Herbal Tea
By definition, herbal tea isn't really a tea. It's actually a hot (or cold) water infusion. To be classified as a tea it needs to contain at least one of the several types of tea leaves. And for the sake of confusion, I will only talk about herbal water infusions and refer to it as herbal teas here.
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Drinking tea is about as old as time and one of the oldest means of consuming herbs. The history of tea is also so broad that it's literally a part of civilizations, wars, farming, and patenting...
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In lay man's terms, making tea is about brewing water to a certain temperature (yes different ingredients require different temperatures as to not 'burn' the leaves) and steeping the ingredients, allowing the water to penetrate the plant and extract all the benefits for consumption. Steeping is the key.
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As for what kind of herbal tea one should have really requires you to understand what specific herbs do and how they work. For the most part, making an herbal tea will work for a majority of herbs, but again, some herbs will give more benefits administered via a tincture per se which is why sometimes I'll make an herbal tea and as it's cooled I'll add a few drops of a certain tincture.
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When it comes to herbal teas I have a few recommendations. Other than learning more about herbs, which I highly recommend to everyone, sourcing them is undoubtedly the most important. If you can't grow your own herbs then obviously you will need to purchase them. When searching out sellers, look for ORGANIC teas, preferably small batch because that means their stock will tend to be fresh. If not buying from small batch sellers, ask for harvest dates or dates when seller acquired from their grower. Look for sellers who sell one ingredient teas as well as blends. Some sellers make their own herbal blends which, if you know what you're looking for, may be cheaper to buy the blend vs several one ingredient teas and combining your own. There are several herbs I like to have and store as one ingredient because they are multi purpose, allowing me to combine with other herbs as needed.
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If you are growing your own herbs, make sure to keep it organic. You don't want to be drinking pesticides and herbicides. Using either fresh or dried is fine, just remember to use more fresh than dried. Also, it's recommended to crush/bruise/tear fresh leaves to help release their compounds.
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I also recommend loose tea. Please don't buy teas at your local grocer. At least search out a natural health store and read the boxes, again looking for the dates, but also noting tea bags. Tea bags are known to contain microplastics, polypropylene, and some contain a chemical called epichlorohydrin which is suppose to keep the tea bag from bursting...all this while steeping and infusing with your herbs. With loose tea, you have many steeper options. There are the little metal snap ball infusers, brew baskets that sit in a cup or kettle, material (like cotton or linen) tea bags, mesh balls, the list goes on. I actually make my own (and sell them). I've used cotton and sewn them and also made them using organic coffee filters. My go to is the brew basket or a french press. I have stainless french press which allows me to make more than one cup and keep it warm.
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Herbal teas can also be 'not so tasty'. My family and I have never been able to enjoy unsweetened tea, so honey is our preferred choice of sweetener. Having healing properties itself, honey is always a good choice. For vegans, stevia (which I like to grow) is a great choice. Also, adding fruit pieces (fresh or dehydrated) as well as peels are wonderful additions to your tea, adding both flavor and health benefits.
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I hope to link specific herbs and their uses soon, but I have a resource page HERE of suppliers and content I like to follow. I have also linked items I use HERE to brew my teas.