Spruce Juice: How to Make Spruce Tea
Tea is the second most consumed beverage in the world, with water being the first. Due to this, there is no end to the varieties and methods for making tea. Each tea comes with unique flavor profiles and some provide numerous health benefits.
One type of tea that few people know about is spruce tea. Spruce tea is tea made with spruce needles, or spruce tips and originated in Northern Europe and Asia where there is an abundance of native spruce species.
The flavor of spruce tips is commonly described as citrusy, so it is normally paired with citrus fruits like lemons or oranges. This citrusy flavor is caused by an abundance of vitamin C found in the spruce tips, which is great for the immune system.
Spruce tea has been known to help treat colds and the flu for this very reason. You can also boil spruce branches to produce a steam that can help loosen congestion of the sinuses and lungs for extra cold and flu relief.
Something that makes spruce tea so cool is how easy it is to make. All you really need is a spruce tree and some boiling water. The problem a lot of people may have is finding the spruce tree. In the Appalachian region, there is one predominant species of spruce; the red spruce (Picea rubens). This species is very common throughout the Northeastern United States and Eastern Canada, however in Appalachia you will rarely see it unless you go to a higher elevation.
Most red spruces in Appalachia reside in mountain top spruce-fir forests, found alongside the Frasier Fir (Abies fraseri). This means it's quite difficult for some to go foraging for spruce tips if they aren’t close enough to a mountain.
Luckily, there are plenty of alternatives that are very similar to the spruce in terms of taste and healthy benefits and can be found more easily. Some of the native alternatives include white pine (Pinus strobus) and Eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis). A nonnative option would be the Norway spruce (Picea abies), which is commonly planted for ornamental purposes.
While spruce has health benefits and is harmless for most people, there are still some risks when foraging for spruce. The first risk is that spruce can be unsafe for anyone who is pregnant as there is a chance that spruce has a chemical compound known as isocupressic acid. Isocupressic acid is a known abortifacient and has a chance to induce an abortion. This acid is found in many conifer species, and although there is no certainty that spruce does contain it, it is best to avoid the chances when pregnant or planning to become pregnant.
Another risk that can come from foraging spruce is the chance of accidentally foraging a similar conifer species known as yew, which is highly toxic to humans. The best way to tell the difference between spruce and yew is by feeling the tips of the needles. Spruce has hard and rigid needles with incredibly sharp tips, which can actually cause a stinging pain when grabbed too hard. Yew has longer, softer needles that aren’t sharp and have a characteristic green scale at the base of each needle. Spruce trees are also much taller than yew trees, standing at 40 meters compared to about 15 meters for the yew. Always bring a guide to conifer trees when foraging to make sure you don’t harvest the wrong needles.
Most of the time, spruce tea is made with young spruce tips. These are the tips that have just emerged and are less woody with a much stronger citrus flavor. Young spruce tips emerge around the middle of May through early June, which is great timing for a glass of iced spruce tea on a warm day. You can also use the matured spruce tips as well, which has a more subdued flavor.
In fact, I prefer to make hot spruce tea using the matured tips for a cold winter day since the matured tips taste more like a Christmas tree rather than bright and citrusy. Whether you use the fresh and citrusy young spruce tips or the more subtle and piney mature spruce tips is up to you, just remember that young spruce tips are only around for a short period of time each year. It is also important to forage in moderation and not take too many tips from one branch or tree so that the tree isn’t harmed.
In order to make the spruce tea, you just need three ingredients. Spruce tips, honey or sugar, and a lemon. The spruce tips should be washed before steeping and the general ratio should be one cup of spruce tips for every three cups of water. If using matured spruce tips, you could increase the ratio given that they have a less intense flavor.
For the honey, one tablespoon per one cup of spruce tips is recommended, but this can be adjusted for how sweet or unsweet you prefer your tea. The lemon is also up to your preference, but generally half a lemon per one cup of spruce tips is delicious.
Once the water is boiling, add the spruce tips and turn the heat to low and cover the pot. After five to 10 minutes, depending on the strength you are shooting for, add the honey and lemon and stir. Strain out the spruce tips and pour hot or store in a container to refrigerate for iced tea. And voila! You have yourself a simple spruce tea full of vitamin C to sip on and remind you of the forest.
