you can make CBD tea and why you should probably try it, let’s get into the nitty-gritty of actually making it. You could always go with buying a certain CBD tea brand, but trust us, DIY is always more satisfying and the process is fun. Besides, you’ll get to light up a smoke or two and see what you’re dealing with.
Making your own CBD tea is not an exact science though, and the preferences in dosage can vary from individual to individual. That said, we’ll provide you with a foolproof step-by-step “starter” recipe that you can try and then tweak according to your liking.
The general rule of thumb is that you should take 1 to 6 mg per 10 pounds of body weight. The CBD concentration in your buds will be depicted in percentages; for example, if your hemp of choice has 20% CBD, that means that one gram of hemp flowers will have 20 mg of CBD on average.
Anyhow, our favorite “procedure” goes as follows:
- Grind the flowers (a proper weed grinder makes this very straightforward);
- Insert the grind into a tea infuser, or if you don’t have one, carefully slice open a tea bag and fill it (first off, empty it completely and once you know what you’re doing, you can experiment by combining CBD with chamomile, green tea, or other herbal teas);
- Boil some water (duh);
- Put the tea bag or tea infuser containing the grind in a cup and pour the boiling water over it;
- Wait for a couple of minutes;
- Enjoy your cup of tea!
It’s really that simple; just like regular tea! But, since we’re on the topic of CBD tea, you can get to try it even if you don’t have actual hemp flowers – all you need is CBD oil. However, we do recommend combining it with your favorite tea (bag) since you’ll usually use a single teaspoon of CBD oil and if it’s not based on some sort of derivative, such as coconut oil, the taste may prove to be lacking.
Decarboxylation
Decarboxylating your flowers is known to enhance the properties of cannabis, and the same goes for the CBD-rich variety. Without getting too technical, when decarbing, the naturally found CBDA (cannabidiolic acid) compound transforms into the more neutral cannabidiol that you’d want in your tea. Keep in mind that some dispensaries sell “pre-decarbed” hemp or cannabis, but if not, the process is relatively simple.
- Heat your oven to about 240°F (115°C);
- Put the ground flowers in a pan (you could also tear them into small pieces);
- Cook for about 30 minutes and allow it to cool off afterward.
Final Thoughts
The awesome thing about CBD is that it’s as friendly to the newbies as it is to the weed savants. It brings about a whole new perspective on the cannabis culture as a whole due to its extraordinary benefits that are remarkable enough to turn even the most skeptical ones into believers. After all, how could it not; the perks are manifold and the ways to ingest it even more so. All in all, in this article, we explained only one of them and we hope you found the answers you were looking for.
