~Tea~

[Loona Wynd]

TeaDidikai

Neko_Bast

xd My fave is mint tea.

Which isn't tea. It's a tsaine.

What if you brewed a tea and a tsaine together? (Example Green and Mint) They actually taste pretty good together.  

[TeaDidikai]

MagickSlushii

I wish we had...tea...But unfortunately, I have Lipton tea, which isn't tea to me...My mom buys it all of the time. -_-

Floor sweepings are not tea. ~nod~

blindfaith^_^

I was just wondering where chai fits into all of this. I know there is red chai tea and black chai tea, do they follow your tea catergories as well (I ask mostly because the red teas are considered "black teas" by English speaking countries so I thought it might have muddled up chai differing chais too)?

Well, Chai means "tea". When people ask for Chai tea- my head automatically replaces Chai with tea, so I hear people say "tea tea". Tehee!

~ahems~

Masala Chai is what most people are thinking of when they say "Chai", masala meaning "spiced".

I'd have to look at what people are calling what- but my suspicion is that the "red" and "black" chai is the same as mentioned above, or they are making masala rooiboos.

loona wynd

What if you brewed a tea and a tsaine together?

Actually, that is known as Ataí.  

[Labores Luna]

My favorites include...but are not limited to...

Peppermint/Mint (my stomach has a lot of problems, it helps...)
Chamomile
Jasmine
Catnip
Bojenmi
Ginger (yum!)
Chai
Pau'D'Arco (mainly because it's healthy and we make it a lot at work)
Chasteberry (because it makes cramps go away, the taste isn't amazing though)

and much much more...usually they're combined with different herbs and flavors, I use honey a lot in my tea (because I am a honey addict. I will literally pour it into my mouth)
 

[patch99329]

I'm living on chai tea/masala chai at the moment. I think I actually smell of cinnamon and ginger now...

Twinings is my brand of choice. 3nodding  

[TeaDidikai]

Faeryselene

My favorites include...but are not limited to...

Peppermint/Mint (my stomach has a lot of problems, it helps...)
Chamomile
Jasmine
Catnip
Bojenmi
Ginger (yum!)
Chai
Pau'D'Arco (mainly because it's healthy and we make it a lot at work)
Chasteberry (because it makes cramps go away, the taste isn't amazing though)

There are only two of these that have a chance at actually being tea.

Though I have seen some folks label jasmine tsaines as "jasmine tea", and I'm betting that the Chai is actually tea- but I've seen people label a mixture of coco powder in place of black tea as "Chai" as well.

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and much much more...usually they're combined with different herbs and flavors, I use honey a lot in my tea (because I am a honey addict. I will literally pour it into my mouth)

Honey is only good for sweetening fouled tea or mixing into tsaines- addict or not- you're not likely to put honey in Cristal just because you like honey.  

[maenad nuri]

My personal favorite right now is Do Ren Green Tea from Teavana. MMMM. We have a bunch of teas and herbals from there, but the green tea makes the best daily drink.

You want to hear a travesty of tea-drinking? A co-worker heats a cup of water and throws a generic green tea bag. Lets it sit for hours while he works. Then on his lunch break, goes home and just downs it, because "its good for you!"

UGH.  

[Naynram Ukir]

I love tea, and it actually can be incorporated into spirituality for symbolism and stuff.

My favorites are Luzianne black tea (Southern sweet tea is very good. *nods*), Celestial Gardens' Lemon, Red Berry, Chammomile; and when it's almost May like it is now, fresh honeysuckle.
Lipton sucks a**, spiced chai is only good with milk and peppermint makes me want to puke.

 

[TeaDidikai]

Nuri

My personal favorite right now is Do Ren Green Tea from Teavana. MMMM. We have a bunch of teas and herbals from there, but the green tea makes the best daily drink.

You want to hear a travesty of tea-drinking? A co-worker heats a cup of water and throws a generic green tea bag. Lets it sit for hours while he works. Then on his lunch break, goes home and just downs it, because "its good for you!"

UGH.

Nuri... I could have gone my whole life pretending that didn't happen.

I need a shower.  

[maenad nuri]

TeaDidikai

Nuri... I could have gone my whole life pretending that didn't happen.

I need a shower.

You know, since you introduced me to the error of my tea-drinking ways (I still drink the occasional cup from teabags, but those are usually gifts these days), I've been spoiled. Deeply spoiled.  

[PurpleDragonsGems]

Nuri

TeaDidikai

Nuri... I could have gone my whole life pretending that didn't happen.

I need a shower.

You know, since you introduced me to the error of my tea-drinking ways (I still drink the occasional cup from teabags, but those are usually gifts these days), I've been spoiled. Deeply spoiled.

I'm a little confused, whats wrong with teabags?  

[TeaDidikai]

Nuri

You know, since you introduced me to the error of my tea-drinking ways (I still drink the occasional cup from teabags, but those are usually gifts these days), I've been spoiled. Deeply spoiled.

Good. You deserve it.

Dragon_Witch_Woman

I'm a little confused, whats wrong with teabags?

Let's see- where to begin.

1) Floor Sweepings are not Tea.
Fannings, sweepings or "dust" are what's left after the good tea has been sorted through. In some cases, they literally sweep them up off the floor.

2) Oxygen + Tea = BAD!
While most teas are oxidized to a certain extent (the exception being White tea- the process is sometimes called fermentation) it needs to be done in a carefully controlled environment. Good tea is then curled, balled or otherwise shaped to reduce the leaf's exposure to the air. The result is a sweeter, brighter tea.

Sweepings are too small to do this to- so their oxidization process continues and thus it spoils faster, takes on different flavors and looses it's nutritional value.

3) Tea leaves like to dance.
Tea needs plenty of room to circulate amongst the water in order for the flavor to develop. This is because some compounds are more soluble than others- and yet, when they aren't given room to flow properly, the diffusion of these compounds takes longer or doesn't happen at all, thus leaving with a bitter brew.

4) It's just plain poor quality.
When the tea traders buy tea, they look for qualities one cannot judge in fannings. When there is a shortage of fannings, tea plantations grind up poor quality tea for filler. Usually these are older teas that would have been good a year or so ago- but tea has a shelf life.

Why grind up good tea (with the qualities that tea merchants look for such as leaf size, color etc) for Americans and Brits to drink in tea bags when you can give them poor tea?

5) That's how old?
Unlike fresh leaves that can be tested for quality by eye, scent and feel on the fingers before being brewed, fannings cannot be given the same inspection. The result is that fannings are far more likely to stay on a shelf past their prime (not that they really have a prime) than loose leaf tea. And until you brew it- you won't know it.

6)... aren't 1-5 good enough?  

[TeaDidikai]

Don't get me wrong. There are worst things to be drinking than tea from a bag and tsaines.

It's just until you've had really good tea... I mean REALLY good tea- you don't know what you're missing.

Nuri, Deo, Blue? Can I get an Amen!?  

[Labores Luna]

TeaDidikai, what do you consider to be tea then?  

[maenad nuri]

TeaDidikai

Don't get me wrong. There are worst things to be drinking than tea from a bag and tsaines.

It's just until you've had really good tea... I mean REALLY good tea- you don't know what you're missing.

Nuri, Deo, Blue? Can I get an Amen!?

What was that stuff, lychee green that you gave us? I think we bought some from a tea shop near my parents.

I break out the bagged stuff when I need to carry it someplace and don't want to deal with the strainer. It's fairly decent -- not quite as good as my stuff from Teavana -- but it is certainly not lipton. Which I think is just sawdust. EW.  

[TeaDidikai]

Faeryselene

TeaDidikai, what do you consider to be tea then?

Camellia Sinesis graded at anything above a fanning.

Nuri

What was that stuff, lychee green that you gave us? I think we bought some from a tea shop near my parents.

Lychee black.

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I break out the bagged stuff when I need to carry it someplace and don't want to deal with the strainer. It's fairly decent -- not quite as good as my stuff from Teavana -- but it is certainly not lipton. Which I think is just sawdust. EW.

Ohhh... actually, there are some really handy cups for on the go loose leaf tea.

I'll try and link you.

Here ya go.