In the kitchen, it is known in brown butter on ravioli, tucked under a veal escalope in saltimbocca alla romana, or pierced into a roast bird. As an infusion, common sage shows another face, even more aromatic, which its leaves from Albania express with frankness.

Salvia officinalis belongs to the Lamiaceae family, like thyme, rosemary and mint. It is a subshrub of the dry, sunny lands of the Mediterranean basin, with thick, grey-green leaves covered in a fine down. Ombelle offers it pure, organically grown, with no other ingredient.

Dry, the scent is camphorous, Mediterranean, immediately recognisable. The infusion gives a yellow-green liquor with a frank aromatic taste, somewhere between garrigue and bitter almond, with a noble bitterness and a dry finish. It is a cup of character, which assertive palates drink on its own and which others prefer softened with honey and a twist of lemon.

Without caffeine, it suits any time from morning to evening. For one litre, use 13 to 18 g of leaves; for one cup, about three grams. Water at boiling point (100 °C) works for five to ten minutes, and it is best to start with a shorter time to tame its intensity. A few leaves also flavour a homemade blend with lemon balm or mint, and they keep their culinary use.

Whole leaves keep their fragrance better than ground sage: crush them at the last moment. Store it in an airtight container, dry and in the dark; we pack it, in Bordeaux as in Nice, according to the quantity you wish.