Teas and Spices - Art of Tea Koutouloufari Crete Greece

Throughout history most civilisations have utilised herbs in some form, for flavouring food, for medicinal usages, and more recently just as a drink to be taken instead of plain water.

Perhaps the most famous of all is ordinary ‘black’ tea (Camellia sinensis), depending on the age of the shoots the same plants also yields ‘green’ or ‘white’ tea. But tea is a relatively recent introduction to Europe being discovered by explorers in the Far East only 400 years ago!

Wherever herbs are found or cultivated, herb lore exists which give the plants medicinal and sometimes magical properties. Modern science has in some cases proved that plants do have medicinal properties such as foxglove - ‘digitalis’, for the treatment of some heart diseases, while others such as camomile and peppermint are well known for there uses as a mild sedative (camomile) and the relief of indigestion (peppermint).

At Art of Tea we not only have a wide range of herbal ‘teas’ and tisanes, but also various herbs used in cooking, some of which are native to Crete like the well known Diktamos or Erontas (sometimes called Dittany), and others which grow well here.

Of course it is not enough to just be able to buy tea and herbs so we also have Greek coffee, raki, Cretan olive oil, Cretan honey, and a range of tea related products such as copper and brass kettles, tea balls, and ‘do-it-yourself’ tea bags! Also available are the traditional tall ‘Greek’ pepper and coffee mills along with oil cans, vinegar and oil bottles, and pepper and salt cellars. Some of these and the traditional brass briki are available in our on line store

We also have a range of stoneware casseroles, ovenware and serving bowls made here on Crete and decorated with traditional Cretan designs.