Vine Tea vs. Hovenia Dulcis: Where DHM Comes From and Why the Source Matters

Vine tea DHM and Hovenia DHM are the same molecule, but the plants are very different sources: vine tea (Ampelopsis grossedentata, also classified as Nekemias grossedentata) is the richest known source, while Hovenia dulcis extracts used in research contained under 1% DHM. So "Hovenia extract" on a label is not a stated amount of DHM.^{1, 2, 3} What tells you the dose is the number of milligrams of DHM itself, or an extract weight with its standardization.

Two plants, one compound

Dihydromyricetin (DHM), also called ampelopsin, is a plant flavonoid found in several plants. Purified DHM is the same compound whichever plant it came from; what differs is how much each plant contains and what else comes with it.^{7, 3}

Vine tea is a plant in the grape family (Vitaceae).⁸ The Japanese raisin tree, Hovenia dulcis, is a tree native to East Asia whose fruit, fruit stalks and seeds are used in traditional medicine and foods.^{9, 10} For the compound itself, see what DHM is.

Vine tea DHM content, history and use as a tea

Vine tea is a traditional Chinese herbal tea and, by a wide margin, the richest known source of DHM.

Its tender stems and leaves have been brewed as a health tea in China, mainly south of the Yangtze River, and used as a folk medicine by the Tujia, Yao and other ethnic minorities "for hundreds of years," according to reviews. Typical traditional use was 15 to 30 g of the plant in a tea or decoction.^{11, 12} It is also called Mao Yan Mei, or rattan tea in some translations.^{11, 12}

DHM is vine tea's most abundant flavonoid, reported as high as 35% of the plant.¹ For scale, in one diabetes trial 10 g of vine tea a day supplied 970 mg of DHM.¹³

Hovenia dulcis: the "hangover tree" of East Asian tradition

Hovenia has the folklore; vine tea has the DHM. Hovenia extracts are complex mixtures in which DHM is a minor part.

Reviews describe Hovenia's use in Chinese, Korean and Japanese traditional medicine for alcohol intoxication and hangover.^{9, 10} Researchers also cite a 7th-century Chinese materia medica listing it among anti-hangover herbs, though we haven't verified that text ourselves.¹⁴ Traditional use isn't evidence that something works.

Chemically, Hovenia fruit extracts contain myricetin, quercetin and other flavonoids, with DHM under 1%, and the hot-water fruit extract EU regulators assessed in 2020 was about 90% carbohydrate.^{3, 4} That matters for the research. The small Korean hangover trials tested Hovenia extracts or beverages, with mixed results, so they aren't evidence about DHM.³ In a 2024 study in rats, mice and liver cells, the authors attributed most of a Hovenia extract's enzyme effects to compounds other than DHM.¹⁵ Some commercial Hovenia extracts state a far higher DHM standardization, such as 35%.

Safety signals are specific to Hovenia: three cases of toxic hepatitis linked to it have been reported in Korea, and EFSA said the safety of one proposed Hovenia extract had not been established.^{10, 4}

Why extract standardization matters (for example, 98% DHM)

An extract's weight tells you how much extract you're getting, not how much DHM; the standardization percentage connects the two.

FDA rules say a dried extract is listed by the weight of the dried extract, not of any one compound inside it, though a label may also list a constituent and its amount.⁵ "Standardized to 98% DHM" is the maker's statement that 98% of the extract's weight is DHM. A plain "Hovenia extract" with no percentage gives you no way to know.

How to read the source on a label

Look for three things: the plant's Latin name, the plant part, and either milligrams of DHM or an extract weight with a percentage.

FDA requires botanical ingredients to name the part of the plant used, such as leaf or fruit, and usually the Latin binomial name.⁶ On the hangover-product labels we checked on October 9, 2026, wording ranged from "Dihydromyricetin (Ampelopsis grossedentata Leaf) 1,000 mg" to a vine tea "aerial" extract standardized to 98% DHM. One drink listed "Hovenia Dulcis Extract (fruit, min. 35% Dihydromyricetin)" inside a 2.75 g blend, so the DHM per bottle can't be worked out. Our guides to reading a supplement label and proprietary blends go further.

Sourcing and sustainability questions to ask a brand

A good brand can answer these:

• Which species and plant part is the DHM from?
• Where is the plant grown, and is it cultivated or wild-harvested?
• What solvent is used for extraction, and is the finished ingredient tested for residual solvents?
• What purity is specified, and how is it measured?
• Is there a lot-specific certificate of analysis covering DHM content, heavy metals and microbes, and who ran the tests?

Where After Party's DHM comes from

After Party by Fuller Health uses DHM extracted from vine tea (Ampelopsis grossedentata, stem and leaf).

It is a single-ingredient DHM supplement: 650 mg of dihydromyricetin per capsule, 3,250 mg per 5-capsule serving, with nothing else but the cellulose capsule. The published certificate of analysis for lot 1032 (manufactured June 2023) reports 3,250 mg of DHM per serving against a specification of not less than 3,250 mg, heavy metals (lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium) within limits by USP <233>, and microbiology within limits. The certificate doesn't name the testing lab or state the growing region, harvest method or extraction solvent.¹⁶ After Party's 3,250 mg serving is higher than the doses used in published human DHM studies (up to about 970 mg a day), and safety at that dose hasn't been studied.¹³ More on how After Party is sourced and tested and on the After Party facts page.

What we don't know yet

• Whether DHM from different plants or suppliers differs in any way that matters once purified; no study has compared them.
• How much swallowed DHM reaches the blood in people.¹⁷
• Which of Hovenia's many compounds account for the effects seen in animal studies.¹⁵
• How sustainably vine tea is harvested at commercial scale; we found no published data.

Every study we rely on is listed in the DHM research tracker.

Published by Fuller Health, which makes After Party. This article is general information, not medical advice: talk to a doctor or pharmacist about your own health, medicines and drinking. Last reviewed October 9, 2026. How we research and write.