# Favorite teas?



## thistle (Aug 10, 2002)

I'm heading to the store today and would like some recommendations on teas. I am getting kind of tired of my usuals and hoping to bring some excitelment into my life- LOL.

My usuals are green, black, peppermint and red zinger. Any other recs are welcome. I don't have a Trader Joe's here, but I have Whole Foods and other stores like that, plus Asian markets so I am game for just about anything. i'm not nursing any more, so that need not be a concern.

thistle


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## Arduinna (May 30, 2002)

I love the Republic of Tea

ginger peach
cinnamon and cardamom
lemon wintergreen


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## chalupamom (Apr 15, 2002)

I love anything chai-ish and anything with spearmint or ginger.

When I'm mainstream shopping, I like sleepytime, Bengal spice and the chai flavor (can't remember what it's called) from...who are those people? The ones with the sweet drawings on their boxes. Can't remember.

When I'm non-mainstream shopping I just look for the flavors mentioned above. I'm rarely disappointed.

Recently I bought some crazy expensive tea (what can I say, I'm weak) from a place near me. It came in these airtight little pewter colored tins and was fabulous! I bought Moroccan Mint and, again, some kind of chai-ish one. They were, like, $10 each. Yes, I'm stupid but the tea was really good. I haven't gone back to that store because I know I'd end up buying more of it rather than , say, pay the electric bill.


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## HollyBearsMom (May 13, 2002)

I love Bigelows "Constant Comment" green tea which has a a great orange spice flavor. I also like the Republic of Teas Ginger/Peach


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## mandib50 (Oct 26, 2004)

i LOVE green teas, my favorite by far is fusion white green tea by STASH.
mandi


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## Irishmommy (Nov 19, 2001)

Moving this to Nutrition and Good Eating...


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## EFmom (Mar 16, 2002)

I love STASH Lemon Ginger tea and their Chai. Mmmmm.


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## ashbag (Jan 28, 2005)

I really enjoy infusing japanese gunpowder tea with a little stevia added in the end. Also celestial seasons makes a good chamomile vanilla tea for relaxation. It has such a wonderful aroma.


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## mermommy (Aug 16, 2004)

I usually drink organic chamomile during the day - I brew a large ball jar of it the night before and put it in the fridge so I have something to drink the next day.


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## homemademomma (Apr 1, 2004)

i love love LOVE lapsang souchong tea. it tastes and smells like a campfire. i always feel so cozy when i drink it in the morning, especially if it is misty or rainy out. mmmmmmmmmm. i also love english breakfast with cream and sucanat. very coffee-like.


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## rainbowmoon (Oct 17, 2003)

oh goodie a tea thread!!!

I like Choice teas and they are easy to find.. mango celyon & northwest blackberry are my favorites.
they are fair trade too









oh also try yogi teas vanilla hazelnut


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## Bethkm (Jun 27, 2003)

I have a ? for those of you who use loose tea. Um, how do you make it? I'm a teabag person but I just got some loose tea I"m dying to try.


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## slcmama (Jan 27, 2005)

Lately I love Stash Organic Chai. Last week I tried a sample bag of Celestial Seasonings green tea and raspberry (can't remember the exact name) and it was really good! Going back for a full box next time.


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## Lucky (Nov 14, 2004)

I've been drinking Traditional Medicines Gypsy Cold Care and Tazo Om. Om is an organic green tea and black tea.


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## equinurse (Apr 30, 2004)

Not to steal your thread, but what tea's are safe for nursing mamas? Just drinking decaf organic earl grey now, but this thread has me yearning for new tastes!

Margie


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## QueenSheba'sMom (Feb 4, 2003)

One thing nursing mamas should steer sleer of is sage teas (not too common), but I think most tea is just fine. You may want to satick with the decaf.

I love cranberry echinacia rooibos from bija, and chamomille for upset tummies, and I recently fell in love with earl grey for the bergamot tastes.....

pretty much anything tazo (passion is amaaaaazing) or good earth (they do something amazing with their traditional tea and their jasmine green tea) is a winner.

ooooooh and ginger tea is wonderful- for a cold/cough/stuffiness drink it with honey & lemon


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## HollyBearsMom (May 13, 2002)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Bethkm*
I have a ? for those of you who use loose tea. Um, how do you make it? I'm a teabag person but I just got some loose tea I"m dying to try.

I am no frills gal myself and have been using the same old cheapo mesh strainer I bought about 15-20 years ago. You can pick one up at a kitchen supply place. You can also just use any small, fine mesh sieve that will sit comfortably over your mug but if the it doesn't sit in the water you will have a weaker brew. Lastly you can make your own "tea bags" with cheesecloth tied with string. I use anywhere from 1 tsp to 1TBS of tea leaves per cup depending on the tea.

That said you could also spend a fortune on all kind of fancy tea gadgets.

here is a link form the cheap to the expensive....

http://coffeetea.about.com/library/w...astrainers.htm


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## SandyBeachBums (Nov 14, 2002)

we use the little dipper

It's really nice and easy to use. We use the republic of tea bulk teas alot.

As for tea in bags I like Yogi black chai. I can't remember the brand, but it's a green box and it's called Zen tea. It's nice if you don't like green tea, but would like to ease into it. I usually buy tea when it's on sale. That keeps a good variety around the house! I noticed my dh used the little dipper with teecino yesterday and I forgot to ask him if he liked it. I haven't bought anymore of it because it's so expensive.


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## g&a (Dec 15, 2004)

I always drink loose teas - we have a great tea shop in my town. I will never go back to mainstream stuff - there's just no comparison. Green Jewel is my current favourite. It is a green tea with raspberry bits in it. Just a hint of fruitiness. Have to be carefull not too drink too much of it, though, as it is caffinated and we're nursing. I'm also a huge rooibos fan. I like vanilla or there's one with lemongrass in it.

For loose tea you need some sort of infuser. I have a special pot with an insert that has timy holes in it. Most of the time I use a mesh tea ball because I only want 1 cup at a time. You can also get paper tea bags that you fill with your own tea. They work really well, and many people love them but I prefer the tea ball as you don't have to throw it away in the end.

Tea is a great way to get more water into your diet. I used to always have a cup going when I was at work.

gisele


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## ledzepplon (Jun 28, 2004)

Mmmm . . . I love the Tazo teas, pretty much all flavors (current favorites are Zen, Lotus, Earl Grey, and Calm). And I love the Licorice Yogi tea.


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## willow83 (Jan 2, 2005)

*I love tea!* I am a bf mama and I drink three different kinds a day. I wake up with yerba mate, which is really good for you, it isn't green or black, its its own kind, it does have a little caffiene so I only have one cup a day. This kind of tea has a lot of Chronium in it which is good for chloresterol and digestion problems. Then I have a rose hips tea which is great for the winter time cause one bag of it has 2000mg of vit C. Then at night I have decaf green tea which has tons of antioxidants *very good for u*







I love coffee though and so I'm trying to replace it with tea







Just make sure everyone that u buy organic cause the pesticides gets sprayed right on the tea leaves and its basically a pesticide soup if not


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## momto l&a (Jul 31, 2002)

I buy all of our teas from www.specialteas.com cant stand tea that comes in a bag anymore as it tastes like dust IMO.

Rooibos tea is my favorite, comes in many differant







flavors


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## runes (Aug 5, 2004)

Mmmmmm, tea!

As a self-proclaimed tea snob...I use loose leaf teas with a mesh strainer. I prefer the clean taste of this as I can taste the paper from the tea bag.

Currently, I'm really into:
Genmaicha-green tea with toasted rice. It's a very traditional Japanese tea and it is very 'hearty' smelling and tasting because of the rice bits. I've been taking more of this lately because of the research tying green tea consumption to fertile cm. I have to say...it works!

Wild Sweet Orange by Tazo-sparkling orange flavor. Delicious!

Anything by Zhena's Teas (organic, free trade, $$) So worth every penny. I love love love their Raspberry Earl Grey, Moroccan Mint and the Lemon Jasmine is unbelievable. The Red Lavender is really wonderful, too. The tins that they come in are so pretty as well...metal with glass tops, very classy.

The Yogi teas are great and I like the one called "Energy".


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## AllNatural (Aug 4, 2004)

Is Zhena's Moroccan Mint loose? I just love Numi's Morroccan Mint, but it's bag only and I must confess, I am starting to prefer the loose teas. Now if Celestial Seasonings would just sell theirs loose. They have such good teas. I second Republic of Tea...I tried the Safari Sunset rooibos recently, it's good, but I won't be getting it again as it smells like Tutti-Frutti Gum and I hate that stuff. But the flavor of the tea is much better.

Oh and Tazo has a great chai too.

I also like Good Earth original tea...it's great with milk and stevia. A nice replacement for my coffee. (Yay! Friday was a year with no coffee. No more migraines!)

BTW, am I the only one that drinks my tea from a mug? Tea cups are just so small. I love the sensation of holding a hot mug of tea in my hands and breathing in the steam. (It's 20 below here for about 6 months of the year. So, that might make a difference! LOL)

Kate


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## willow83 (Jan 2, 2005)

oh I only use mugs...so do u all think that the tea bags might leach anything unwanted into our teas? I still drink coffee once in a while, and I usually will just boil straight milk and put chai teabags in it, thats yummy!


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## AllNatural (Aug 4, 2004)

Well, most tea bags are bleached so they probably have dioxins in them. I know at least some of Republic of Tea's teas come in unbleached tea bags. But the main argument for using loose over bags is flavor. The tea used in tea bags is actually tea "dust". It's the trash part of the basically. The tea in loose teas is much higher quality and there is an enormous flavor difference. I drink mostly herbal "teas" which aren't actually teas since they don't contain any of the actual tea plant in them. They are tisanes rather than teas. At least for me, there isn't as much difference in the herbal teas whether loose or in a bag. But if you drink real tea (black, oolong, green--rooibos is also not a tea as it is made from the bark of a S. African tree) you should try the loose. You won't want to go back to tea bags.

Also, if you do use loose tea it's better not to use a tea ball as this compresses the leaves and keeps them from fully opening. It's better to use a pot-size strainer basket or one of the infuser cups that is open. Tazo loose teas in the tins come with an infuser basket that sits in your cup and gives the leaves plenty of room to open up.

And if you like a really strong black tea... try Xi Chuan-Bian Cha also known as Edge Tea. It is a Chinese tea (I'm working and living in China currently). It's got a very strong, robust, but still smooth flavor. I'm a former coffee drinker so I really enjoyed this tea with three sugar cubes and some milk. (I prefer using evaporated milk in my tea...smoother flavor and more coffee-esque. FYI, you should NEVER use cream in tea, only milk. Cream will curdle in tea and is pretty nasty. And milk in herbal teas will also curdle. Not something you'd want to drink. Trust me.)

HTH,
Kate


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## Trishy (Oct 15, 2002)

I love Earl Grey but not the decaffinated kind. I tried it once and it was horrible. Also, it is my understanding that the decaffination process is worse for you than the actual caffiene. When I was pg I would try to avoid the caffeine but maybe once a week or so I would have a nice cup of tea.


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## bellee (Feb 26, 2003)

Oh, there's so much good info in this thread. I'm an aspiring tea snob myself :LOL I LOVE Yogi licorice tea, I drink a pot at a time but it gets expencive







There was a Tazo "spice" tea (I forget the whole name) that I loved so much but I can't find it anymore









I think I need to try loose tea. Where do you buy it IRL? Is it cheaper to buy online?

I love tea


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## Thomi'sMommy (Feb 11, 2004)

I use a Bonjour French Press for my tea. It's about $10 and it's brilliant.

I don't do bagged teas because 1) they're a total ripoff...you can make the same mixture yourself for a fraction of the price 2) I like to explore new combos of my own. The prebagged can be a little tame.

My current herbal fave is a combo of lavender/peppermint/nettles/red raspberry. Otherwise I've been drinking pu-erh, lychee black, japanese green, jasmine, and silver needle pekoe (which is startlingly expensive but oh lord....) I've been medicating DH with Passion Flower, Gotu Kola and Licorice Root.

I have to get most of my teas from a friend in Boston who gets her tea from NYC, so it can be a hassle, but I'm stupid for tea.

I'm fiending for a Morocan tea set though. My ex-BF was from Fes and he made the most amazing tea - the legit way without utensils. And I think the glasses made it taste better. And I have to say that everywhere in the world I've travelled, people used special vessels for their teas, and that really turned me on. I'm tired of my stupid mugs.

So many teas, so little time.....


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## treehugger (Jan 21, 2005)

mmmm I love the Traditional Medicinals every day detox that is so sweet on it's own and tastes so yummy, I also love the red raspbery leaf and Oregon Chai Original with vanilla soy milk mmmmmmm


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## momto l&a (Jul 31, 2002)

I should have added to my pp that dh bought me one of those beautiful cast iron tea pots, cant think of the name of them now







. Anyway is makes the best tea, it got a stainless steel thing for you to put your loose tea in. The girls and I just love to have tea. My grandmother and Mom went and bought me to nice sized fine bone china mugs









I bought dh a nice big glass mug and a nice tea strainer that fits down in a cup for his loose tea.

Special Teas really has a nice collection of all types of teas been buying from them for quite sometime and no problems, fast service and tasty teas.







Their tea comes in thick resealable plastic bags. I like that I can buy samples of tea before comiting to a 1/4 pound or whatever.

My Testubin tea pot came from Blue mountain. They at the time had the best price and biggest selection of cast iron pots.


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## moss (Feb 7, 2004)

wow, this is an inspiring thread.

i've had so many teapots chip and break on me over the years, i've finally given up on them, and i use a coffee press/bodum to brew my tea now. it's lovely.









i'm a fan of yogi tea, just discovered tazo, always use traditional medicinals when i'm sick and have a cupboard full of various bagged teas for different moods etc. i've started cutting open the bags to liberate my tea! :LOL i also have a few loose herbs from the hfs so that i can augment the prepared blends that i have with medicinals (slippery elm, oatstraw, nettle, milk thistle). i'm really a novice at blending my own but i'm learning.


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## AllNatural (Aug 4, 2004)

I've used the Bodum French press for coffee in the past. Didn't think about using it for tea!









Does Traditional Medicine's teas make anyone else sick? The smell of them makes me sick to start with but after drinking one I was throwing up and after drinking another (Echinacea plus, I think) I was sneezing my head off. And the Throat Coat and Gypsy Cold Care is just disgusting, IMO. But maybe I'm just weird.









Bellee,

Try www.republicoftea.com

They have loose teas in sample packets, so you can try a small amount before buying the large ones.

Other websites with tea info:

www.fmltea.com/Teainfo/tea-brewing.htm
has info on brewing tea the Chinese way

http://chineseteas101.com/chinese_tea.htm
has Chinese names for popular teas

http://www.teawithfriends.com/topics/about.htm
has a list of teas and which tea goes with what food

Kate


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## sunnylady303 (Sep 17, 2004)

This is a GREAT thread. I have wanted to get into teas as we are looking for things to replace pop. I am going to try some of the Roobidos teas. But can someone explain to me what the difference is between black and green and white and chai, etc teas? And what do you put in your tea or do you just drink it straight? Thanks!


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## g&a (Dec 15, 2004)

sunnylady:

I think tea is a great way to replace sugarry drinks in your diet. I started drinking tea to get more water in my diet - it's just more interesting than water.

perhaps someone else knows the exact difference between black, green etc. (I only know it vuagley)
I drink a lot of rooiboos and fruit and herbal teas as i want to avoid the caffeine found in actual 'tea'. They are so so so good for you with lots of antioxidants.

g.


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## AllNatural (Aug 4, 2004)

Well, I'm no expert, but I'll try to explain the difference in teas. Tea leaves are harvested, dried and left to ferment. White tea is the least fermented kind of tea. It's also pretty much the most expensive kind of tea. It has caffeine, just not much. Green tea is fermented more than white tea, but less than oolong and also is lower in caffeine. If you steep it too long, it is really bitter. It should only be in the water long enough for the leaves to unfurl. This is the most popular tea in China with oolong being the second. Oolong is next in line fermented a little more than green and not as long as black. Oolong tea is sometimes referred to as "red tea" because the leaves are slightly red in color. In China however, red tea is what we in the West call black tea. Black being the color of the leaves, red being the color of the liquid. Black is the most fermented tea and also the tea with the most caffeine. In fact, if you are not used to loose black tea, you'd better start slowly or you'll get diarrhea. Just as you might if you drank too much coffee. White, green, oolong, and black teas are the only true teas from the camellia sinesis (sp?) plant. Chai is traditionally made with black tea and comes from India. Now you can get it made with green tea, rooibos, etc. Chai is a spiced-up tea usually with cinnamon, cardamom and ginger and sometimes even with black pepper. It's generally served sweetened and with milk (be sure to use milk not cream in tea.)

Rooibos is not an actual tea, it is made from the bark of a South African tree. It is caffeine free and is sometimes called red tea. It's quite good actually and comes in many flavors.

HTH,
Kate


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## momto l&a (Jul 31, 2002)

I am pretty sure Rooibos is a the leaves of the Aspalathus linearis plant, grown in a very small area of Africa.

More info http://www.rooibosltd.co.za/index.html


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## star792 (May 31, 2004)

we drink a lot of tea in my house, but i should add that my DH is GM of a tea store- www.teavana.com they make awesome tea, its a mall store but there aren't that many of them yet.
we drink golden monkey(hand picked from china-black tea) in the morning, i like japanese wild cherry(green tea) in the afternoon, and usually something herbal in the evening. DS is three and loves tea, we only give him herbal or rooibos teas.
however, if after you brew green tea the first time, and reuse the leaves for a second brew the caffiene is about 85% gone. i like to make a pitcher of some kind of tea for him(rooibos tropica and carribean breeze is a good combo) and sweeten it a little and offer him that instead of juice.he was a big juice addict and now rarely asks for it. we use a cast iron tea pot most of the time, i like it because you don't have to worry about breakage.


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## elfie (Jul 7, 2002)

OOOH TEA!
I'm in a tea buying obsession at the moment. I buy tea bags because I usually only drink tea while I'm away from home and I only drink herbal teas at the moment.
I love Tazo HoneyBush, Passion (although careful cuz it has a 'tang' to it if you brew too long)
I drink Numi echinacea, elderberry and roobios like it's the last liquid on earth right now because my whole family has colds and it's yummy.
Yogi Tea makes a roobios chai tea that is ok, have a friend who loves it.

I'm more of a zinger, fruity, hibiscus tea drinker since having kids. Used to drink a lot of Green teas and when I'm done nursing I hope to get back into that taste.
- Numi has a chamomile/lemon myrtle tea that my kids like.


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## rainbowmoon (Oct 17, 2003)

Bodum sells a tea press.


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