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The Spruce Eats / Sabrina Jiang
Among the many types of tea in the world, peppermint is a popular option. It’s refreshing, aromatic, and delicious. It's also quite simple to create on your own; you can buy peppermint leaves to make a variety of blends with unique flavor profiles. That said, even if you like to DIY concoctions, it's also great to have some premade options on hand for the sake of time and convenience.
Teapigs Peppermint Leaves Tea Bags
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Amazon
Whole leaves
Very minty
Pricier than others
Teapigs promises the “mintiest mint of all time” from its peppermint leaves tea bags, and the flavor delivers on that promise from the first sip. For tea connoisseurs, loose leaf tea is generally preferred because you get larger pieces of the plant. In tea bags, however, the leaves inside are often pulverized, meaning the aromatics have dissipated before the tea bag hits your cup. (Some tea brands even throw in cheaper or less flavorful parts of the plant as filler.) However, the Teapigs bags contain whole leaves like you’d find in loose leaf tea, but do so in convenient plastic-free tea bags. In other words, you get the best of both worlds.
Price at time of publish: $8.50 for 15 tea bags
Form: Bags | Whole Leaves or Pieces: Whole leaves
Yogi Purely Peppermint Tea
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Amazon
Extra cool flavor
Organic
Stronger than some others
If you love peppermint tea with a strong minty zing, you’ll love this one from Yogi. These certified organic bags are compostable, but unlike some of the other eco-friendly options, they do have the traditional string and tag, which some people prefer for ease of retrieving from your cup of tea. Yogi is a brand that many know and love for its great herbal options, and the peppermint tea is on par with the rest of the brand.
Price at time of publish: $25 for 96 tea bags
Form: Bags | Whole Leaves or Pieces: Pieces
FGO Peppermint Tea Bags
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Amazon
Affordable
Available in large quantity
Tea bags feel cheap
FGO's array of affordable teas are a favorite for many. The brand's Peppermint Tea Bags are filled with 100 percent peppermint leaves, making for a simple and fresh cup. As a result of there being no other ingredients, this tea is caffeine free. Bags can be purchased in two sizes: 20 count or 100 count, with the latter being more cost effective per serving. FGO also includes handy steeping instructions on the back of its bags to help customers get the most flavor out of the tea.
Price at time of publish: $20 for 100 tea bags
Form: Bags | Whole Leaves or Pieces: Pieces
Allegro Organic Northwest Peppermint Tea Bags
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Amazon
More affordable than others
Organic
Not as minty as others
These bags are not quite as minty, vibrant, and zingy as some of the others, but that's actually preferred by some people, so if you're into a more mild option, this is the brand for you. These bags also have many of the same eco-friendly benefits as others: The peppermint is organic, and the tea bags and cartons are recyclable and compostable.
Price at time of publish: $4.70 for 20 tea bags
Form: Bags | Whole Leaves or Pieces: Pieces
Harney & Sons Organic Peppermint Tea
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Amazon
Kosher and organic
Vibrant, but not too strong
On the pricier side
Since the 1980s, Harney & Sons founder John Harney has traveled the globe in search of the best teas. The brand started with six initial tea offerings and boasts 300 today. The peppermint, sourced from Oregon, is organically grown and kosher. The peppermint flavor is vibrant and bright, but not aggressively minty or cool, making it a great middle-of-the-road option. If you like milk in your tea, you might find that this is one of the better options for that. Because it’s not overly minty, the milk will bring out the flavor of the tea and not clash with the cooling properties.
Price at time of publish: $12
Form: Bags | Whole Leaves or Pieces: Pieces
Rishi Tea Peppermint Loose Leaf Herbal Tea
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Amazon
Balanced and refreshing
Loose leaf for more vibrant flavor
Pricier than others
If you’re looking for a premium loose leaf option, you can’t go wrong with the Rishi Tea Peppermint Loose Leaf Herbal Tea. As the packaging explains, this tea offers a bright, candy cane-like sweetness and long-lasting flavor. There’s no shortage of that minty zing, but it’s balanced by layers of flavor. Because it’s loose leaf, it’s easily compostable, and it’s grown organically in the Pacific Northwest. It’s pricier than some of the other options, but if you’re looking for something rather exceptional, you found it.
Price at time of publish: $10.50 for 4 ounces
Form: Loose leaf | Whole Leaves or Pieces: Whole leaves
Twinings Peppermint Herbal Tea
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Amazon
Fresh, zingy flavor
Inexpensive
Tea bags are individually wrapped
There are few tea brands as iconic as Twinings. Founded in 1706 by Thomas Twinings, the brand has gone from a little neighborhood shop in London’s The Strand to a global brand found in 100 countries. To have captured the adoration and loyalty of a tea-obsessed place like the U.K. is no small feat. The peppermint tea is sourced entirely from Egypt, and the bags are individually wrapped inside the packaging. If you’re eco-conscious, that might be a drawback, but it keeps the bags extra fresh. It’s one of the more affordable options per ounce and offers excellent flavor, so we highly recommend it.
Price at time of publish: $10.50 for 50 tea bags
Form: Bags | Whole Leaves or Pieces: Pieces
Our top pick is Teapigs Peppermint Tea, which packs a lot of flavor into every sip. It's available in loose leaf and bagged form, as well as several size options, making it suitable for any peppermint tea lover. Another option we recommend is Yogi Tea's Purely Peppermint, made from 100 percent organic peppermint leaf, as the name suggests.
What to Look for in Peppermint Tea
Format
In general, tea bags are more convenient, but loose leaf is going to be fresher and have more flavor. But there are exceptions to every rule, and the tea bags we chose are some of the best on the market.
Whole Leaves or Pieces
In general, the whole leaf options will have more complexity and quintessentially minty flavor than pieces. However, they also tend to be pricier. We included both in this roundup.
Mintiness
Peppermint is famed for its zingy, menthol-like cooling properties. Some of the brands we featured are on the stronger side of that spectrum, and some are a little more subdued. Which is best for you will really depend on your preference. Do you love a big burst of cooling tea, or do you prefer something a little less aggressive?
FAQs
Does peppermint tea have caffeine?
Peppermint leaves are naturally caffeine free, so peppermint tea without any added ingredients does not contain caffeine. Some brands make peppermint tea blends that do contain caffeine, however. For example, peppermint leaves can be added to black or green tea. Check the ingredients list to find out.
What temperature water should I use for peppermint tea?
Peppermint tea tastes best when brewed with water at 212 degrees. Herbal teas in general need very hot water to bring out the most flavor.
How long should I steep peppermint tea for?
Five minutes is generally the recommended steep time for peppermint tea, especially if the leaves are dry. Fresh leaves are going to be less potent than dried ones, so you may want to steep them a little longer, possibly even up to 10 minutes.
Do you put milk in peppermint tea?
Peppermint tea can taste great with a splash of dairy or non-dairy milk and even a bit of honey. As with any other tea, adding milk is entirely up to you, though. Peppermint tea is also delicious by itself.
"Use hotter water for higher-quality tea and cooler water for lower-quality tea. You want to use hotter temperatures to bring out the flavors in better tea, while lower-temperature water will dilute the flaws in lower-quality tea." — Shunan Teng, Founder and CEO of Tea Drunk
Why Trust The Spruce Eats?
Writer and professional cheese eater Christine Clark is a food and beverage nerd. She loves finding new gems made by small producers, and unfortunately for her bank account, she tends to be willing to pay whatever it takes to try them. She also is a devoted tea drinker who enjoys three to five cups of tea per day, both herbal and otherwise. Peppermint tea is her favorite after a big lunch.
Christine teaches cheese, wine, and pairing classes throughout the United States and has a cheese podcast dedicated to it. She is a Certified Cheese Professional through the American Cheese Society.
Sources
Shunan Teng is the founder and CEO of Tea Drunk and an avid tea educator. Tea Drunk was founded in 2013 and has a brick-and-mortar tea house in New York City. Its teaware and Chinese teas can be purchased online.
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