Jamie Who is a blog about everything. Except current affairs. And politics. Also science, sport, religion, celebrities, movies, media and marketing, technology, business and design. So...basically Jamie Who is a blog about food. All things food.

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Red Espresso - The healthy coffee alternative


Do you know what an ORAC is? If you do, bra-bloody-vo. If you're part of the 99% who don't, let me enlighten you. ORAC is the measurement used to measure antioxidants in food and drinks. Obviously the more ORACs you have per 100ml the healthier the item is. Why am I telling you all of this? Because I'm not at the office today and am instead chilling at home sipping a Red Espresso. A Red Espresso you ask? Indeed. Let's get straight into it...

Red Espresso is a tea espresso. The world's first actually. Made from ground rooibos, the espresso is caffeine-free and has a ridiculously high ORAC count. 5 times more than green tea. 6 times more than beetroot juice. 20 times more than carrot juice. Pretty impressive stuff. And you use it as you would normal espresso. (So you can make normal espresso, americano, macchiato, cappuccino, latte, etc). In summer you can even make iced-tea and frappes. I like to add some honey and/or cinnamon to mine, depending on what I'm making. They work well together. 

Red Espresso has done so well that it even won 'Best new product' in the specialty beverage category at the American Specialty Coffee Awards. It was also a top 10 product at the World Tea Expo. 

According to their website, other health benefits of Red Espresso include soothing headaches, hypertension and insomnia, relieving nausea, relaxing stomach ulcers and increasing your IQ by 50 points. (Not really, I made that last one up). It also promises you will have a six-pack in 3 days. (Nope, I made that up too.) But, in a nutshell, it's gooooood for you. It can be made at home with an espresso maker or instead of filter coffee so - really - there's no excuse. Otherwise, look out for it next time you're at a cafe, health shop or deli. More places are definitely stocking it.   

Obviously true coffee-heads might not take to it straight away but even substituting one or two cups a day with this product is a good start. Personally, I love it and don't touch coffee at all anymore. Try it. 

Cheers,
Jamie Who

1 comment:

mEeLa said...

LOVE that stuff - red cappucino with a little cinnamon sprinkled on top, served with a tiny milk jug filled with honey was how I was first introduced to it and I just can't get enough!

*db