Sip Sarsparilla Tea

Old-fashioned Sarsparilla was a popular soft drink in the 19th century and still is in some parts of the U.S., such as Pittsburgh. Note, however, that the popular soda isn’t and wasn’t made with real sarsparilla root, but birch oil and sassafras, the dried root bark of the sassafras tea.

Real Sarsparilla soda is made from the root of the sarsparilla plant and has medicinal properties similar to sassafras, including building up a sweat, helping to treat various illnesses where a sweat is handy. It is also known to help sexual impotence, rheumatism, skin ailments, and edema. You can make Sarsparilla tea yourself at home. Here is more about Sarsparilla tea from Herbal Tea Gardens: 22 Plans for Your Enjoyment and Well-being by Marietta Marshall Marcin (Storey Publishing, 1999).

Also called American sarsaparilla, wild ginseng, wild sarsaparilla, and wild spikenard, Aralia nudicaulis is a Native American plant. Pronounced sassparilla or sarsaparilla, it was used by Native Americans to make a soothing, perspiration-inducing tea that was believed to alleviate rheumatism, gout, and skin diseases.

The herb thrives in the moist, shaded forests of southern British Columbia and northeastern Washington. American sarsaparilla tea is thought to promote healthy tissue growth for internal and external ulcers and wounds. Some people once believed the tea would cure syphilis. A jamaican cousin, Smilax arnata, is the evergreen vine used to make the sarsaparilla drink that was so popular in the late nineteenth century.

Sarsaparilla is a tender, deciduous perennial. The long yellow taproot is similar to that of ginseng. A single stem branches into three parts, each having five 2- to 5-inch, finely toothed, lance-shaped leaves. The flowering stalk that comes from the root is over- shadowed by the leaf stalk. Clusters of greenish flowers, which bloom from June to August, are followed by whitish berries that become purple or almost black when they mature. This herb grows freely and thrives well with routine management. It is best adapted for semi-wild and informal plantings.

The root, which is dug in autumn, is the part used for tea. The root has a bitter licorice flavor and brews a reddish brown tea with a refreshing and fragrant flavor.

How to brew:
Stir 2 teaspoons ground fresh root into 1 cup boiling water. Steep to taste. Sweeten with honey or sugar, if desired. Good hot or cold.