Sleep and evening wind-down
An organic, caffeine-free herbal tea with chamomile and lemon balm, traditionally used to ease the evening before bed
The best tea for sleep is a caffeine-free herbal blend built around the herbs most studied for calm, chamomile and lemon balm, in a cup you actually look forward to at night. Sippo Quiet Hours blends both with soothing marshmallow root and mellow spearmint, with no caffeine to keep you up. It is a gentle evening ritual that helps signal the day is over, not a sleeping pill or a treatment for insomnia. For ongoing sleep problems, see your doctor.
A good night starts with a wind-down, and a warm, caffeine-free cup is one of the oldest and easiest ways to mark the shift from a busy day to rest. The herbs that have drawn the most research interest for calm, chamomile and lemon balm, are exactly the ones in Quiet Hours, alongside soothing marshmallow root and mellow mint. It will not knock you out like a pill, and it is not meant to; it is the ritual that tells your evening it is time to slow down.
Written and reviewed by Dan Bartley, co-founder of Sippo · Last reviewed June 2026The pick
mellow mint tea
How it compares
| What matters in an evening tea | Sippo Quiet Hours | Conventional |
|---|---|---|
| Caffeine free | Yes, naturally | Usually, but check the label |
| Built on the most-researched calming herbs | Yes, chamomile and lemon balm | Often just one, or flavouring |
| Real, visible cut ingredients | Yes, in a plastic-free pyramid bag | Often dust and fannings |
| Added sugar or synthetic flavouring | None | Common |
| Honest about what tea can and can't do | Yes, a ritual, not a sedative | Often overclaims 'knockout' effects |
| Certified-organic ingredients | Yes | Variable |
What's inside, and why
Found in: Quiet Hours teaWell establishedMatricaria chamomilla
The classic evening flower. Chamomile carries apigenin, studied for binding the same calming receptors as some relaxants, and trials of concentrated chamomile have shown improvements in anxiety and sleep quality (Hieu et al., 2019; Adib-Hajbaghery & Mousavi, 2017). A teabag is gentler than those extract doses, so think research-backed wind-down, not sedative.
Found in: Quiet Hours teaWell establishedMelissa officinalis
A soft, citrusy herb long used to calm. A systematic review and meta-analysis found lemon balm improved anxiety and mood versus placebo (Ghazizadeh et al., 2021), which is why it pairs so naturally with chamomile in an evening cup.
Found in: Quiet Hours teaTraditionalAlthaea officinalis
The smooth, soothing finish. Marshmallow root is traditionally used as a demulcent that soothes the throat and settles a cup, documented in the ESCOP phytotherapy monograph (ESCOP, 2019). It gives Quiet Hours its soft, rounded body.
Found in: Quiet Hours teaTraditionalMentha spicata
The mellow mint heart. Softer and sweeter than peppermint, spearmint gives the blend its gentle, calming flavour and a fresh, easy finish, the taste that makes it a cup you reach for last.
How it adapts
| Target | How it solves it | Key ingredient | What you'll notice |
|---|---|---|---|
| A racing mind at bedtime | Chamomile and lemon balm, the most-researched calming herbs | Chamomile + lemon balm | A calmer, softer evening |
| Not wanting caffeine at night | Naturally caffeine-free blend | Herbal, no tea leaf | Nothing to keep you up |
| Needing a signal the day is over | A warm ritual that marks the wind-down | The whole cup | An easy end-of-day habit |
| Wanting a cup that tastes good | Mellow spearmint and smooth marshmallow | Spearmint + marshmallow | The one you reach for last |
| Avoiding sugary 'sleep' drinks | No added sugar or synthetic flavouring | Real organic ingredients | Clean, honest, caffeine-free |
Outside-in routine pairings
While Quiet Hours calms the evening from the inside, a warm shower and a gentle scrub are one of the most reliable ways to wind the body down from the outside.
matcha mint body scrub
Mint Condition is our matcha mint body scrub, and a warm evening shower with it is a wind-down in itself: the cooling peppermint, the warm oils, three soft minutes that tell your body the day is done. Pair the cup and the shower for an evening ritual that works inside and out. There is no caffeine in either to get in the way.
See Mint ConditionPeople also ask
A caffeine-free cup helps mainly by creating a wind-down ritual, and the herbs in Quiet Hours, chamomile and lemon balm, are the ones with the most research interest for calm and sleep quality (Hieu et al., 2019; Ghazizadeh et al., 2021). We are honest that a teabag is gentler than the concentrated extracts used in studies, so think of it as a soothing habit that helps signal bedtime, not a sedative.
Yes, naturally. Quiet Hours is a herbal blend with no black, green or white tea leaf in it, so there is no caffeine to keep you up. You can sip it right before bed.
No, and it is not meant to. It is a gentle, calming ritual rather than a drug, so it helps you ease into the evening rather than forcing sleep. If you have ongoing trouble sleeping, that is worth talking to your doctor about.
For most people it is a gentle, everyday herbal tea. If you are pregnant, breastfeeding, on medication or have a health condition, check with your doctor first, as some herbs are best discussed individually. Chamomile is in the daisy family, so avoid it if you are allergic to those plants.
Tea and the evening wind-down, in depth
Sleep researchers consistently point to the hour before bed as the part you can most easily influence, and a consistent wind-down routine is one of the most recommended habits for better sleep. A warm, caffeine-free drink does a surprising amount of work here: the warmth is soothing, the pause is deliberate, and repeating the same ritual nightly trains your body to read it as a cue that the day is ending. The drink itself matters less than the signal it sends, which is why what you are avoiding, caffeine and screens, is as important as what you are sipping.
If you are going to build a ritual around a cup, it makes sense to choose the herbs with the most behind them. Chamomile is the most-researched calming herb: it contains apigenin, which has been studied for binding the same receptors targeted by some calming medicines, and pooled trials have linked it to improvements in anxiety and sleep quality (Hieu et al., 2019; Adib-Hajbaghery & Mousavi, 2017). Lemon balm is its natural partner, with a systematic review and meta-analysis finding it improved anxiety and mood versus placebo (Ghazizadeh et al., 2021). We are careful here: those studies used concentrated extracts at doses higher than a teabag delivers, and an official source like the NCCIH notes the evidence is still preliminary for many uses (NCCIH, 2020). So Quiet Hours is built on genuinely researched calming herbs, framed honestly as a gentle wind-down rather than a treatment.
A sleep tea also has to be one you actually enjoy, or you will not keep the ritual. Quiet Hours rounds the chamomile and lemon balm with marshmallow root, traditionally used as a soothing demulcent that gives the cup a smooth, soft body (ESCOP, 2019), and mellow spearmint, which is gentler and sweeter than peppermint and gives the blend its easy, calming flavour. There is no added sugar and no synthetic flavouring, just real, organic, cut ingredients in a plastic-free pyramid bag, so the taste comes from the herbs themselves. A cup that is genuinely pleasant is a cup you will reach for night after night.
We would rather under-promise here. No tea is a sleeping pill, and we will never describe one as a cure for insomnia, because that is neither true nor responsible. What a caffeine-free, well-chosen cup can do is support a calming evening ritual, avoid the caffeine that sabotages sleep, and lean on herbs with real research interest in calm. If your sleep is persistently poor, the most useful step is a conversation with your doctor, who can look at the bigger picture. Quiet Hours is the gentle, enjoyable part of a good wind-down, not a replacement for proper care.
Hieu, T. H., Dibas, M., Surya Dila, K. A., Sherif, N. A., Hashmi, M. U., Mahmoud, M., Trang, N. T. T., Abdullah, L., Nghia, T. L. B., Y, M. N., Hoang-Trong, T., Tien Huy, N., Karimzadeh, S., Kamel, M. G., & Huy, N. T. (2019). Therapeutic efficacy and safety of chamomile for state anxiety, generalized anxiety disorder, insomnia, and sleep quality: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials and quasi-randomized trials. Phytotherapy Research, 33(6), 1604-1615. https://doi.org/10.1002/ptr.6349
Pooled trials found chamomile improved anxiety and sleep quality. The included studies vary in form and dose; this supports research interest in chamomile for sleep, framed cautiously for a tea.
Adib-Hajbaghery, M., & Mousavi, S. N. (2017). The effects of chamomile extract on sleep quality among elderly people: A clinical trial. Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 35, 109-114. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ctim.2017.09.010
Chamomile extract improved self-reported sleep quality in older adults. Used a concentrated extract in a specific population; cited for the sleep-support mechanism, not as a general promise.
Mao, J. J., Xie, S. X., Keefe, J. R., Soeller, I., Li, Q. S., & Amsterdam, J. D. (2016). Long-term chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla L.) treatment for generalized anxiety disorder: A randomized clinical trial. Phytomedicine, 23(14), 1735-1742. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.phymed.2016.10.012
Chamomile was safe and reduced anxiety symptoms over the long term. Used 1500 mg of chamomile EXTRACT daily (far more concentrated than a cup of tea), so we cite this for the ingredient's researched calming mechanism, not as proof a teabag matches that dose.
Ghazizadeh, J., Sadigh-Eteghad, S., Marx, W., Fakhari, A., Hamedeyazdan, S., Torbati, M., Taheri-Tarighi, S., Araj-Khodaei, M., & Mirghafourvand, M. (2021). The effects of lemon balm (Melissa officinalis L.) on depression and anxiety in clinical trials: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Phytotherapy Research, 35(12), 6690-6705. https://doi.org/10.1002/ptr.7252
Pooled clinical trials found lemon balm improved anxiety and depression scores versus placebo. The strongest evidence is for calm/mood; we extend it to evening wind-down cautiously.
European Scientific Cooperative on Phytotherapy. (2019). Althaeae radix (Marshmallow root). ESCOP Monographs (2nd ed., supplement). ESCOP.
Gold-standard monograph documenting marshmallow root's traditional demulcent (soothing) action on the throat and mucous membranes. Cited for the smooth, soothing character of the cup, a traditional use.
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. (2020, October). Chamomile. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/chamomile
An official, conservative overview of chamomile's traditional uses and safety. It notes evidence is still preliminary for many uses, which is the honest position this page takes.
Keep exploring
A calm, caffeine-free cup and a ritual that signals rest. Love it in 30 days or it's on us.
Shop Quiet Hours
Join the ritual
Your code is on its way, along with the small daily moments worth keeping.
A little welcome gift
Give the wheel a spin to reveal your welcome offer. Works on your first subscription order, tea or scrub.
For fun, every spin lands on our 45% welcome offer, so you cannot lose.
You won 45% off
Pop your details in and your code appears on the next step, ready to use today.
Please add your first name and a valid email.
Applies to your first subscription order. No noise, just good things, unsubscribe any time.
Here's 45% off your first subscription order. We've emailed it too.
SIPPO45
Start shopping
