Dill tops

Habitat & Origin

Dill (Anethum graveolens) is an annual umbellifer from the eastern Mediterranean and West Asia. The plant prefers full sun, a light breeze and loose, sandy-loam soils that drain quickly. In gardens and small fields, dill forms fine blue-green stems topped with clouds of finely divided foliage. For herbal drinks, we prefer dill tops: the fragrant, not yet fully open flower umbels and soft leaf plumes. These are cut by hand in early summer and dried in thin layers so the essential oils are preserved. At Maison Tisane we look for fresh green, intact tops in which anise and citrus are already clearly noticeable on the nose — without yellowed stems or hard, woody material. In this way, dill remains light, culinary and precise in the blend.

Active compounds

Dill contains essential oils such as carvone and limonene that produce the characteristic anise and citrus nuances. Light flavonoids and green components provide a gentle herbal structure. Together they create a refined aroma that is both fresh and softly aromatic, without dominant bitterness.

Ayurvedic approach

In Ayurveda, dill is read as a warm, lightly aromatic herb that gives Vata direction and grants Kapha movement. Because of its warming anise profile, Pitta requires some caution. In old Mediterranean and West Asian cuisines, dill was seen as a “market herb”: fresh, lively and tied to the rhythm of cooking outdoors. Energetically it feels opening and gently warming, as if a light breeze were ordering and clarifying flavours.

Flavour profile & Blending