any tea drinkers???? whats your fav? infuser or bag?

so i got on a tea kick the other day...
looking for some input on brands, flavors, etc...

generally im not into the fruity stuff but there are some i like.

so far i just use a kettle with bagged tea but im thinking about getting an infuser and going that route. im assuming thats better than the bagged stuff.
i was at world market today and they have some killer looking/sounding tea...

going to try the kava blend tonight...

any you would recommend?



im also looking for something cool to hold my stash in. i was going to use my humidor but im thinking about a table top apothecary table type deal. dont even know if those exist but if so, it would be cool

a reply to: Grovit

I've been on a tea kick lately too. Haven't tried anything too exotic though. Green tea in the mornings, peppermint tea in the afternoon, and chamomile before bed. I want to expand my horizons and try lots of new flavors. I want to get an infuser and try the loose teas, as well as maybe my own combinations!

Also, I adore World Market. It makes me giddy with excitement when I go in there.

And yes, apothecary chests are beautiful and obtainable! I've been wanting one for ages, but just haven't found the perfect one yet. I currently just store my tea in mason jars in the cabinet.

originally posted by: MojaveBurning


I've been on a tea kick lately too. Haven't tried anything too exotic though. Green tea in the mornings, peppermint tea in the afternoon, and chamomile before bed. I want to expand my horizons and try lots of new flavors. I want to get an infuser and try the loose teas, as well as maybe my own combinations!

Also, I adore World Market. It makes me giddy with excitement when I go in there.

And yes, apothecary chests are beautiful and obtainable! I've been wanting one for ages, but just haven't found the perfect one yet. I currently just store my tea in mason jars in the cabinet.

wal mart has a pretty damn decent selection of teas...brands, flavors..the whole deal.
i got that kava blend you see in the picture there today.

i got the red tea just a little while ago from world market. ive never had red tea.
its usually black or green mixed with whatever else.

celestial seasonings and bigelow make a lot of flavors but that is probably the low end of 'name brand'..
still good though.

im also going to get the infuser going and hit world market again and look online.

i know apothecary tables can be found but im thinking like a miniature version to go on the counter top...
thats the best comparison i would come up with for what i am thinking.

i guess i could just google tea storage and see whats what

check these out

www.stashtea.com...

check these out mojave

www.ebay.com...

www.amazon.com...=sr_1_1?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1417309076&sr=1-1&keywords=apothecary+cabi net

a reply to: Grovit

It`s officially not tea, but this is now been consumed by many as to traditional tea in The Netherlands, including me and a lot of people I know. It well could be it`s now more popular than real tea, at least the people I visit all have it.

Rooibos tea

Link

a reply to: Grovit

Get ready for an awesome hobby that gets as deep as you want. Making tinctures, simples, and teas are all very important to my craft and personal enjoyment. If you don't want to go all out, my basic suggestion is to just throw loose tea right into your cup and enjoy. It's perfectly okay to eat it. I munch on dry Earl Grey all the time, heh heh. If you aren't into getting tea stuff in your mouth, you can also just brew your loose mix into a pot and then strain it as you pour it. If it's a large amount, strain it all after a few minutes into a separate pot and serve from that.

At home, I use a mortar and pestle to grind my own herbs depending on the effects I want. If you are even the slightest bit interested in herbal medicine, tea mixtures and simples are a great way to experiment. You'd be surprised at how many OTC and prescription medications you can replicate with herbs (which is what they normally synthesize to begin with).

Locally, I have a great source to get all of my herbs that are wild crafted but if you don't have a place nearby, there are plenty of websites you can order from and they have very interesting teas, as well.

But, above all, have fun. Man... it's seriously enjoyable.

a reply to: Grovit

Have you ever tried Chai tea? I love it and it has to be my favorite. It has a cinnamon flavor. Add a bit of half and half and honey for a Chai latte style drink. Orange also goes with it for a tangy spiced orange tea.

I've always just used tea bags or my Keurig (which actually has a chai latte cup as well). Never have messed with an infuser. I'd probably just spill the tea leaves everywhere or it would break open in my cup. lol

I also drink green tea for the health benefits and chamomile tea for the cleansing properties but those are pretty well known.

a reply to: AshleyD

ive never had it hot but i make vanilla chai tea and drink it cold all the time
im not prepared to try it hot.
for me, its a cold tea

i love, love, love mint teas..probably my favorite and i drink loads of it cold in the summer.

i also buy mint extract and put a few drops in my regular tea of i dont have any actual mint tea

I enjoy yerba mate. It's nice on its own, but I sometimes add other herbs for a little variety. It's good steeped with peppermint and citrus rinds and sweetened with honey.
en.wikipedia.org...

Pu-erh tea is a different one to try. It can be fermented for many years before using and is richer and more earthy than most teas. Some green teas are also infused with brown rice which makes for an interesting combo that I really enjoy.

Pu-erh link: en.wikipedia.org...
Brown rice tea: en.wikipedia.org...

a reply to: Grovit

I made the switch over to drinking tea in the morning at work instead of pop.

In my case, I have a couple varieties of Yogi tea floating around my cube (I picked the ones with high amounts of caffeine in them to keep me awake).

For later on at night, I drink hot peppermint tea with honey as a dessert. I used to be able to pick my peppermint fresh (several parks in the area had it growing wild; nothing beats having the wild taste vs the bagged stuff).

Now, one of the teas that I have had on a couple occasions, and wish that they'd offer a bagged form of it, is pine needle tea. Technically, as long as you know what tree is a pine tree, you can do this with almost all pines - all you do is get the green needles, clean them/soak them, chop them up, and add them to hot water. The tea itself is full of vitamin c, and it smells like a wet tree does (not a bad smell, at least to my nose). NOTE: If you are going to try this from the source, know your trees! Last thing you want to do is get a handful of yew leaves, as well, I don't think you'll be an ATS poster anymore.

-fossilera

Mountain Rose Herbs.

Matcha!!!

a reply to: Grovit

Earl grey but then I am not a cultured tea drinker and that is the poor man's posh.
Alway's pour your water on a rolling boil over the tea leave's or even tea bag and allow it to brew to your taste.
The nicest tea I have ever tasted is Japanese Green tea from the Shizuoka region.

originally posted by: fossilera
a reply to: Grovit

Now, one of the teas that I have had on a couple occasions, and wish that they'd offer a bagged form of it, is pine needle tea. Technically, as long as you know what tree is a pine tree, you can do this with almost all pines - all you do is get the green needles, clean them/soak them, chop them up, and add them to hot water. The tea itself is full of vitamin c, and it smells like a wet tree does (not a bad smell, at least to my nose). NOTE: If you are going to try this from the source, know your trees! Last thing you want to do is get a handful of yew leaves, as well, I don't think you'll be an ATS poster anymore.

-fossilera

Even if you find a pine tree and have a few minutes to harvest, be careful. Not even all pines are safe to eat from. I'm surrounded by a mix of pines so I can't just go picking any needle I see, unfortunately. But if you find the good ones, you can get a TON of nutrients from it not only from the needles but the flesh of the tree itself is edible.

a reply to: Grovit

Tea in the morning, tea at night, that'll make the days go pretty right ;-)

Five Roses from South Africa, always liked that tea, followed by I suppose Tetley or Red Rose. Twinnings has some good teas, I particularly like Darjeeling, but I find that even though it has a nice taste and aroma, it is a bit weak.

Cheers - Dave

a reply to: Grovit

Grovit, S&F, thanks for this thread sounds like its going to be a fun one.

I drink a lot of different teas, mostly of the bagged type, although I do occasionally use loose leaves and put them in a tea ball. If you haven't seen them they are a two part (screw together) mesh ball on a chain, you can also buy something like a spoon that is mesh and hinges open to fill it.

I drink all kinds of tea either decaffeinated or naturally caffeine free. Anything Rooibos or spiced, minty or vanilla are tops on my list. I am a milk no sugar gal, but will sometimes use that french vanilla coffeemate in a "chai" tea. Now the funny thing is the word "chai" means tea, so I guess it's redundant. Celestial Seasonings, Twinnings, Stash, Bigelow, Tetley, Lipton....they are all good products. When we still had a large group in our office we took turns bringing in different teas so we got to sample many kinds and not worry about buying something you wouldn't like.

Has anyone used the Tassiomo or Keurig machines for their teas? The reason I ask is that we are each getting a single serve sized Keurig at work as gift from our manager. I don't drink coffee anymore, except for a cup of decaf now and again. The cheapest K-cups for tea that I have seen are about 66 cents each, a bit expensive for a cuppa, but definitely cheaper than what the doughnut shops charge.

Looking forward to learning what everyone has in their cupboards.

Namaste,
YogaGinns

Does anyone have one of these and what exactly is in those pods or Kups? Hate to think it is some chemical concoction and not real tea or coffee.

a reply to: AshleyD

AshleyD, I missed the fact that you use a Keurig in my first read through. How is it for making a good hot cup and do you find it cost effective. Is it hard to clean?

I'm just not sure I want to get into using it and creating the waste with those plastic cups. At least the teabags I just toss in the compost bin.

Appreciate your comments.

Namaste,
YogaGinns

I drink organic loose leaf tea. Usually oolong, green and white. My favorite oolong is Tieguanyin, greens are gyokuro and pinhead. For white I occasionally enjoy white peony. When I used to drink bagged teas they were usually PG Tips, Yamamotoyama's Jasmine Green Tea is incredible.

I don't like sugar in my teas and I use a metal tea ball.

originally posted by: Cuervo

Get ready for an awesome hobby that gets as deep as you want.
to the deepest depths my friend

Making tinctures, simples, and teas are all very important to my craft and personal enjoyment. If you don't want to go all out, my basic suggestion is to just throw loose tea right into your cup and enjoy. It's perfectly okay to eat it. I munch on dry Earl Grey all the time, heh heh. If you aren't into getting tea stuff in your mouth, you can also just brew your loose mix into a pot and then strain it as you pour it. If it's a large amount, strain it all after a few minutes into a separate pot and serve from that.
i think i will postpone eating it for a while...i think im gonna pick up and infuser/tea ball tomorrow. world market had one that was a frog and his legs stretched out over the rim of the cup. pretty cool

You'd be surprised at how many OTC and prescription medications you can replicate with herbs
yum yum yum yum yum yum yum yum yum

Locally, I have a great source to get all of my herbs that are wild crafted but if you don't have a place nearby, there are plenty of websites you can order from and they have very interesting teas, as well.

But, above all, have fun. Man... it's seriously enjoyable.

im going to hit some websites tomorrow. been watching a flick and couldnt really do the shopping right now.
thanks for all the tips...

a reply to: Cuervo

Depends on where you are, as always - In my case, most of the pines growing in my region are safe & edible. My main identification tactic is that if the needles are long, and really are "needles" (as in, they come to a point, and aren't flat), then you can at least make a tea from them; gotta love scout training sometimes.

I mostly like it because of the smell and flavor; reminds me a bit of a warm, misty day in a pine forest, and tastes about the same. I found that it didn't need any sweeteners like honey for some reason (maybe the oils in the needles did it?).

However, I do agree in general though; it's not the wisest thing to do like I did for both times, and just pick a tree.
-foss