Tree Frog Farm specializes in offering flower and tree essences in a non-alcoholic base of red shiso tea and organic vinegar. It is an alcohol-free alternative to traditional brandy.
We know the red shiso base literally from the ground up. We grow, harvest, and dry the shiso on our farm. The dry leaves are made into a strong tea infusion. The tea is strained and a small amount of organic vinegar is added which strengthens the vibrant burgundy color of the leaf and adds further shelf stability to your essences. The base we make is 80% red shiso tea and 20% vinegar.
As you might imagine, our red shiso base tastes like tea with a touch of vinegar. In Japanese, shiso means ‘purple leaf’. Red shiso, a robust member of the mint family, grows into lush 2-3 feet high plants of a deep magenta color. Besides contributing to its flavor and a distinctive color, red shiso contains “perilla aldehyde,” which gives it antimicrobial properties. Because of this it’s added to the ginger slices often served with sushi and sashimi, or added in umeboshi plum used for macrobiotic cooking.
It’s all about personal preference! We prefer the red shiso base at Tree Frog Farm because we experience the quality being a better match to that of the flower and tree essences we produce here. However, some people cannot tolerate vinegar, so we offer our products in brandy as well. Our customers have found that our flower and tree essences work equally well in either the brandy or the red shiso base. It’s nice to have choices!
For more information about Tree Frog Farm, and how we make our flower and tree essences go to: