Le Cercle de l'Ombelle · Moon 2 out of 12
February — The height of the Cederberg harvest
Winter · 14 references pickeds this moon · drying in the full sun
First movement
The harvest
The essentials at a glance
The height of the Cederberg harvest · Winter
14 references pickeds this moon, of which 1 contain caffeine.
Drying in the full sun.
February extends the great southern harvest: it is the height of the season, when the drying yards of the Cederberg are covered with long red carpets that deepen further in the sun. The moon of patience, for the whole year's rooibos is decided in these few weeks, before the southern autumn closes the picking window. Once cut, the needles are chopped, bruised, then spread outdoors to oxidise in the open air: it is this slow fermentation, in broad daylight, that gives rooibos its coppery colour and its taste of honey. Nothing is heated, nothing is forced; the sun does the work that fire would do elsewhere. The farmers watch the sky, turn the heaps, look out for the right shade. February is the moon when a plant becomes a colour, when the South African mountains yield, in a single season, enough to fill our teapots all year round.
In February the days gain on the night, and lunar gardeners watch for the ascending moon: the sap, tradition holds, follows its rise and climbs back up the stems. It is the month for pruning “by the moon”, and the drying yards of the southern hemisphere work at full stretch: the rooibos is spread out in the morning, so that it is the sun, not the moon, that turns the year's cut red.
Second movement
The moon lesson
This moon harvests 3 plants ; here are their botanical profiles and their rituals.
Rooibos
Aspalathus linearis · Fabaceae
February is the moon of drying, and this is when everything is decided for red rooibos. Once cut, the needles are chopped then bruised, mechanically crushed, to release their juices and start oxidation. Spread in long strips across the drying yards of the Cederberg, they then ferment in the open air, under the southern summer sun, slowly turning from green to copper. The farmers turn them, sometimes water them, and look out for the right shade. Nothing is heated, nothing is forced: here the sun does the work that fire would do elsewhere. The final drying fixes the colour and the honeyed aroma. These few days in the open air decide the flavour of the entire annual harvest.
The long cut
Aspalathus linearis · Fabaceae
Rooibos is not only red or green: it also comes in different cut sizes. After chopping, the needles are sorted by length, and this purely mechanical dimension changes everything in the cup. A fine cut offers a large surface to the water: it infuses quickly and gives a strong, deeply coloured liquor. The long cut, coarser, leaves whole, clearly visible pieces instead; the water takes longer to pass through them, and the cup gains in roundness what it loses in immediate vigour. It is exactly the same logic as whole leaf and broken leaf in the world of tea. A single harvest, several sizes, several ways of infusing the same plant.
Turmeric
Curcuma longa · Zingiberaceae
Turmeric is a rhizome, like ginger, its close relative: the part that is harvested lives underground. It is lifted in the dry season, from January to March in India, when the leaves turn yellow and the plant has given everything back to its root. Boiled, dried then ground, it yields that deep golden powder that colours everything it touches. In the cup, it brings a gentle, earthy warmth, less pungent than ginger: it is what gilds this moon's Rooibos Curcuma & Vanille d'Or.
Third movement
Tasting at home
The Moon Basket of February
Rooibos
Rooibos Pleine Lune Gingembre Bio
100°C · 7-10 min · 15-20 g/L
Rooibos and ginger open this organic evening blend, which rosehip, fennel, lemon balm, lavender and chamomile carry gently towards the night. The dry blend, copper flecked with lavender blue, smells of a garden at dusk; the red amber liquor marries the rounded woodiness of rooibos with a very measured warmth of ginger, chamomile and lavender lending their floral softness, lemon balm its discreet lemon. Naturally caffeine-free, balanced and serene on the palate, this is the rooibos that sees the day out.
Rooibos Route d'Afrique Mangue Menthe Bio
100°C · 7-10 min · 15-20 g/L
Rooibos and honeybush carry pieces of mango, papaya, mint, lemon peel and lemongrass in this organic blend. The dry blend, all earth and sunshine, smells of ripe fruit crossed by a green breeze; the golden amber liquor unfolds the honeyed roundness of the South African duo and the exotic flesh of mango, while mint and lemon lift the whole with a continuous freshness that avoids any sugary heaviness. Naturally caffeine-free, well-travelled and balanced, it is enjoyed hot or iced throughout the day.
Long cut & classic cut
Rooibos Rouge Feuilles Entières Bio
100°C · 7-10 min · 15-20 g/L
The same red bush from the Cederberg as plain rooibos, but in a long cut: whole, even strands that bear witness to careful sorting. This presentation changes the cup: the infusion, slower to give itself, gains in finesse what it concedes in power, a light mahogany liquor, woody and honeyed, of remarkable clarity, without the slightest needle dust at the bottom of the teapot. Naturally caffeine-free and low in tannins, it is the rooibos for connoisseurs who look at the leaf before drinking it.
Rooibos Rouge Nature du Cederberg Bio
100°C · 7-10 min · 15-20 g/L
Rooibos in its naked truth: nothing but the red needle of the Cederberg, cut at the height of the southern summer and oxidised in the sun. The dry blend, deep copper, smells of warm wood and honey; the mahogany liquor unfolds that malty roundness, without the slightest bitterness, that has travelled the world. Naturally caffeine-free, this is the house's benchmark, the one that teaches the taste of rooibos itself.
Turmeric & vanilla
Rooibos Curcuma & Vanille d'Or Bio
100°C · 7-10 min · 15-20 g/L
Rooibos and honeybush welcome turmeric and ginger here, beneath a veil of vanilla. The dry blend, copper dusted with gold, smells of root and cream; the golden amber liquor marries the malty roundness of the Cape shrubs with the earthy warmth of turmeric, ginger coming through, vanilla rounding everything off. Naturally caffeine-free, this is winter gold in a cup, the turmeric moon of the name.
Rooibos Vanille Bourbon Bio
100°C · 7-10 min · 15-20 g/L
Just three ingredients: Cederberg rooibos, vanilla extract and vanilla pod. The dry blend, copper flecked with black, smells of vanilla cream; the mahogany liquor unfolds the honeyed woodiness of rooibos, wrapped by Bourbon vanilla in a creamy softness, long and comforting on the palate. Naturally caffeine-free, this is the house's comfort rooibos, for when evening falls, or for any moment that calls for softness.
A source of pleasure, not a medicine. If you are pregnant, breastfeeding, undergoing medical treatment or have a medical condition, seek the advice of a healthcare professional.
The moon's ephemeral
A limited series, available for the duration of the harvest of february. When the moon passes, the ephemeral goes with it.
The Twelve Moons subscription
Every moon, twelve times a year, the harvest basket arrives at your door: 6 references, two per type, making 72 references over the year, the story of the picking and the ritual.
Subscribe to the Twelve MoonsFourth movement
All the moon harvests
The other references picked this moon, to record in your tasting notebook.
Rooibos Fraise Citron Acidulé Bio
Rooibos Banane Fleur de Jasmin Bio
Rooibos Pomme d'Hiver Vanillée Bio
Rooibos Datte & Vanille Moelleux Bio
Rooibos Cacao Menthe Havane Bio
Rooibos Cacao Noisette Grillée Bio
Rooibos Maté Fleuve d'Orange Bio
⚠ Precautions: Contient de la réglisse. Déconseillé en cas d'hypertension artérielle, de maladie rénale ou cardiaque, et pendant la grossesse. Éviter une consommation élevée ou prolongée.
Rooibos Vert Nature Bio
100°C · 7-10 min · 15-20 g/L
Pure green rooibos from organic farming: the same Cederberg needle as the red, but dried as soon as it is cut, before any oxidation. The result changes everything: dry, the soft hay gives way to a fresh, almost tea-like grassiness; the liquor, a pale yellow-green, offers a fine vegetal liveliness, notes of cut grass and a mineral touch, where the red gives wood and honey. Naturally caffeine-free, closer on the palate to a green tea than to a classic rooibos, it is a discovery for the curious.