{"id":15790,"date":"2019-03-05T20:02:28","date_gmt":"2019-03-05T20:02:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/pegasus\/?p=15790&post_type=story"},"modified":"2020-03-30T15:31:03","modified_gmt":"2020-03-30T15:31:03","slug":"new-day-yaupon-tea","status":"publish","type":"story","link":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/pegasus\/new-day-yaupon-tea\/","title":{"rendered":"A New Day for Yaupon Tea"},"content":{"rendered":"
Spring 2019 | By Gene Kruckemyer\u00a0\u201973<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n [lead]Sit back, relax, and enjoy a sip of tea from the only caffeinated plant native to North America \u2014 an antioxidant-laden, jitterfree drink that\u2019s been consumed for more than 10,000 years. Its name is yaupon [pronounced yoh-pon], and while popular in the distant past, it became known more as an ornamental rather than a food source in the last century.[\/lead]<\/p>\n Grown in the southeastern United States, yaupon holly was traded by Native Americans to make tea for ceremonies and recreation. During the Civil War, Southerners often drank yaupon tea in place of coffee and black tea.<\/p>\n
That is, until brothers Bryon White \u201909\u00a0<\/strong>and Kyle, a senior majoring in event management<\/a>, decided to revive the ancient superfood and create a new product for 21st-century tea drinkers.<\/p>\n