What are your favorite teas?

[Carly]

Originally Posted by Carly

Maybe my tea will come tomorrow!!! I'm not use to waiting this long!!!

I just got an e-mail from Canada post that it was delivered yesterday!!!!
No! it was not!
I called The Canada Post, but they are closed today!!!!!!

[TryingJudd]

I am excitedly awaiting my delivery from Canada post. It has been a week that feels much longer! Carly - my notifications say they were delivered to my zip but on hold to verify the address. I sent the tea to work so I really hope to get them tomorrow. BUT - the first notification just said delivered to the USA so maybe you got that one???

[Carly]

Originally Posted by TryingJudd

I am excitedly awaiting my delivery from Canada post. It has been a week that feels much longer! Carly - my notifications say they were delivered to my zip but on hold to verify the address. I sent the tea to work so I really hope to get them tomorrow. BUT - the first notification just said delivered to the USA so maybe you got that one???

Mine said final destination delivered at my address yesterday- I was home yesterday all but 2 or 3 hours so IDK. I was home during the usual delivery time, too.

[TryingJudd]

Hope you get yours soon. I just realized that tomorrow is a US postal holiday so if sent through US mail we won't get it tomorrow - boo. I can't really tell from the website how it was sent.

[Carly]

Originally Posted by TryingJudd

Hope you get yours soon. I just realized that tomorrow is a US postal holiday so if sent through US mail we won't get it tomorrow - boo. I can't really tell from the website how it was sent.

Me either and it scares me that they said it was delivered. If it came US post office my mail man would have had to come up since I doubt it could fit in my tiny apt. mail box. That may have annoyed him or he forgot to come up and still has it on his truck.

[Carly]

Got my teas!!!!
I'm sipping on Birthday Cake- it's A.M.A.Z.I.N.G!!!!!!!!

[sorenkkg]

WOO HOO!!! Sharing the goodness!

[LoCarbGal]

You guys have hooked me! I was just looking through their website and I wondered if any of you ever found out about the calories in their flavored teas. Like toasted marshmallow says they have pieces of marshmallow and brittle. just curious if anyone else has gotten that info, or if I need to contact them myself. Thanks!

[sorenkkg]

LCG-- their FAQ says that no cup of tea is more than 5cal per cup.

I have toasted marshmellow, and when you scoop, you get maybe 10 teensy tiny (think, head of a push pin) ones in the scoop. They add flavor, but you hardly taste any sweetness from them, so I think their impact is minimal.

A scoop is 1.5tsp, or 1/2 a Tablespoon. I bought their special spoon b/c it's perfect , and you can use it for other loose tea as well of course.

You guys are making me want tea now-- think I'm going for my chocolate rocket... yerba mate is supposed to be good for appetite control

[LoCarbGal]

Thanks Soren! I'm psyched! Here I go, to spend more money on caffeineated beverages! I justify it since I'm spending so much less on food now!

[sorenkkg]

LCG their herbal ones are great too! forever nuts (or with cinnamon and popped rice, sleigh ride), banana bread, cocomint cream-- totally awesome!

[KeirasMom]

I went to the tea shop yesterday and got Tutti Fruitti for Keira and a spicy chai w/black tea for me. They're both pretty good. I also got a trial pack of 3 different kinds from Republic of Tea. There's a dark chocolate, a rooibos, and a green tea IIRC. I haven't tried any of those.

[TryingJudd]

Mine said it was delivered to the office on Saturday - boo and since today is a postal holiday I won't get it till tomorrow. Darn!!!

[LoCarbGal]

Originally Posted by sorenkkg

LCG their herbal ones are great too! forever nuts (or with cinnamon and popped rice, sleigh ride), banana bread, cocomint cream-- totally awesome!

I ordered Birthday Cake, Red Velvet Cake, Creme Caramel Rooibos, and Toasted Marshmallow.

I'm bummed, I didn't even see the cocomint cream. I've seen you guys talking about it and wanted that one, but didn't see it anywhere. Next time I guess. Do you sweeten? Milk or cream?

[Carly]

I put 1 drop of ez-sweetz- more than enough. I think I'm gonna make another cup!

[LoCarbGal]

Is it Bday cake, Carly? I CAN'T WAIT!!!

[Carly]

Cocoa Canela!!!!!! OMG

I was a die hard coffee addict, but I may be a convert!

[vanilla_latte]

Originally Posted by Rayne_W

Your case is quite intriguing.

What is it about iced tea that you do like? The amount of sweetener, or other flavorings (lemon, peach, etc)? Iced tea is usually much more dilute than a standard cup of hot tea, so that may be a part of it.

The method of preparing tea can absolutely make all the difference in the final product. A lot of people try to oversteep tea, thinking it will be stronger. Nuh uh. Longer steeping = Bitterness. If it's not strong enough, use more tea. Not using full boiling water with black tea = Bitterness. Squeezing the bag or leaving the leaves/bag in the tea = bitterness. And finally, not enough dairy (milk, half-n-half, cream) along with sweetener can also add to a bitter tea (if the tea is dark enough to add dairy to it).

Flavored teas are tricky, too. Some are so weak on flavorings (or heavily use artificial flavors) they're not worth the effort.

Last but not least, the type of black tea (keemun, assam, ceylon, darjeeling, etc) has a lot to do with flavor and tannins/bitterness. Some can steep for 5 min and will have zero bitterness and feel velvety on the tongue. Others (especially lower grades/varieties of tea found in tea bags) either need very short steeping times or heavy masking with sweetener and dairy to be remotely palatable.

Or, you may simply need to ignore all of us TeaHeads and invest in an espresso maker.

I baffle the experts, trust me. I have a Keurig and am a flavored coffee maniac.

I tried the Chocolate Hazelnut tea again just a little while ago. I didn't let it steep as long as before, I added a little more sweetener, and 2 tsp. of cream. Much better than the other day. Next time I'll nuke the water till it boils.

I was going to try some chai tea, but couldn't justify buying another box with all the half boxes I have sitting around. When it comes to iced tea, I prefer it plain (although I'll drink flavored) and very sweet.

Originally Posted by Dottie

adagio also has some awesome teas
Vanilla: odd as it seems, tastebuds can be tuned out to certain flavors. Kind of like your hearing where you can hear a particular pitch but someone else can't. Or smell where you can smell an odor or perfume but someone else can't.
I read a study on that a few years back and there was a pretty good argument that peoples taste buds vary a lot in the subtleties of that they can "interpret" (for lack of a better word).
I'll see if I can google it and find the study because it was very interesting.

Interesting! My "hot tea aversion" may have come from when I was a kid. It reminds me of when I was sick (my mother would give us hot tea to drink), so ...

[LoCarbGal]

Originally Posted by vanilla_latte

Interesting! My "hot tea aversion" may have come from when I was a kid. It reminds me of when I was sick (my mother would give us hot tea to drink), so ...

I hear you Vanilla! I still can't eat jello, applesauce, or drink 7-up type drinks for the same reason!

[Carly]

These teas from David's are not the kind of tea our mothers gave us when sick! I would have been sick more often

[Rayne_W]

Originally Posted by vanilla_latte

I baffle the experts, trust me. I have a Keurig and am a flavored coffee maniac.

I tried the Chocolate Hazelnut tea again just a little while ago. I didn't let it steep as long as before, I added a little more sweetener, and 2 tsp. of cream. Much better than the other day. Next time I'll nuke the water till it boils.

A ha! My DD was also having less than stellar results until she told me she was just basically warming the water in the microwave. It really must boil first, so I'm encouraging her to use the kettle on the stove.

I was going to try some chai tea, but couldn't justify buying another box with all the half boxes I have sitting around. When it comes to iced tea, I prefer it plain (although I'll drink flavored) and very sweet.



Interesting! My "hot tea aversion" may have come from when I was a kid. It reminds me of when I was sick (my mother would give us hot tea to drink), so ...

The one and only time I was ever violently ill from drinking was at age 18. Rather than scold/discipline/ground me, my father -- in a rare act of kindness -- kept bringing me saltines and weak tea so I would have something to bring up (I was throwing up every hour on the hour -- for 12 hours). Needless to say, I wasn't too keen on tea for the next year or so.

[sorenkkg]

Originally Posted by LoCarbGal

I ordered Birthday Cake, Red Velvet Cake, Creme Caramel Rooibos, and Toasted Marshmallow.

I'm bummed, I didn't even see the cocomint cream. I've seen you guys talking about it and wanted that one, but didn't see it anywhere. Next time I guess. Do you sweeten? Milk or cream?

I bet if your order it, and email them, or call (it's not a holiday in Canada), they'll add it to your order. The are *very* nice!

I always sweeten--either 2 drops of liquid splenda, or 1 packet of splenda + 1 packet of truvia, which I think is sweeter than 2 drops... I don't usually add milk or cream since I got used to it without, and save some calories that way.


Carly-- I have cocoa canela, and since I haven't had any tea yet today (said I would, then I didn't) I'll have some NOW!

[TryingJudd]

Hey Carly - how did your teas from David come today - was it FedEx? I sooooo want my teas but assumed they were coming USPS????

[Carly]

They came US post and the ding bat post man left them downstairs on Saturday in the lobby! He is lazy!!!! My building has 126 apartments and sometimes he just leaves packages on a shelf in the mailroom, but he's supposed to bring it up!!!

[Rayne_W]

My preference is to drink strong black teas with sweetener and milk or cream. Luckily, there are a few teas that I always/mostly drink 'neat' (w/o milk or cream) and I rely on them for DDs. There aren't a lot of them, so they're quickly dwindling.

Today's DD tea: DD's Holiday Spiced Plum green tea. I'm not a big fan of greens, but this one is really good (and it's helping to keep my fingers from falling off from the brutal cold).

[hot-in-texas]

This thread is soooo great! I am really looking to change my eating habits where I can just enjoy the simple things, like a steamy cup of tea. Sip, sip, pinky up lol
I have Celestial Seasonings Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride and CS Candy Cane that I bought at Christmas time. I am sipping the Sugar Cookie. It is really great, kind of almond-y, with a tingle on the tongue.

[mamadodge]

I too, am a die hard coffee fan, but this past week, I have been drinking a lot of hot tea, and I think it is really helping with the hunger on DD's and I am really enjoying it!

I am curious as to how you all fix your tea, as in, how do you steep it with loose leaves? Is there something cup size or do you have to make a full pot?? What are your favorite (budget friendly) ideas?? Fill me in JB's!

[Debrat3]

I love sassafras tea. I just ordered some sassafras root. It has some good health benefits too.

[Rayne_W]

Originally Posted by mamadodge

I too, am a die hard coffee fan, but this past week, I have been drinking a lot of hot tea, and I think it is really helping with the hunger on DD's and I am really enjoying it!

I am curious as to how you all fix your tea, as in, how do you steep it with loose leaves? Is there something cup size or do you have to make a full pot?? What are your favorite (budget friendly) ideas?? Fill me in JB's!

I have a few options, myself.

Metal tea ball: I used to use this, for decades in fact. The main reason I don't care for it much is because of all the loose tea/sediment that escapes.

Small (2-cup) teapot: I use this mainly for teas that I can resteep several times. I measure out enough tea leaves for a cup (for two, if I'm sharing), then add enough water for just that cup. When done, I pour through a tea strainer that sits atop the tea cup/mug, then put the leaves back into the pot for the next resteeping.

Large (8-cup) teapot: For several servings at once, or for when I want to have one tea to sip on all day. After steeping, I strain into travel mugs that I seal tightly in order to keep warm and free from oxidation.

T-Sac tea bags: I LOVE THESE. I have them in 3 sizes (one cup, 2-3 cup, large teapot). They still allow the leaves to expand (I use the mid-size bags for certain teas that expand a lot, like the black rose) but don't let sediment out. Also good for resteeping.

[mamadodge]

Thanks! I don't even have a tea kettle yet! LOL I will have to look for some kind of "steeper" I guess.....

What do you put the loost leaves in for just one cup? One ot those T-sac's? I usually just make a cup at a time....