What is in your cup?

[phenomshel]

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

I have not had anything from Adagio but they have a good rep.

If you are in Illinois and can get to Chicago, there is an actual Tea Gschwendner store. It is one of the few ones in the US right now. I have visited there once. My husband spent an hour wondering how I could spend so much time and money in a tea shop.

I would also guess that there is a Teavana store near you. Teavana runs a nice shop and the folks there are very helpful but a bit pushy.

If you are interested in going to Teavana PM me and I will happily fill you in on their regular sales pitches, why they are wrong, and the best way to shop there. They sell some great teas but the sale people are pretty forceful.

Thanks for the tips! I checked the Teavana site, and the one I'd be most likely to go to is in Orland Park. I have no idea when is the next time we'll be going that direction though, we tend to stay fairly close to home in the winter. When I went to make my second cup of tea today (this one was Orange Spice), Chris started teasing me about having a new hobby. I don't know that it will go that far with me, but I'm discovering pretty quickly what I do like and don't like. For example, I really, really liked the Pomegranate Cranberry I had earlier, but the Orange Spice has a black pepper taste to it I'm not crazy about. I have a suspicion that if I got quality tea with the fruit flavors I like that I'd be pretty happy, though, which is why the Adagio site intrigued me so much.

[ProfCrash]

Most tea stores have samples of a variety of different flavors available at the store. You can taste them and get a better feel for what you like and what you don't like. Look for a World Market in your area. They tend to have a pretty good tea selection and you can get some nice loose leafs to start with there.

Mighty Leaf is a very good brand of bagged tea. It is essentially a loose leaf tea in a nice bag. It is a bit more expensive but they have some good flavors and are pretty easily found.

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by phenomshel

Stitchawl, do you know anything about the Adagio tea company? I was looking for more flavored teas (that weren't Lipton, LOL) and ran into the site. They look like they have every flavor under the sun. Here's the website:

Wow! They certainly do have quite a variety! But I have no personal knowledge of them. When I'm trying out a new tea, I buy the smallest quantity of it I can find, and play around with the amount per cup, steeping time, (as both of these impact the flavor more than any other factors) and the time of day that I drink it. Usually, by the third day I know if it's a tea that I'll want to stock.

I think that I'm going to try a couple of their sampler packs of black teas. At this point in my tea life, I know that the herbals and flavored teas aren't for me, except on very rare occasions. The black teas and oolongs are my thing, I guess. In some ways I think I'm jealous of you guys who like the interesting additions to your teas, and straight herbal teas too.

I find myself leaning toward the fruity green or black teas, and the spiced apple chai on the Adagio site sounds really good. Is there a site that is a favorite for ordering loose leaf teas?

Go for what floats your boat!
Being in Asia, it's easier for me to find loose leaf teas in the markets and department stores, but I still order a lot of my 'staples' from McNultey's Tea and Coffee in NY. http://www.mcnultys.com/ and from the Baltimore Tea Company http://www.baltcoffee.com/ However, the Adagio site 'appears' to have a much better selection of the fruity and flavored teas than either of these! Remember, I only order black and oolong teas.

ProfCrash wrote;
If you are interested in going to Teavana PM me and I will happily fill you in on their regular sales pitches, why they are wrong, and the best way to shop there. They sell some great teas but the sale people are pretty forceful.

Prof, would you be so kind as to let us all know about them? I'd be very interested to hear it too. I have no knowledge about Teavana at all!


Stitchawl

[phenomshel]

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

Most tea stores have samples of a variety of different flavors available at the store. You can taste them and get a better feel for what you like and what you don't like. Look for a World Market in your area. They tend to have a pretty good tea selection and you can get some nice loose leafs to start with there.

Mighty Leaf is a very good brand of bagged tea. It is essentially a loose leaf tea in a nice bag. It is a bit more expensive but they have some good flavors and are pretty easily found.

This is probably close to what I'm looking for. I think all of the teas I was interested in on the Adagio site had as an option the ability to get them in a pyramid bag - this sounds easier and less fuss to me than loose tea and infusers... at least until I get a better handle on what I like and how often I'm going to be drinking it.

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

Wow! They certainly do have quite a variety! But I have no personal knowledge of them. When I'm trying out a new tea, I buy the smallest quantity of it I can find, and play around with the amount per cup, steeping time, (as both of these impact the flavor more than any other factors) and the time of day that I drink it. Usually, by the third day I know if it's a tea that I'll want to stock.

I think that I'm going to try a couple of their sampler packs of black teas. At this point in my tea life, I know that the herbals and flavored teas aren't for me, except on very rare occasions. The black teas and oolongs are my thing, I guess. In some ways I think I'm jealous of you guys who like the interesting additions to your teas, and straight herbal teas too.



Go for what floats your boat!
Being in Asia, it's easier for me to find loose leaf teas in the markets and department stores, but I still order a lot of my 'staples' from McNultey's Tea and Coffee in NY. http://www.mcnultys.com/ and from the Baltimore Tea Company http://www.baltcoffee.com/ However, the Adagio site 'appears' to have a much better selection of the fruity and flavored teas than either of these! Remember, I only order black and oolong teas.



Prof, would you be so kind as to let us all know about them? I'd be very interested to hear it too. I have no knowledge about Teavana at all!


Stitchawl

Yeah, I seem to go for the fruity sweeter flavors. Maybe after a while of those I'll get adventurous and try the unadulterated teas. Prof Crash, I too would be most interested in your impressions of Teavana stores and staff and sales methods.

[ProfCrash]

This is probably close to what I'm looking for. I think all of the teas I was interested in on the Adagio site had as an option the ability to get them in a pyramid bag - this sounds easier and less fuss to me than loose tea and infusers... at least until I get a better handle on what I like and how often I'm going to be drinking it.

The Mighty Leaf teas use a silk bag that is large. It works nicely.

http://www.lupiciausa.com/ is another online company that sells loose leaf tea in nice tea bags. I have not found myself thrilled with the teas that they sell, I prefer the less fruity teas, but I did use their tea bags when traveling and they worked really well.

As a plus, Lupica does a New Years day special where they sell "lucky bags". You have a choice of a $50 or $100 bag. Each bag comes with a bunch of smaller tins that have enough tea in them to make about 10 cups, a bunch of bags, some tea products like a large infuser ball (I have never used mine) or infuser cup (in the $100 bag) and other goodies. They are pretty nice and give you a nice introduction to the teas that they sell.

I found the quality of their goods excellent, the flavor teas I received were not my favorite and I already had two great stores I ordered from. I do recommend them based on my experience, I just don't shop there myself.

Teavana is a US based tea chain. They are kind of like Starbucks but for tea. They have grown quite a bit in the US. They sell about 100 maybe 150 types of loose leaf tea. They tend to specialize in blends, their website has a bunch and they sample some great ones at their stores. They are reasonably priced and sell a good product. They also sell a ton of tea merchandise, cast iron pots, ceramic pots, different infusers, mugs, thermoses and the like.

I buy about 15% of my teas from them. They have some interesting gaps in their teas, for example they just started selling Sencha but have always sold Bancha. Go figure. Their sales people are very knowledgeable but they are pushy.

For example, you get 10% off your purchase if you buy 1 pound of tea. They will try and get people to buy 1 pound of one tea (way too much). In reality, you can buy any combination of teas and get to 1 pound to get the discount. I normally buy 5 different teas. They love to get people to buy the tins, especially the 1 pound tin, and things along those lines. Since many people who shop their are tea novices they end up buying way too much of one tea that they may not end up liking. It drives away future customers.

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

Teavana is a US based tea chain.{SNIP}
For example, you get 10% off your purchase if you buy 1 pound of tea. They will try and get people to buy 1 pound of one tea (way too much).

That's completely nuts!!!
I drink a LOT of tea, know exactly which teas I really like, but still, I never buy larger than 8oz, even of my favorites! Usually a 4oz tin is plenty. I'm quite reluctant to purchase a 4oz tin of a tea I've never had before. Often I'll buy a small quantity of bagged tea to try, and if the bags themselves are of poor quality, empty them and use better bags or an infuser so I can get the true taste of the tea. Then, if I like the tea I'll buy a 4oz tin.

Unfortunately, people are conditioned to buy coffee in one pound packages and often don't realize that 4oz of tea goes further than one pound of coffee. The sales people at Teavana are, as ProfCrash says, really doing an injustice to their client base!

Stitchawl

[phenomshel]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

That's completely nuts!!!
I drink a LOT of tea, know exactly which teas I really like, but still, I never buy larger than 8oz, even of my favorites! Usually a 4oz tin is plenty. I'm quite reluctant to purchase a 4oz tin of a tea I've never had before. Often I'll buy a small quantity of bagged tea to try, and if the bags themselves are of poor quality, empty them and use better bags or an infuser so I can get the true taste of the tea. Then, if I like the tea I'll buy a 4oz tin.

Unfortunately, people are conditioned to buy coffee in one pound packages and often don't realize that 4oz of tea goes further than one pound of coffee. The sales people at Teavana are, as ProfCrash says, really doing an injustice to their client base!

Stitchawl

So how DO you measure loose tea? How many teaspoons to the ounce? How much tea is enough to make a cup? (I realize part of that depends on both the type of tea and your taste...)

[ProfCrash]

I use one tablespoon per 6 ounces. So most American size mugs take 2-3 tablespoons. It does depend on taste though so you are going to need to experiment a bit. I like strong tea so I actually use a bit more then that.

[bjones6416]

Shel's in! Yay!

Shel, I don't know what is in your area, but I've found a lot of different teas to try really cheap at some crazy places, namely TJ Maxx, Marshalls, Tuesday Morning, and Big Lots.

[phenomshel]

Originally Posted by bjones6416

Shel's in! Yay!

Shel, I don't know what is in your area, but I've found a lot of different teas to try really cheap at some crazy places, namely TJ Maxx, Marshalls, Tuesday Morning, and Big Lots.

Hey Betty! I've been waiting for you to chime in here. Thanks for the tips...I'll check out those the next time we go to DeKalb. So far the tally is Pomegranate Cranberry Green tea from Lipton = LIKE, and Orange Spice Black tea from The Tea Nation = not so great - black pepper aftertaste that lingers. I'm still drooling over the Adagio site I mentioned above - those fruit flavored teas sound YUMMY. But indulging any more of my new "hobby" (Chris started teasing me after my second cup of tea) will have to wait until a few more paydays have passed.

Now I also have an excuse to buy some pretty teacups, LOL.

[bjones6416]

Originally Posted by phenomshel

Hey Betty! I've been waiting for you to chime in here. Thanks for the tips...I'll check out those the next time we go to DeKalb. So far the tally is Pomegranate Cranberry Green tea from Lipton = LIKE, and Orange Spice Black tea from The Tea Nation = not so great - black pepper aftertaste that lingers. I'm still drooling over the Adagio site I mentioned above - those fruit flavored teas sound YUMMY. But indulging any more of my new "hobby" (Chris started teasing me after my second cup of tea) will have to wait until a few more paydays have passed.

Now I also have an excuse to buy some pretty teacups, LOL.

Tell me about it! I'm still trying to find my financial footing as a retiree, so I'm operating in penny-pinching mode. I'm trying not to buy any more tea right now -- I have plenty to experiment with! -- but most of those that I bought were embarrassingly cheap at those stores I mentioned. Oh, another place, although I don't know if you have one, is the Super H-Mart, a Korean market chain. They have lots of tea. And one more thing -- although I am perfectly aware there are lots of ways to heat water, this electric kettle I bought is surely the most convenient way. Target has them cheap, and honestly, I put water in it and turn it on just about every time I walk in the door now. Even if I change my mind and decide not to have any tea it doesn't hurt anything and I don't have to worry about it because it turns off as soon as the water boils.

[phenomshel]

Originally Posted by bjones6416

Tell me about it! I'm still trying to find my financial footing as a retiree, so I'm operating in penny-pinching mode. I'm trying not to buy any more tea right now -- I have plenty to experiment with! -- but most of those that I bought were embarrassingly cheap at those stores I mentioned. Oh, another place, although I don't know if you have one, is the Super H-Mart, a Korean market chain. They have lots of tea. And one more thing -- although I am perfectly aware there are lots of ways to heat water, this electric kettle I bought is surely the most convenient way. Target has them cheap, and honestly, I put water in it and turn it on just about every time I walk in the door now. Even if I change my mind and decide not to have any tea it doesn't hurt anything and I don't have to worry about it because it turns off as soon as the water boils.

We bought a stainless steel whistling teakettle kit today at Walmart. It included a tea ball and a set of tea tongs (for squeezing tea bags). I read earlier that some people don't like stainless for teaballs (imparts a metallic flavor to the leaves?) but I figured this was the cheapest way to get started. I saw some really nice glass kettles I might want if the stainless one rusts or doesn't work out for me. I also found your Bodum cups at a few sites, and will probably invest in at least one of them later on.

[bjones6416]

Originally Posted by phenomshel

We bought a stainless steel whistling teakettle kit today at Walmart. It included a tea ball and a set of tea tongs (for squeezing tea bags). I read earlier that some people don't like stainless for teaballs (imparts a metallic flavor to the leaves?) but I figured this was the cheapest way to get started. I saw some really nice glass kettles I might want if the stainless one rusts or doesn't work out for me. I also found your Bodum cups at a few sites, and will probably invest in at least one of them later on.

I don't think my palate is "developed" enough to notice metallic taste from a teakettle, or a plastic taste from a thermos.

[phenomshel]

Originally Posted by bjones6416

I don't think my palate is "developed" enough to notice metallic taste from a teakettle, or a plastic taste from a thermos.

LOL, I'm pretty sure mine isn't, either!!!

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by phenomshel

So how DO you measure loose tea? How many teaspoons to the ounce? How much tea is enough to make a cup? (I realize part of that depends on both the type of tea and your taste...)

I find that between one heaping teaspoon to one heaping tablespoon does the trick with black teas for me, the amount varying with the grind of the leaf. (Powdery tea gets the small teaspoon and larger leaves get the heaping tablespoon.) But it's really to your own personal taste.

Perhaps more important are the temperature of the water, the 'taste' of the water' and the steeping time. Most tea books say, when making a pot of tea, one heaping teaspoon per cup plus one extra for the pot. I make my tea by the beer stein (mugs are too small for me) and usually use a heaping tablespoon of loose leaves, boiling water, and let it steep for 4-5 minutes. That makes a perfect cup (for me) of any black tea. Oolong teas get cooler water, and green tea the coolest of all.

I've never noticed any metallic taste when using steel or iron with tea, but I can't stand the flavor of tea that's served in a plastic cup! I guess there is a difference in plastics, but so far, I can't find any plastic that doesn't ruin the taste for me. Maybe a Lexan cup would work, but I've never tried.


Stitchawl