Basil in a Cup: How Our Summer Genovese Becomes Your New Favorite Tea
In our garden at BLeaves Farms, basil is a summer ritual. To learn about its traditional culinary use , visit our article Farm to Table Delight: Genovese Basil at BLeaves Farms.
This season we once again grew classic Genovese, the glossy, fragrant leaves most people associate with pesto and sun-warmed tomatoes. But when the plants were at their peak and the air was thick with that peppery-sweet aroma, we did something a little unexpected: we harvested by hand and gently dried the leaves for tea. Done right, Genovese basil makes a deeply comforting cup, warm and savory with a delicate spice, the kind of flavor that settles you after a long day and reminds you why simple things endure.
This season, as my sister has been digitizing boxes of old family slides, I’ve been time-traveling. Frame by frame, there I am as a kid: climbing anything that stood still long enough, cradling cats, parading stuffed animals, always edging toward the next patch of woods. Those pictures don’t just show what I liked. They show who I was and who I was becoming. A person drawn to animals, to movement, to the quiet company of the natural world. That thread runs straight through to today, where the farm is both livelihood and mirror.
Earlier today, while I was harvesting in the garden, a honeybee drifted in and went to work on a delicate flower. It didn’t hesitate, didn’t second-guess. It knew exactly what it was there to do. Watching it, I thought about purpose. The way children seem to know theirs before the world gets noisy, and the way adults sometimes have to relearn what was obvious at the start. Strip away the extra, and what remains is often the truest thing. For me, it’s still animals, still plants, still the alchemy of turning something living and ordinary into nourishment you can hold in your hands.
Health Benefits of Basil Tea
Genovese basil tea fits that philosophy. We pick at peak freshness, leaves spread and air-dried with low, steady airflow until they’re papery and intensely aromatic; no high heat, no rushing, just time and gentleness so the volatile compounds that carry flavor and benefit are preserved. Steeped in hot water, the tea is round and savory with a hint of clove and anise, more kitchen-than-meadow, especially good with a touch of honey or a slice of lemon. It’s not tulsi’s peppery-adaptogenic punch, but Genovese brings its own virtues: soothing steam that clears the head, a calm stomach after a meal, and the soft lift that comes from a warm, fragrant cup in your hands. Basil’s natural antioxidants and aromatic oils have a long folk tradition for easing digestion, stress, and seasonal discomfort; the modern wellness gloss is simple. Hydrate, warm up, and let the plant’s gentler chemistry do its quiet work.
If you want to taste what we taste on our farm, we’d love to share it. Our small-batch Genovese basil tea is grown, hand-harvested, and carefully dried right here, then packed to order. Text us at 480-256-2306 to buy directly from the farm. You’ll get the same leaves we drink ourselves, from a garden we can point to, with the kind of traceable simplicity you can feel good about.
Best Products for Basil Tea Lovers
If you’re building your own tea ritual at home, a few tools make the process smooth. A hanging herb drying rack is life-changing if you make your own teas and helps you preserve garden herbs at peak flavor. A fine-mesh tea infuser keeps loose leaves tidy in the cup. The Viante tea maker is a precise countertop workhorse for consistent steeping. And for an easy way to enjoy your loose leaf tea, you can grab organic, unbleached tea bags that let you fill and steep your own perfectly fresh cup every time. For convenience, here are links to each product:
And if you’re curious to compare flavors, you can also try ready-made tulsi teas, also known as holy basil tea.
Where to Buy Basil Tea
But truly, start with ours. You’ll taste the garden in it and it’s grown with ❤️. Order yours today by texting 489-256-2306.
Connect with Us
We love staying connected and sharing what’s coming out of the garden and into the kitchen. Find BLeaves Farms on Facebook, TikTok, Pinterest, and Instagram for harvest notes, simple recipes, and the small farm moments that make this life what it is. We’d also love to hear your favorite ways of enjoying basil tea!
And when you’re ready to bring the season into your mug, text 480-256-2306 to order your Genovese basil (and other seasonal) teas. From a summer leaf to a winter cup, let a humble plant remind you of purpose, warmth, and the good that grows close to home.
Affiliate Disclosure
Some links above are affiliate links. If you purchase through them, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. We appreciate your support of BLeaves Farms.
