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Good morning, afternoon, or evening, and welcome to my most recent article on peppermint tea and all the amazing benefits it has for you when you drink it. But today I am assuming you are here because you are trying to determine if peppermint tea contains caffeine. There are a lot of reasons you might be wondering this, and listen I get it. As somebody who is diagnosed with both anxiety and insomnia, I understand taking steps to go about limiting your daily caffeine intake.
And since you ended up on an article specifically about peppermint tea's caffeine content, I am going to be operating under the assumption that you are hoping that peppermint tea does not contain caffeine. Afterall, people are usually only worried about caffeine content when they are trying to limit their consumption of it. Well not to worry, the internet machine has brought you to just the article you are looking for. Check out the rest of the article below to find out if peppermint tea has caffeine and how drinking peppermint tea will compare to the amount of caffeine you are used to.
The short answer is that no, generally speaking, the peppermint tea you purchase should not have caffeine in it. That is because genuine peppermint tea is made from the peppermint plant and not the tea plant that most other teas are made out of (“Camellia Sinensis”). And since the peppermint plant does not contain caffeine naturally, genuine organic peppermint tea should be entirely caffeine free.
That being said, it is perfectly possible for a brand to have caffeinated the peppermint leaves synthetically. Even tea that is strictly made from only peppermint leaves can have artificial caffeine added to it, so be sure to check the label and thoroughly read the ingredients if you are truly searching for a caffeine free tea.
On top of the possibility of the peppermint leaves being synthetically caffeinated, many peppermint teas are not strictly made from peppermint leaves. It is quite common, in fact I would assume all the peppermint tea you have come across up to this point, was actually made from peppermint leaves that are blended in with actual tea leaves.
The four most popular types of tea (black tea, green tea, white tea, and oolong tea) all contain some level of caffeine. And as such, if the peppermint leaves have been blended with any of these tea leaves that have not been decaffeinated, the peppermint tea will contain some level of caffeine. It is not particularly common to see peppermint flavored oolong tea because the flavor profiles of the two don’t really match well together, but it is very common to find peppermint tea that is made with a blend of black, green, or white tea leaves.
While it is almost impossible to determine the exact caffeine content of individual tea leaves or tea bags outside of a laboratory setting, there are a few basic guidelines you can use to determine how much caffeine your peppermint tea might contain. For instance, it is widely accepted that black teas are going to have the highest caffeine content on average. Black teas are followed by oolong tea in the middle of the caffeine level spectrum of different strains of tea. And at the bottom of that spectrum are green teas, followed by white teas at the very bottom of the list.
That means that if you have peppermint tea that is blended with the leaves from green or white teas, then you can expect it to have a little bit of caffeine in it. Enough that it’s certainly not decaf, but not so much that it’s going to wire you all evening. If your peppermint tea happens to be brewed with oolong tea then you can expect a moderate to middle amount of caffeine in your cup. And finally if your peppermint tea is brewed with any variety of black tea watch out! Because that is going to be the peppermint tea with the highest caffeine level.
No matter how much caffeine your mug of peppermint tea might contain, it is still going to be significantly less than a cup of coffee. And it’s not even remotely close. The very strongest cup of black tea (the most caffeinated variety of tea) doesn’t have as much caffeine as the weakest cup of coffee. For quick reference here is a handy reference tool!
And before you ask, I know that it is a little confusing that the level of caffeine seems to have such a wide berth of potential ranges even when you use the same type of tea. This is because a wide variety of things affect how much caffeine is actually in the tea leaves themselves. And on top of that, the way you steep the plant, as well as, the way it was prepared influences how much caffeine in the plant is dissolved into the water where you can now consume and ingest it.
(Note all these caffeine levels are assumed for an eight ounce cup being prepared. Adjust your levels accordingly if you use extra tea bags and/or add extra water.)
I would imagine I don’t have to explain what coffee is, but hey this is the internet and anybody on the planet can access this article. So if by some chance of fate, you are completely unfamiliar with coffee, you should know that between 30-40% of the world’s population consumes coffee on a daily basis and that number is closer to 70% of the population in the United States of America. That is, 70% of the total population, not just the percentage of adults who drink coffee on a daily basis in America. The number of just adults on their own would be an even higher percentage of the population. However, Americans barely hold a candle to the way citizens in the Northern European countries consume coffee.
Coffee is brewed from coffee beans. And the beans are crushed or grinded up, and then stepped using hot water similar to the way tea is brewed.
However, unlike the teas on our list, coffee has a very high caffeine content on average unless you specifically get it decaffeinated. Or if you are feeling fun you can always get regular strength and mix it 50/50 with decaffeinated coffee to create half caff coffee.
You can expect the average 8 ounce cup of coffee contains between 95 and 200 milligrams of caffeine.
For reference your average soda, or carbonated beverage, usually contains between 20 and 50 milligrams of caffeine per twelve ounce can.
Whether you drink regular or decaf coffee, and are looking to replace either one with a similar beverage you should strongly consider switching to any variety of tea. This is because tea is healthier for you than coffee. And I don’t think I even need to mention how much healthier tea is for you than a soft drink or pop is.
Black tea(s) are among the most popular styles of teas in the world. In fact, I would imagine that the vast majority of teas you have encountered are made with some variation of black tea or another. It’s very apparent when tea is not made with black tea (it won’t be the standard tea color you think of. Hence why some teas are named for the color of the beverage they produce, such as green tea and white tea. But many of the world’s most popular tea blends are made with a blend of black tea leaves.
Everything from Darjeeling, to Earl Grey, to English Breakfast, to the sweet tea you get at McDonalds, are made using black tea leaves. And this is because black tea has a very mild and approachable flavor. And on top of that it pairs well with a wide variety of different flavor options to create unique earthy blends, smokey campfire tastes, and even delicious fruit flavored tea blends like tangerine, cherry hibiscus, or raspberry.
However, if you are looking to enjoy a cup of black tea and are worried about, or are sensitive, to consuming caffeine, you will want to make sure you specifically find decaffeinated black tea. If you don’t, black tea has the highest level of caffeine of any of the popular tea varieties. And as such you can expect 14 to 70 milligrams of caffeine per tea bag in an eight ounce cup of black tea.
However, as an “average,” most back teas will contain 5.25mg of caffeine per fl oz of water. And as such you can expect the average 8 ounce glass of black tea to contain around 42 milligrams of caffeine per tea serving you used.
Oolong tea is a traditional Chinese tea and it is known for having a more diverse and complex flavor than the other popular teas in the United States.
The caffeine content in Oolong tea is about right in between black tea and green tea. And you can expect between 37 to 55 milligrams of caffeine per eight ounce serving.
Green tea has the second lowest caffeine level of the popular blends of tea. You will be able to tell green tea right away because not only do the leaves look more green than the leaves or black or white teas, but the beverage it produces when you mix it with water, comes out a much lighter shade than black teas, but also darker and more colorful than white teas. You might even say it looks green.
That being said, you can expect an eight ounce glass of green tea (*using one tea bag*) to come out having between 25 and 45 milligrams of caffeine.
White tea is the most delicate of the popular tea varieties and this is because it has a very minimal processing methodology. Typically, white tea is harvested before the tea plant even has time to open the leaves to the sun all the way. Then the leaves are meticulously and quickly dried. By preventing the oxidation process from occurring as long as it does when black teas, or green teas, are harvested, white tea is able to achieve a much lighter, more delicate, and fresher flavor than the darker teas on our list.
And on top of having a light and delicate flavor, you can also expect white tea to have a very light and delicate level of caffeine in it. For example your standard 8 ounce cup of white tea is on average, going to have between 15 to 30 milligrams of caffeine. This is less than a third of the caffeine in the weakest cup of full strength coffee you’ve ever had in your life on the high end for white tea.
So there you go. I would like to believe that I thoroughly answered your question about peppermint tea and its caffeine level. And as such, I hope that not only do you have an understanding of the caffeine levels in peppermint tea, but have a better understanding of our caffeinated beverages as a whole after reading it. Remember, organic tea made from actual peppermint leaves, will definitely not have caffeine. The peppermint plant does not naturally contain caffeine, so just check to make sure none was added if you are buying it processed instead of organic.
And if you are drinking peppermint tea that is made from a blend of peppermint and tea leaves, then you can use the reference tool I provided in the third section to help you figure out how much caffeine your peppermint tea might contain.
