It's more healthy than coffee, comes in more varieties, is easier to make and doesn't stain your teeth.

My current favorite tea is Numi tea...I bought this sampler pack and it's some damn good tea, even the herbal stuff and teasans that I didn't think I would like. The jasmine green can't be beat. Also, Honest Tea has some mint green tea that has been a favorite for years.

Any other tea drinkers here?

1/31/2006 9:29:52 AM

i dont like nuttin fancy. darjeeling or earl grey for me. ive got no-name chai my gf bought, but im not a fan of all the flavors.

1/31/2006 9:56:33 AM

lipton

1/31/2006 9:58:09 AM

sweet

[/thread]

[Edited on January 31, 2006 at 10:08 AM. Reason : doh]

1/31/2006 10:06:12 AM

sweaty tea is kinda salty

1/31/2006 10:07:35 AM

sweat

1/31/2006 10:09:02 AM

sweet

&

iced

[/thread]

1/31/2006 10:16:13 AM

all tea should be sweet, iced or hot

1/31/2006 10:29:17 AM

I like Black Teas...Twinnings makes a good Prince of Whales Black Tea!

1/31/2006 10:30:17 AM

green, chai, orange peko.....its all good

1/31/2006 10:35:09 AM

my grandfathers doctor told him not to drink tea because of a certain acid in it that screws with your kidneys.. worse than cola he said

1/31/2006 10:47:50 AM

then my kidneys are in some serious trouble

Maybe your grandfather has a certain condition that makes tea harmful to him, but it's been proven through centuries that it's healthy for you.

1/31/2006 10:51:45 AM

Man I remember you used to drink that green stuff all the time.

1/31/2006 11:16:42 AM

tea can stain your teeth, though not as badly as coffee.

i'm partial to red rose's black tea. with milk and sugar.

1/31/2006 11:30:17 AM

^i was about to post the same thing

of course tea can stain your teeth. anything w/ color can stain your teeth if you drink enough of it

1/31/2006 11:41:21 AM

I know Adagio Teas advertisings on the Digg Nation podcast .... can't go wrong there

http://www.adagio.com/

1/31/2006 12:17:34 PM

I LOVE TEA, ALL THE TIME!!!

I want to own my own tea shop one day where coffee can be a small side item.

1/31/2006 12:18:23 PM

does Honest Tea sell bags, or just the bottled premade crap?

1/31/2006 12:45:52 PM

I drink Twinings of London.. it has a royal warrant from H.M. the Queen of England!

My favorite Twinings flavours are "Four Red Fruits" and "Vanilla"

1/31/2006 12:57:00 PM

The only tea I've been able to stomach is iced green tea with a fruit flavor in it, no sugar b/c the flavor sweetens it enough. I've only had it from Cup A Joe, but I want to start making it myself.

1/31/2006 1:19:22 PM

One fact, and one opinion:


I have more variety of teas, especially loose-leaf teas, than anyone I've ever met.


Common sweet iced tea (like the kind you get at restaurants) is, by far, the nastiest shit on earth.

I would rather drink vinegar.

--------------------------------------------------

Quote :

"bottled premade crap"

I'll have to agree with this sentiment. Bottled or canned tea is not tea. It is crap.

1/31/2006 1:26:28 PM

Quote :

"Common sweet iced tea (like the kind you get at restaurants) is, by far, the nastiest shit on earth."

YOU TAKE THAT BACK!!!

1/31/2006 1:47:11 PM

i switched to loose tea about a year ago
Thyme For Tea - flea market @ the fairgrounds
(inside the building - near the hammocks)

i get all my tea from her now.
mostly black, chai, some white and green (blends).
i don't really discriminate. i have enough variation that i sometimes blend my own.
like adding a pinch of black currant or lavender to darjeeling.

i'll make traditional sweet tea (using lipton cold brew) and add some of my loose tea to it to give it flavor.

i know global village and helios carries some brands of loose tea.

1/31/2006 1:48:47 PM

^^Never.

The taste of the refined sugar is stronger than the taste of the tea.
It tastes like a sugar refinery.


If you cut the sugar by 50% to 75%, then it might be OK.

Fans of this drink are simply in denial over their sugar addictions--They'd probably like to drink the juice found in hummingbird feeders, over ice of course.....

1/31/2006 1:51:59 PM

Quote :

"does Honest Tea sell bags, or just the bottled premade crap?"

They sell it in bags now. It's actually rather inexpensive compared to Numi. Republic of Tea, while really expensive, is good.

I also have some loose leaf from a southern season, the best of which is gunpowder green...looks like little black ball bearings but they unroll in hot water and make the best green tea around IMO.

Also, I think white tea is crap...I can't taste it at all.

1/31/2006 1:56:16 PM

i like white and green tea blends
or with peach

1/31/2006 2:06:10 PM

^^yeah, gunpowder green and jasmine pearl are good, i need to get some more. i've only gotten the jasmine pearl by mailorder and at restaurants, but most asian markets around here have at least one variety of gunpowder, if you're looking for more.


hempster-- if you need tea and you can't make it the Honest Tea bottled stuff isn't that bad, it's practically unsweetened, but they are kind of expensive.

1/31/2006 2:12:04 PM

Quote :

"my grandfathers doctor told him not to drink tea because of a certain acid in it that screws with your kidneys.. worse than cola he said"

if that's true at all, it must be just your grandfather, because nothing I can find says anything but good things about tea and kidneys. it even prevents stones with the acids it contains. also, there like a gazillion kinds of tea, so I can't imagine your grandfather's doctor said that all tea contains "more acid than cola," and I doubt that's true

1/31/2006 3:07:04 PM

^from the first website for a google search "tea bad kidneys":

Quote :

"Our acid-forming North American diet is the hole in the pail. It forces our body to consume massive amounts of calcium to maintain a pH balance in the blood. Coffee, tea, table salt, meat, eggs, milk, cheese, pop, bread, and junk food all force the body to produce copious amounts of acid. ... On the way out, calcium compounds can lodge in the kidneys causing kidney stones, or in the gall bladder producing gallstones. "

tea makes our body produce acid. our body needs calcium to counteract that acid. the extra calcium causes kidney problems.



[Edited on January 31, 2006 at 3:14 PM. Reason : google is fun!]

1/31/2006 3:11:46 PM

yeah thats probably what the doctor meant..

1/31/2006 3:17:57 PM

or its probably what he said...and the communication just got mixed up going down the line.

1/31/2006 3:27:11 PM

I'm especially partial to rooibos (red bush) tea from africa


it's good stuff, if you boil your water with the teabags in it, it makes this great aroma


I also like Tazo calm; I saw it in Starbucks but originally bought it at a grocery store (before I ever knew sbux carried it), with a splash of ReaLemon and some honey, it's pretty good too

1/31/2006 3:28:40 PM

mmm rooibos chai...
it has tons of additional health benefits. helped my grandma with her sleep problems

1/31/2006 3:35:49 PM

Quote :

"darjeeling or earl grey for me."

or some English Breakfast.

1/31/2006 3:44:40 PM

big fan of that starbucks tazo chai, and my fav is definitely the refresh kind. its minty. mmm.

1/31/2006 3:44:48 PM

Earl Grey, Cinamin (sp?), or mint.
Sweet.

1/31/2006 3:48:06 PM

^^ I could never get down with the refresh, it felt like I was drinking a peppermint

1/31/2006 3:53:35 PM

Tea--real tea--is the best drink I have certainly ever tried, and one that I can't get tired of. I have been drinking tea since I was 10.

But, it has to be real tea, from the tea plant (Camelia Sinensis) commonly found in India, Sri Lanka, China, and Kenya. It is amazing how many people say "tea" and are just drinking some herbal infusion, like chamomile, mint, etc.

Anyway, I have tried most brands of tea out there, and the two best brands I have found so far are:

Tazo

Republic of Tea

As for variations, if you love tea, you gotta have chai, Earl Grey, and of course, English Breakfast.

(I only drink black tea; not fond of green tea or white tea much)

Tazo's Chai, Earl Grey, Citron, and English Breakfast are simply out of this world.

Republic of Tea's Vanilla, Ginger Peach are amazing. (several others as well)

You should also try tea from different countries. Most black tea found in the US comes from India and Sri Lanka. Try black tea from China, or Kenya, which have stronger, muskier flavours and odors. And of course, within India, there is a great variation. You have the Darjeeling, and then the Assam tea.

Of note is that all these come from the same species, but just as humans are one species, but found with so many variations, so is the tea plant.

Rooibos is nice as well, though it is not from the tea plant. It is from a bush found in South Africa, and scientists are really interested in it because it might be more healthful than black tea.


As for the bad for kidneys part, some people need to avoid it, as well as other foods high in oxalic acid, sich as spinach. They are prone to get kidney stones from such foods.

[Edited on January 31, 2006 at 3:59 PM. Reason : ]

1/31/2006 3:56:01 PM

^^i usually have one bag of refresh and one normal one, like liptons or something. its not as strong then. thats seriously like all i drank when i was sick a couple months ago. so delicious.

1/31/2006 4:00:48 PM

Ever try kombucha mushroom tea?

It is perhaps the most nutritious beverage on earth. Seriously, no joke.

You take regular tea, (for some reason, other teas won't work,) add a lot of sugar, and place the mushroom in the tea. You cover the pitcher (must be glass or ceramic,) with a cloth (to prevent contamination, but allow air) and let it sit out for 7-14 days, or to taste.

Afterwards, the mushroom will have created a "baby" mushroom. This may be separated from the original mushroom and given to a friend to start their own batch. You may also eat the baby mushroom, if you like, or feed it to your dog or cat. It is very healthy. The original mushroom can be stored for a year or more in the refrigerator, covered with a little bit of the tea, in an air-tight container. After a while, when the original mushroom starts to fall apart from continued use, you simply replace it with a healthy "baby" mushroom.

After straining out the little bits of mushroom remaining in the tea, you transfer the tea back to the glass or ceramic pitcher and refrigerate. It will last 2 weeks or more.

Note: In case you haven't gathered, this is not like most tea. You do not want to drink more than 16 oz. per day. Trust me. If you've never had the tea before, it's best to start off drinking 8 oz. per day and work your way up.

The tea is a little bit sweet (the mushroom eats most of the sugar,) and has a slight apple cider vinegar flavor.




I suspect that this seems gross to some of you, but don't knock it until you've tried it....

p.s. I drink this tea quite often, and http://www.thewolfweb.com/message_topic.aspx?topic=383830&page=1#8228717







Obligatory: "No, you cannot achieve any psychoactive effects from this tea--it's perfectly legal."

1/31/2006 4:09:31 PM

my grandparents used to drink that mushroom tea all the time. I don't know why they stopped, but I tried it and it's not bad. Does kinda have a cider taste to it, but if you don't let the mushroom use up all the sugar then it's better.

1/31/2006 5:43:53 PM

^^ can u explain in more detail the benefits?

1/31/2006 5:53:26 PM

sounds like a huge invitation for additional no so healthy fungal growth... the kind that makes you puke non-stop for 8 hours and then shit non-stop for the next 16... also known as food poisoning....

1/31/2006 5:59:56 PM

Thought I'd bring this back for a recommendation. I've had to eliminate coffee from my diet due to health reasons, so I've been drinking quite a bit of tea. Found some gourmet tea in my work's breakroom, brand is Harney & Sons. FANTASTIC tea! I've had both the Chinese Flower (a green tea blend with a hint of citrus) and the African Autumn (redbush with cranberry and orange). It's a bit pricey at $8 for a tin of 20 sachets, but you can make 2 cups with a single sachet.

http://www.harney.com/

2/7/2006 10:49:44 AM

i have been drinking a lot of loose tea lately, i love it. also tisanes, if you want to be a dork about it.

the spiced green from adagio teas is really good

also chamomile, which i hated at first but now enjoy

i tried some white monkey (green tea actually) and couldn't taste a damn thing

gunpowder is great too, i agree with the posters who noted that. also, i just add my own peppermint to make moroccan mint sometimes.

2/7/2006 11:32:22 AM

Bagged tea is for white people.

I like chai, but when I'm just chilling out at home/in the dorm, I usually brew up some green or oolong.

2/8/2006 6:57:06 PM

i really like Mighty Leaf teas... i stick to basic though - my favorite is the mint green

2/8/2006 7:27:16 PM

organic earl grey (loose) steeped 15 mintues in 6oz of water. tons of honey, and a touch of milk

2/8/2006 8:03:28 PM

Tetley Tea is the best...

2/8/2006 8:21:36 PM

Quote :

"On the way out, calcium compounds can lodge in the kidneys causing kidney stones, or in the gall bladder producing gallstones."

Well, I don't have to worry about the gall bladder, since I haven't had one for almost 5 years.

2/9/2006 11:38:10 AM