French Camomile

£6.50£9.50

Camomile flowers produced in the summer harvests of one small producer in central France. Flavie Lenne from Corrèze does not use artificial fertilisers or pesticides, and picks and processes her camomile manually. The camomile is picked when the sun is overhead, increasing the concentration of essential oils in the flower, and then dried away from light at a low temperature. The average yearly production is just 12-15kg.

Round and generous on the palate, with a lovely long sweetness and soft, almost oily mouthfeel, this soothing camomile is ideal taken after a meal or in the evening. Best brewed with slightly cooled water using a small leaf/water ratio and infused for 4-5 minutes.

ORIGIN
Flavie Lenne, Puy d’Arnac, Corrèze, France

SIZE OF FARMS
1.7 acres

PLANTS AND PROCESSING
Matricaria recutita. Harvested, hand picked and dried Summer 2023.

BREWING
85-90°C, 1g per 150ml. Brew for 2-3 minutes, many infusions are possible.

PLEASE NOTE
This item is an online exclusive and we do not permanently stock it in-store. 

SKU: 05675646 Categories: ,

Description

After travelling in Africa and studying agronomy, Flavie decided to settle down in the South of Corrèze. With her partner and his brother, they took over the family farm and decided to develop their three productions of specialisation: livestock, vegetable farming, and aromatic and medicinal herbs. They practice organic farming not because of the label but because their priority is to take care of the natural environment they live in. Flavie is in charge of the plants and the essential oils that she plants on 1.7 acres on the hills of their land. She plans on expanding it to 3 acres as essential oils require high volumes of fresh plants. Flavie avoids using any mechanical tool and prefers to work the land together with her horses. The entire farm is managed with a strong polyculture objective, livestock bringing the necessary organic matter for the plants and vice versa: sheep are left free in the walnut trees orchards and animals are healed with the plants and essential oils.

This German Camomile (Matricaria recutita) is sown between March and April in small boxes left in nursery in a greenhouse. Once 3 to 4 leaves come out, they are planted in a field which is well exposed but cool and slightly humid. This represents more work than a quicker planting but Flavie noticed that this technique has a much better yield. Picking the flower heads starts in June and goes on until September.