The amber sage tea of Greece: dried leaves of Greek sage steeped in just-boiled water until fragrant and golden, sweetened with a little honey and sharpened with lemon, the daily restorative of the eastern Mediterranean drunk for the throat, the digestion, and simple comfort
Origin: Crete and the Aegean, Greece
From the journey of Sage.
Faskomilo is the sage tea of Greece, brewed from the dried leaves of Greek sage (Salvia fruticosa), the wild, resinous, three-lobed sage that grows across the hillsides of Crete, the Aegean islands, and the mainland. The name, from the Greek for 'apple-bearing', refers to the apple-like galls that form on the plant. It is one of the oldest and most enduring habits of Greek life, drunk hot for a sore throat, an upset stomach, a cold, or simply for its fragrance and calm, a herbal infusion that long predates the arrival of coffee or true tea. Gathered from the mountains, dried in bunches, and kept through the year, faskomilo is the embodiment of the eastern Mediterranean's faith in sage as medicine, and it is the same drink the Turks call ada çayı, the island tea. Sweetened with the honey of the same hillsides and sharpened with lemon, it is comfort in a cup.
Greek sage (Salvia fruticosa) is milder and more resinous than common garden sage and makes the most authentic faskomilo, but good dried common sage works too; use a little less, as it is stronger. Sage tea is gentle but potent; it is traditionally avoided in large quantities during pregnancy. A few mountain-tea (sideritis) stems or a cinnamon stick are common additions.
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