My parents recently returned from a trip to Hawaii. While there they put together and sent me a fun box of native Hawaiian foods that they found. Of course there were the expected, and tasty, macadamia nuts, etc., but something that caught my eye, and which I am enjoying as I write this, is coffee cherry tea. This is simply tea made from the dried fruit that surrounds the coffee bean. It's mild flavored, and according to coffeesofhawaii.com, an 8 oz. brewed serving contains less caffeine than 4 ounces of decaffeinated coffee.
I first encountered coffee cherries at a tasting in the Venice, California Whole Foods last year. It had been packaged as a sugared soda, which I was not thrilled about. However, on returning home, I mentioned it to our network dermatologist's aesthetician and she shared that coffee cherries are extremely high in antioxidants. This was discovered when someone noticed that the hands of coffee pickers looked young, despite being out in the tropical sun performing hard labor. This extract, for that reason, is becoming popular in beauty products. (We saw a few at Expo West.)
In reading up on this tea, I learned that it's actually a very old cultural favorite in countries where coffee is grown. In Bolivia it is known as Sultana, also as"poor man's coffee". In Yemen, it's known by the name Qishr. Cascara is the Spanish word for"husk", which is why it is known by this name as well.
It's not an easy thing to find on the mainland, but if you're on your way to Hawaii…or Bolivia…or maybe even Yemen…be sure to look for this tea and give it a try! Or, like me, if you're firmly planted at more mundane coordinates, be sure to check out this website and order some online. At the very least you can sit on your patio, sip, and let yourself be taken away by a fragrant tropical breeze!