

Guayusa
€7.77
Morning Plants
Twelve morning plants. The Guayusa the Kichwa drink before dawn, Guarana, Andean Maca, Matcha: drunk in place of coffee, or beside it.
These twelve plants come from peoples who have their own morning drink: in a circle before dawn, on the high plateaus, in monasteries. Some carry caffeine, others none.
Guayusa, which the Kichwa call their night watchman, is drunk in a circle before dawn. Amazonian Guarana is a caffeine-rich seed. Andean Maca is eaten every day, like a root of the earth.

Replacing coffee step by step: herbal coffee alternatives. And once evening comes: calming herbs.
With caffeine: guayusa, matcha, guarana, and a little cacao. Without: maca, the adaptogenic blend, shilajit, rhodiola, eleuthero, cordyceps. The first are drunk in the morning or early afternoon; the second find their place in the morning bowl, over several weeks.
Among our plants, the ones with caffeine: guayusa, as a decoction, the way the Kichwa drink it before dawn; matcha, whisked and drunk whole; guarana, the seed richest in caffeine.
Both contain caffeine. Guayusa is a leaf from the Amazon, drunk as a decoction; matcha is a shaded tea leaf, ground and whisked. Taste decides: guayusa is soft and green, less tannic than tea; matcha, vegetal and slightly umami.
Maca, the adaptogenic blend, shilajit, rhodiola, eleuthero and cordyceps. They are taken over several weeks: each product page gives its amount.
Guayusa, matcha and guarana contain caffeine: with caffeine sensitivity, high blood pressure, heart rhythm problems, pregnancy or breastfeeding, ask a doctor first, and drink them preferably in the morning. For the course plants (rhodiola, shilajit, adaptogens): ask a doctor if you are under treatment.
A gradual step-down:
First: weeks 1-2, keep one coffee in the morning and add Guayusa in the afternoon.
Second: weeks 3-4, replace the coffee with Guayusa. If you miss the taste, add 1 g of Maca to the matcha.
Third: week 5 onward, watch your mornings, and keep what suits you.
Voiced essays that extend these plants — traditions, gestures, lineages.