Selling our heritage back to us: The rooibos boom

5 min read
From a familiar South African pantry staple to a sought-after global ingredient, rooibos is being rediscovered in creative kitchens and drinks menus around the world.
From a familiar South African pantry staple to a sought-after global ingredient, rooibos is being rediscovered in creative kitchens and drinks menus around the world.Picture: Pexels/Denys Gromov

For generations of South Africans, rooibos has been the ultimate comfort brew - a humble pantry staple poured from a steaming kettle into a well-loved mug.

But far beyond the Cederberg mountains, this indigenous red bush is taking on a glamorous new life as a global culinary darling. From chilling alongside ramen in Tokyo to infusing high-end pastries in Paris and anchoring craft cocktails in London, the world is reimagining our everyday tea into a luxury ingredient.

Now protected on the same legal tier as Champagne and Roquefort, rooibos is proving that South Africa's native crop is far more than a basic hot drink: it's a world-class commodity conquering fine dining.

But what happens when the rest of the world discovers our ordinary, puts it in a designer bottle, and sells it back to us as luxury?

Here are five ways rooibos is being used around the world:

1. Japan: The umami pairing

In Tokyo's food scene, the famous ramen chain Ippudo serves cold-brewed rooibos in chilled glasses.

The crisp tea cuts right through the heavy richness of their pork bone broth. They have even mixed the tea directly into limited-edition ramen soup bases, combining its woody flavour with savoury seaweed and mushrooms.

Rooibos meets ramen: Japan is serving South Africa’s beloved redbush tea alongside rich tonkotsu broth.
Rooibos meets ramen: Japan is serving South Africa’s beloved redbush tea alongside rich tonkotsu broth.Picture: Supplied

Clinton Gass, who runs Japan's Rooibos Marketing Ltd, says the big turning point happened when they stopped marketing rooibos as a basic health drink and started selling it as a high-end speciality tea.

Once international tea lovers realised how good it tasted, global demand went through the roof. Now, Japan buys a massive 33% of all South African rooibos exports.

2. France: High patisserie infusions

In France, rooibos is moving beyond the teacup, lending its naturally sweet, vanilla-like notes to macarons, gelato and crème brûlée.
In France, rooibos is moving beyond the teacup, lending its naturally sweet, vanilla-like notes to macarons, gelato and crème brûlée. Picture: Supplied

In Paris, the capital of elite baking, pastry chefs have embraced rooibos as a sophisticated flavor chameleon. Because it lacks the bitter tannins of black or green tea, it provides a clean, naturally sweet slate.

Parisian patisseries regularly infuse the tea into delicate, pastel-toned macarons, artisanal gelatos, and rich crèmes brûlées, utilizing its subtle vanilla undertones to elevate traditional desserts.

3. The United States: The premium cold brew

Rooibos is getting a cool new identity as a premium cold brew served iced, sparkling and infused with botanicals.
Rooibos is getting a cool new identity as a premium cold brew served iced, sparkling and infused with botanicals.Picture: Supplied

Over in the US, the American market has completely ditched the hot mug. Instead, they’ve totally reimagined rooibos as a premium, ready-to-drink iced beverage.

They are marketing it as a clean, antioxidant-packed alternative to sugary sodas and heavily processed iced teas. Now, you’ll find it sitting on the shelves of upscale US grocery boutiques, sold as craft-brewed, sparkling elixirs flavoured with fancy botanical extracts.

4. The United Kingdom: The botanical mixology base

In the UK, rooibos is shaking up the drinks scene, bringing earthy depth and complexity to creative cocktails and sophisticated no- and low-alcohol serves.
In the UK, rooibos is shaking up the drinks scene, bringing earthy depth and complexity to creative cocktails and sophisticated no- and low-alcohol serves.Picture: Supplied

In London’s trendy cocktail bars, bartenders are using rooibos to lead the massive wave of low-and-no-alcohol drinks. They are smoking the tea over oak barrels or mixing strong rooibos concentrates with craft gins, vermouths, and tequilas.

Because the tea naturally has a rich, heavy texture, it feels and tastes just like a fine, aged spirit in your mouth. This unique weight makes it a highly prized secret weapon in modern mixology.

5. The European Union: Cult status protection

Europe didn’t just change how rooibos is used in the kitchen; they completely upgraded its legal status. In 2021, rooibos made history as the very first African food product to win the EU’s Protected Designation of Origin status.

What this means in plain English is that our humble local tea is now legally recognised on the exact same luxury tier as Champagne, Prosciutto di Parma, and Roquefort cheese.

Rooibos has gained protected designation of origin status, recognising its South African roots and safeguarding its name and authenticity.
Rooibos has gained protected designation of origin status, recognising its South African roots and safeguarding its name and authenticity.Picture: Supplied

Dawie de Villiers, a director at the South African Rooibos Council (SARC), emphasises that safeguarding the geographic origin of rooibos is vital as international demand grows.

He stresses that protecting the name not only preserves the absolute integrity of the product for global consumers who want the genuine South African article, but it actively safeguards the economic livelihoods of the local farming communities who have cultivated it for generations.

There is a massive, almost uncomfortable irony in watching our basic childhood staple get completely gentrified by the rest of the world.

We grew up drinking it out of necessity, out of habit, or because our grandmothers swore it cured everything. Meanwhile, the rest of the world is sipping it out of curiosity and status.

According to Adele du Toit from the South African Rooibos Council, the tea’s mild flavour and total lack of caffeine make it the ultimate culinary playground. Because it is naturally sweet and never goes bitter, it acts as a clean slate for global creators.

They are using our basic pantry staple to inject an earthy depth into main courses, steam it into trendy lattes, or use its heavy texture to anchor high-end alcoholic cocktails.

As we celebrate Heritage Month, this global migration gives us a beautiful moment to stop and reflect. For too long, we as South Africans have suffered from a collective cultural modesty: this quiet assumption that for something to be truly premium, it has to be imported. But the international stage isn't changing what rooibos is.

It is simply holding up a mirror and showing us what it has always been: bold, adaptable, deeply rooted, and entirely our own.

The rest of the world might be experimenting with it, but South Africa will always own its heart and soul.

vuyile.madwantsi@nationalmg.co.za

THE NATIONAL