Trying to wean myself from so much caffeine, but I do like hot drinks. Apart from decaffeinated looking for something I can drink. I have tried most of the herbal teas, and they all seem to taste of wet hay. Any suggestions?
Mark, how about Pero? It is made from malted barley, chicory and rye.
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mint tea made from simply brewing fresh mint leaves
hot chocolate (from commercial ones, through to those e.g. spanish ones, that are merely real chocolate that you melt)
fresh ginger and a little drop of honey and/or lemon. Generally a drink for when I have a cold, but can be good outside of that
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Hot flavored gelatin is a favorite when Iâm sick. A hot toddy is almost as good in the morning as coffee; at least that is what Mrs. French says. Mulled wine/cider. Sassafras tea.
Donât know if youâve tried rooibos. Zero caffeine but it hasnât grown on me. Thereâs a lot of variety and complexity in various white teas that I actually look forward to drinking with only about 1/10 of the caffeine content of coffee (and only about 2x the caffeine content of decaf tea) but seems about zero caffeine for me.
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I like the tea idea, even green or oolong tea would have a third to half the caffeine, maybe less if you toss the first infusion. And I wonder if it would help to reduce the caffeine more gradually. Tea lovers are a little like wine lovers, obsessive over small details like origin and producers and harvests etc.
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How about sobacha? It is buckwheat, very earthy, not like hay at all, or even like tea. I love it.
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Weâve enjoyed that one a lot, too.
We also order loose Verbena. I try to order French âVerveine,â which is sometimes conflated with lemon verbena. I donât prefer super lemony verbena, and the one weâve ordered reminds my wife of the type of verveine/verbena plant that gets picked off a bush in French households for infusions.
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also, if you have a nearby herbalist, consider trying herbal teas in loose leaf form, rather than the often disappointing tea bag equivalents available commercially. Weâve had some really good ones in Italy, but then again there are plenty such herbalists still going there.
Donât know which ones you are drinking but I regularly orange spice, various combos of lemon-ginger-mint that are all pretty tasty, no hint of wet hay. Also delicious this time of year is mulled cider; cook up a batch and then reheat as needed. Can also make your own decaf chai.
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Have you tried mushroom teas? I drink a few different ones from four sigmatic. Very earthy and more complex than most herbal teas.
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Kate and I drink MUD\WTR most mornings. It is mushroom based (plus other stuff). It has minimal caffeine (1/7th of a cup of coffee). It needs a little dairy (we use oat) but it does a good job of filling the coffee / latte / chai space for us without the rage 
Another thing to try in that space is cacao- We use Ora Cacoa (also with a little oat and a drop of honey).
Both can be pretty bitter / intense without a little milk and a drop of sugar / maple / honey etc. but they are both satisfying in the AM.
Also- I drink Kratom on some days. It provides a good jolt of energy without the caffeine but is extremely bitter and like coffee can become addictive.
Iâm also a mugicha fan.
Thatâs a recommendation from left field. Iâm open to hearing more as Iâm not an expert but a morning opioid receptor hit doesnât seem a good alternative to coffee.
I like mugicha better cold, but it good hot as well.
MycoBrews- Mushroom based drinks that are high in Lionâs Mane.They taste amazing!
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Some of us came to party.
At low doses (in tea form) it is a mild stimulant. It can be similar to a cup or two of coffee in terms of energy but with mild euphoria vs. caffeine stress. It is super bitter and best when steeped with lemon or lemon / ginger tea- The euphoria side can be a bit distracting and I find it better for weekend AMs vs. drinking it and trying to buckle down on spreadsheets.
Not for everyone.
Party on Saturdays, pairs well with Dirty Lettuce 
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I missed the âhotâ in the original post. Iâm blaming the new platform and not my inattention!