Herbal tea Herbal tea Herbal teas — less commonly called tisanes (UK and US , US also ) — are beverages made from the infusion or decoction of herbs, spices, or other plant material in hot water. They do not usually contain caffeine. Herbal teas should not be confused with true teas (e.g., black, green, white, yellow, oolong), which are prepared from the cured leaves of the tea plant, "Camellia sinensis"), nor with decaffeinated tea, in which the caffeine has been removed. Like beverages made from true teas, herbal teas can be served hot or cold. Some feel that the term "tisane"
Camellia sinensis all harvested from one or the other, but are processed differently to attain varying levels of oxidation. Kukicha (twig tea) is also harvested from "Camellia sinensis", but uses twigs and stems rather than leaves. The name "Camellia" is taken from the Latinized name of Rev. Georg Kamel, SJ (1661–1706), a Moravian-born Jesuit lay brother, pharmacist, and missionary to the Philippines. Carl Linnaeus chose his name in 1753 for the genus to honor Kamel's contributions to botany (although Kamel did not discover or name this plant, or any "Camellia", and Linnaeus did not consider this plant a "Camellia" but a "Thea").