I figured I’d make a post about (hot) teas that I love. Some people I talk to call me a tea connoisseur. I tend to brush these comments off as I’m still learning.
If you drink loose tea: For hardware, I recommend an infuser with a very fine mesh. It should also have plenty of room for the tea leaves to spread out as they brew. My favorite is the Hook Handle Tea Infuser & Dish Set from Forlife. The dish works as a resting spot for the infuser so you don’t have to worry about spills from the infuser.
Also, keep in mind that different teas need different temperatures to brew. If you use too high of a temperature for brewing, you will burn the leaves and make the tea bitter. Black and Herbal can take boiling water temps (208-212 degrees Fahrenheit). Oolong is a medium boil (180-190 degrees Fahrenheit). White and green teas have to be hot but not boiling (170-185 degrees Fahrenheit).
I’m caffeine sensitive, so, for the most part, I only go as far as green teas. I used to drink a bit of black tea, but sometimes it’s just too much for me.
I found these at a local convention. Lots of different kinds of loose teas. I’ve liked Blueberry Fusion, Moroccan Mint Green Tea, Spice Garden Rooibos, and White Chai. I haven’t dabbled as much as I would like with this company’s tea, but trust me there is a lot that they offer.
I found their tea in a store a few years ago. It’s local to my state. They have both tea bags and loose tea. I like their Moroccan Mint with green tea (again), White Georgia Peach (also available as a rooibos tea), Gojiberry Blueberry (green tea), Gyokuro, and Sencha. And still so many other kinds yet to try. This is tea selection heaven.
Numi comes in both loose and tea bags. I can find these in local grocery stores, although the variety of types can be limited. The tea I always buy from them is the Moroccan Mint (straight mint, no green tea in this one). This is my favorite mint tea. I’m not a big fan of peppermint. But Moroccan just seems to be this perfect mint taste.
I only recently discovered Pure Leaf hot teas due to a coupon I found. I picked up their green tea with mint and so far I’m enjoying it. The tea bags are a nice size that allows the tea leaves to brew easier.
I love the Double Green Matcha Tea they sell. It’s a nice less expensive way to get some matcha. I also fairly recently picked up their decaf Ginger Peach (black tea) and Orange Ginger Mint.
Tazo is another brand that I can find at a local grocery store. I like their Zen tea (green with lemongrass and spearmint.) I recently bought their Cucumber White tea. It has a bit of lime in it, but it’s pretty subtle. It has a nice smooth taste to it. It’s really surprised me.
This has to be my favorite brand of tea. They come in both bags and loose cylinders. I originally found it at a Whole Foods store. However, there seems to be less and less of them being stocked in their store near me lately. Even other similar stores seem to be reducing their stock of it. It’s a shame because this tea is wonderful. As such your best bet is probably to order directly from their website. Sign up for their TEA-Mail Newsletter and they’ll let you know of any sales they have going on. (Scroll down to the bottom of their website.)
I love so many teas from them. Mountain High Chai (black – back when I used to tolerate it more), Tamayokucha (green), Sencha (green), White Strawberry (OMG!), and Better Belly (herbal). There’s still so much more I want to eventually try.
So that should give a pretty good idea of teas I like and recommend. I’m sure there will be more that I will discover in the future. Happy sipping!