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Tea |OT| Oh, tea.

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X

xJavonta

Banned
I don't really like tea, but I think I'm gonna start drinking it on the regular to keep myself a little healthier. I was sick last week and decided to have some tea in hopes of getting better. The next day I felt fan-fucking-tastic and I think it's something I should do often. Just a few questions.

I know it's kind of a matter of opinion, but whats your favorite kind of tea? I want it to taste good if I'm gonna be drinking it so I'm open to suggestions.

Does tea make your skin look healthier? Mine looks really unhealthy and just tired, I'm thinking that taking better care of myself would help change that.

Thanks teaGAF
 
N

Necrovex

Member
xJavonta said:
I don't really like tea, but I think I'm gonna start drinking it on the regular to keep myself a little healthier. I was sick last week and decided to have some tea in hopes of getting better. The next day I felt fan-fucking-tastic and I think it's something I should do often. Just a few questions.

I know it's kind of a matter of opinion, but whats your favorite kind of tea? I want it to taste good if I'm gonna be drinking it so I'm open to suggestions.

Does tea make your skin look healthier? Mine looks really unhealthy and just tired, I'm thinking that taking better care of myself would help change that.

Thanks teaGAF
Click to expand...

I'm a newbie when it comes to tea, but I am doing something similar. I'm aiming to phase out my coffee addiction with a tea addiction. Coffee has been wrecking my system, so I need a replacement, at least for the time being.

I am a major fan of green and white tea. Adaigo is a good place for newcomers. I decided to finally get David's Tea, so I'll let you know how everything is when it arrives from Canada.

I cannot comment if tea helps your skin though.
 
hyp

hyp

Member
just got my gear to start brewing loose leaf tea! my first session infusing Japanese green was a success. here's a photo I posted on IG.

Photo%20Nov%2007%2C%204%2028%2034%20PM.jpg
 
N

Necrovex

Member
SoccerGoaliePro said:
Did you get your order in yet Necrovex?
I'd love to hear what you think about the Jasmine butterfly green tea.
Click to expand...

My order was finally sent out around Wednesday. I lived in Florida, so the order is probably taking longer than expected because of the distance. I am hoping it arrives soon.

When my order comes in, the first tea I will try is the Jasmine, and I'll write my impressions in the thread.
 
T

thcsquad

Member
This seems to be a pretty good deal: $35 for $70 to spend on loose leaf tea with free shipping. I've never ordered from ESP Emporium, so don't know the quality of their teas.
Click to expand...

Wow, Amazon has daily deals now too? That is quite the bandwagon. Guess that's one more I've gotta subscribe to.

I don't know anything about ESP Emporium, but I'm sure they're at least good enoughto pay half price. I'm well-stocked on tea right now (and have limited space) but otherwise I'd be all over that. They have a ridiculously big selection, so one could sample a ton of different teas with that deal.

I picked up some 'Copley Square Vanilla' and Red Bush Rooibos from Tealuxe today. I just had a cup of the former. Very creamy and vanilla-y. Definitely a dessert tea, and a pretty good one at that. I got the Rooibos because I enjoy tea late at night but I need some good decaf as drinking caffeine at midnight tends to mess with my sleep schedule. Artificially decaffeinated tea just strikes me the wrong way, so I'm starting to sample different herbal teas and starting with Rooibos.
 
H

HylianTom

Banned
I took the plunge tonight.

The big box o'Stash green & white. 1000 tea bags. $100.

41ClrccxnBL._SL500_AA300_.jpg


I mean, I drink at least five cups a day as soon as there's the faintest hint of chill in the air. It's worth it.
 
T

thcsquad

Member
Wow, this Rooibos is good. I can kind of see why people might like vanilla in it (and I'm sure I'll try it soon), but I like the earthiness of it with no added flavors.
 
U

upandaway

Member
Say I do that "rooibos overnight over the stove" method... does anyone know the water/tea ratio? I mean when it turns out like concentrated tea that you pour a little into every glass later. Should I just do it like I do with iraqi tea?

Other people started to ask for it too when I make some and I can only make 2 at one time, it's such a pain. Make your own tea! This is mine!
 
Head of Vengarl

Head of Vengarl

Banned
For some reason I've been enjoying black tea more than green tea lately. I never really liked black tea, so it's kind of weird.

xJavonta said:
I don't really like tea, but I think I'm gonna start drinking it on the regular to keep myself a little healthier. I was sick last week and decided to have some tea in hopes of getting better. The next day I felt fan-fucking-tastic and I think it's something I should do often. Just a few questions.
Click to expand...
Be careful to not confuse correlation with causation. As morningbus would tell you: tea is not some kind of magic elixir that will make you lose weight and live until your are 100.

But yes, there are health benefits. I drink tea because it's a much healthier alternative to energy drinks. I can't stand coffee so that was never on the table.
 
I

Iph

Banned
Train of Midnight said:
Bourbon Street Vanilla Rooibos

Look no further, my friend. I cannot recommend this enough.
Click to expand...

I second this. Got lucky and bought a canister of this last year. Amazing, caffeine-free, I don't think you even need sugar or cream; it's sweet and creamy tasting without it.

Also, for anyone wanting an alternative to coffee, ever try Pu'erh tea? Roasted and aged green tea basically. It particularly tastes like a really smooth cup of coffee with this blend:

Coffee Pu'erh
 
IrishNinja

IrishNinja

Member
okay, returning to this thread because one of the things i'd wanted to do this year was step my tea game up.

i basically just do green tea (bagged) with the occasional flower tea from an asian market nearby, and often i let it cool down a bit & have them as-is. this naturally fucked me right up when backpacking europe and tried earl gray for the first time straight, haha...but i'd like to branch out into more kinds of tea!

1) i like the french press idea in the OP, any low priced ones you guys recommend from amazon/target/walmart etc sites?

2) if im gonna try the leafy stuff, again nearby asian market is prolly best. they have all kindsa stuff but is there anything in particular they might have you guys'd recommend trying out? i need to read up on preparation, cause i dont like adding too much sugar but i dont want it bitter either. help!
 
M

morningbus

Serious Sam is a wicked gahbidge series for chowdaheads.
S

SoccerGoaliePro

Banned
Just got back home with some new stuff.
I bought a new see through teapot with a built in filter and a tea ball filter both for 10 bucks .
ea4b575d0d36649f7b37bbfebcdfc131.jpg


Also got 3 different greenfield brand loose leaf tea.
Magic Yunan black tea which smells wonderful. It has a unique sweetness to it that sort of resembles prunes with a full bodied black tea.
This could be my go to black tea to keep in the house.

On the other side there is the jasmin green tea. This tea has a heavy chemical smell and the tea itself looks heavily oxidized to the point that it can be passed off as a black tea. Im still gonna try it out but I think I'll just give it to a friend or something.

Last is the tropical marvel green tea which has ginger and pineapple in it . I can't really smell the green tea in it but the ginger and pineapple form together nicely and I can tell will make for a great tea.
b8bb533a5cd0381939c3c9e6d86b0bb6.jpg
 
Ixion

Ixion

Member
Tried these two teas from Trader Joe's as well...


Peppermint Herbal Tea

large.jpg


This is pretty good, but I really have no need for it, as the Candy Cane Green Tea I bought is everything this is and more.


Spiced Rooibos: Ruby Red Chai

Trader%20Joes%20Ruby%20Red%20Chai.jpg


Can't say I'm a fan of this after one cup. I think it might taste good with some milk and truvia though (no sugar or artificial sweeteners for me).
 
A

Aadil

Banned
Tea Gaf, a while back I mentioned this master of tea that I was going to meet...don't know if anyone read it though :p

Anyway, finally met him today and drank Pu'Er for the first time, he also does loads of caligraphy.

So yeah...we drank a certain Pu'Er from a 1800 year old tree and it's the only one of its kind remaining. Was such a brilliant experience to see that man in action, he's a famous Tai Chi master in China, will post videos and pics soon!
 
Ixion

Ixion

Member
My girlfriend bought this for me. I've never brewed loose leaf tea before. I'm excited to try them all out!

lunapic_135327422828358_2.jpg
 
T

thcsquad

Member
I'm a fan of Earl Grey, and wanted to try and London Fog for a while but I don't have a milk steamer so I've never tried one. A local cafe had one available so I tried it. Delicious! I may have to get a milk steamer or just heat it up other ways. I may be able to get around the 'shot of vanilla' by using a vanilla variety of Earl Grey, or even blending the Earl Grey with some other strongly-vanilla-flavored black tea for use in the drink.
 
M

morningbus

Serious Sam is a wicked gahbidge series for chowdaheads.
thcsquad said:
I'm a fan of Earl Grey, and wanted to try and London Fog for a while but I don't have a milk steamer so I've never tried one. A local cafe had one available so I tried it. Delicious! I may have to get a milk steamer or just heat it up other ways. I may be able to get around the 'shot of vanilla' by using a vanilla variety of Earl Grey, or even blending the Earl Grey with some other strongly-vanilla-flavored black tea for use in the drink.
Click to expand...
I do enjoy a good London Fog. Some tips for making them at home: if you have a french press, you can use it to froth milk and make a passable fake for the steamed milk. Just heat the milk in the microwave, pour into the french press, and plunge up and down until frothy. You can also invest in a small french-press-looking device, called a milk frother, to accomplish the same thing. Also, for the shot of vanilla, go to the coffee section of your grocery store and look for vanilla flavored syrup. This is what a coffee house would use to make your drink and it is easier than messing with extract or especially flavored teas. A bottle costs less than 3 dollars usually and last a while.

i4nXyJyAbYq3r.png

BLACK FRIDAY/CYBER MONDAY EDITION.

Adagio: Free Shipping on any size order until Monday.

Harney & Sons: Free Shipping until Monday with code Black12.

Samovar: Up to 50% off select sale items. Follow the link to view all available sales. Also get free shipping with code 4HCTEA.

Kombucha Brooklyn: 30% off on your order with code GreenFriday. Great site if you're interested in brewing your own fermented tea drinks. ENDS TONIGHT.

Those are a few I've come across so far. I'll update if there are any more deals posted throughout the weekend and Cyber Monday.
 
M

morningbus

Serious Sam is a wicked gahbidge series for chowdaheads.
i4nXyJyAbYq3r.png

CASE OF THE CYBERMONDAYS EDITION.

Many of the deals above are still active.

Mighty Leaf: Free Shipping + Discounts up to 40%.

Teavana: Free Shipping + Free Tea Tin + Free Sample with online orders.

Taza Chocolate: 20% off. They're a chocolate company, but they also sell a line of unique herbal teas that use cacao shells.

Art of Tea: 30% off + Free Shipping. Use code Cyber30.

Tavalon Tea: 35% off with code CYBERMONDAY12.

Stash Tea: Free Shipping with code SHIPFREE.

Rishi Tea: Free Shipping.

*** Lupicia USA 20% off orders over $50 (kinda weak, but they rarely do sales.)

I'll update if any more deals come in.
 
Head of Vengarl

Head of Vengarl

Banned
morningbus said:
i4nXyJyAbYq3r.png

CASE OF THE CYBERMONDAYS EDITION.

Many of the deals above are still active.

Mighty Leaf: Free Shipping + Discounts up to 40%.

Teavana: Free Shipping + Free Tea Tin + Free Sample with online orders.

Taza Chocolate: 20% off. They're a chocolate company, but they also sell a line of unique herbal teas that use cacao shells.

Art of Tea: 30% off + Free Shipping. Use code Cyber30.

Tavalon Tea: 35% off with code CYBERMONDAY12.

Stash Tea: Free Shipping with code SHIPFREE.

Rishi Tea: Free Shipping.

I'll update if any more deals come in.
Click to expand...

Shit, I should jump on one of these. If I like Jasmine green tea, which of these websites has a really good one (for a reasonable price) that I could order?
 
M

morningbus

Serious Sam is a wicked gahbidge series for chowdaheads.
M

morningbus

Serious Sam is a wicked gahbidge series for chowdaheads.
Luap said:
...Holy shit, that coupon took like 90% of the price off! Do you have any other teas from there that you'd recommend? Preferably a black tea? And perhaps a green as well?
Click to expand...

Get some Darjeeling Black, one of my favorite teas, full stop. I'd also recommend their Paris blend.

As for green tea, my work horse is gunpowder. But do not hestitate to try the genmaicha, too.

Train of Midnight said:
Oh, I've had it before, but just haven't taken the opportunity to grab the loose leaf. It's one of my favorite teas of all time. Easily my favorite decaf tea.
Click to expand...

Nice. Might order a sample while they still have free shipping going on.

Edit: Their site is getting HAMMERED.
 
Head of Vengarl

Head of Vengarl

Banned
Thanks! Yeah it's going painfully slow. I still haven't been able to order yet lol.

*Edit — Your link goes to the decaf Darjeeling, but I don't like decaf. Is the regular Darjeeling Black just as good?
 
M

morningbus

Serious Sam is a wicked gahbidge series for chowdaheads.
I have a feeling that the black12 discount code isn't supposed to be taking off this much and the internet has found out.

Edit: looks like it may be fixed now. I can't apply the discount.

Edit2: I can't apply the discount while logged in to my account, but while adding as a guest, I can use the discount. HMMM.

Edit3: I think I found their problem. The discount applies a credit covering the normal shipping costs. If you buy something below the shipping cost you get it for free, effectively making tons of small transactions worthwhile. This would also help account for their site being hammered right now.
 
M

morningbus

Serious Sam is a wicked gahbidge series for chowdaheads.
Luap said:
Thanks! Yeah it's going painfully slow. I still haven't been able to order yet lol.

*Edit — Your link goes to the decaf Darjeeling, but I don't like decaf. Is the regular Darjeeling Black just as good?
Click to expand...

Yeah, I meant to link to the regular Darjeeling. That's the one I like. I'm sure the decaf is nice, too.
 
Head of Vengarl

Head of Vengarl

Banned
The Black12 discount still works for me, but yeah, they fixed it. It's still a good discount but before it took my order from $6.25 to $0.75 lol. I wonder if they'll honor all the orders that took advantage of their mistake?
 
M

morningbus

Serious Sam is a wicked gahbidge series for chowdaheads.
Lupicia USA is running a 20% off promotion for Cyber Monday. I've added them above too.

Luap said:
The Black12 discount still works for me, but yeah, they fixed it. It's still a good discount but before it took my order from $6.25 to $0.75 lol. I wonder if they'll honor all the orders that took advantage of their mistake?
Click to expand...

Yeah, looks like it's been fixed. Went ahead and grabbed a sample of that Vanilla Comoro that Midnight likes anyway.

I had been running low on a few of my staples so I ordered a decent amount of tea over the weekend. Total damage:

From Adagio (where I had $13 in free credit):
spearmint 1.5oz
thai chai sample
peach oolong sample
white blueberry sample
green rooibos sample
hunan gold sample

From Harney:
French Super Blue Lavender - loose tea sample
Soba - loose tea sample
Darjeeling - loose 1 lb bag
Yunnan Golden Tips - loose tea sample
Decaf Ceylon - loose 4 oz tin
Gunpowder Green - loose 1 lb bag
Bancha - loose tea sample
Formosa Oolong - loose 3 oz tin
Ti Quan Yin Spring Floral - loose tea sample
Jasmine - loose tea sample
Earl Grey Supreme - loose tea sample
Vanilla Comoro - loose tea sample

Total Damage: $70 and some change.
 
M

morningbus

Serious Sam is a wicked gahbidge series for chowdaheads.
Gonna bump this one more time for the PM crowd.

Here are the deals I could find. Most of them end tonight:

morningbus said:
I do enjoy a good London Fog. Some tips for making them at home: if you have a french press, you can use it to froth milk and make a passable fake for the steamed milk. Just heat the milk in the microwave, pour into the french press, and plunge up and down until frothy. You can also invest in a small french-press-looking device, called a milk frother, to accomplish the same thing. Also, for the shot of vanilla, go to the coffee section of your grocery store and look for vanilla flavored syrup. This is what a coffee house would use to make your drink and it is easier than messing with extract or especially flavored teas. A bottle costs less than 3 dollars usually and last a while.

i4nXyJyAbYq3r.png

BLACK FRIDAY/CYBER MONDAY EDITION.

Adagio: Free Shipping on any size order until Monday.

Harney & Sons: Free Shipping until Monday with code Black12.

Samovar: Up to 50% off select sale items. Follow the link to view all available sales. Also get free shipping with code 4HCTEA.

Kombucha Brooklyn: 30% off on your order with code GreenFriday. Great site if you're interested in brewing your own fermented tea drinks. ENDS TONIGHT.

Those are a few I've come across so far. I'll update if there are any more deals posted throughout the weekend and Cyber Monday.
Click to expand...

morningbus said:
i4nXyJyAbYq3r.png

CASE OF THE CYBERMONDAYS EDITION.

Many of the deals above are still active.

Mighty Leaf: Free Shipping + Discounts up to 40%.

Teavana: Free Shipping + Free Tea Tin + Free Sample with online orders.

Taza Chocolate: 20% off. They're a chocolate company, but they also sell a line of unique herbal teas that use cacao shells.

Art of Tea: 30% off + Free Shipping. Use code Cyber30.

Tavalon Tea: 35% off with code CYBERMONDAY12.

Stash Tea: Free Shipping with code SHIPFREE.

Rishi Tea: Free Shipping.

*** Lupicia USA 20% off orders over $50 (kinda weak, but they rarely do sales.)

I'll update if any more deals come in.
Click to expand...

If you need any suggestions, I'll check in every so often and offer up some advice.
 
D

Deleted member 12837

Unconfirmed Member
I'm just starting to become a tea-drinker and plan adding a few tea-related items to my Christmas list. I'm thinking about asking for the following:

- French press
- Insulated bottle/mug (probably from Klean Kanteen)
- Kettle
- Tea (of course!)

Any suggestions on brands/models for any of those? Quality is important to me, as long as the price isn't too outrageous (price:quality ratio is more important to me than quality alone).

Are there any good tea "sampler packs" or anything like that from Adagio, etc that I could ask for to try a bunch of different varieties so I can figure out what I like?
 
C

ChanHuk

Banned
404Ender said:
I'm just starting to become a tea-drinker and plan adding a few tea-related items to my Christmas list. I'm thinking about asking for the following:

- French press
- Insulated bottle/mug (probably from Klean Kanteen)
- Kettle
- Tea (of course!)

Any suggestions on brands/models for any of those? Quality is important to me, as long as the price isn't too outrageous (price:quality ratio is more important to me than quality alone).

Are there any good tea "sampler packs" or anything like that from Adagio, etc that I could ask for to try a bunch of different varieties so I can figure out what I like?
Click to expand...

You can get the Bodum Kenya French Press and travel press for $18 at drugstore.com
 
N

nakedsushi

Member
404Ender said:
I'm just starting to become a tea-drinker and plan adding a few tea-related items to my Christmas list. I'm thinking about asking for the following:

- French press
- Insulated bottle/mug (probably from Klean Kanteen)
- Kettle
- Tea (of course!)
Click to expand...

I have a Zoji thermos and it's great. I got a red one of these:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003VSWZZQ/?tag=neogaf0e-20

It's the perfect size for me for 1 day's worth of tea. You can either brew the tea and strain it directly into this container, or do what I do when I'm feeling lazy which is add boiling water into the container and put in about half as much tea leaves. Then I just leave the tea leaves in there for the whole day and sip from the bottle. The insulation is wonderful and I've burned my mouth so many times, hours after I put the hot water in.

One word of warning though: if you plan to use this for tea, do NOT put coffee in it. I made the mistake of putting coffee in it one morning and it took forever and lots of washing to get the coffee smell out of it.
 
B

BlueSteel

Member
Hey GAF, wondering if you could help me with some tea searching.

I'm looking to get a variety of teas for my girlfriend, who has grown a sizable collection of teas. Most are from Adagio and Tea gschwendner, so I'm looking to find something that's not from those sources, which seems to be PLENTY. She likes the following:

-Genmaicha (or any other toasted rice type types of teas)
-Almond flavors (not the toasted type, but the sweet smooth type of flavor).
-Green teas (we have a lot of flavored ones, and some almond flavored sencha like http://steepster.com/teas/teagschwendner/7336-sencha-claus[1] )
-Coconut
-A lot of rooibos. Her favorite is probably the rooibos almond by adagio.
(oh, and she's not a huge fan of fruit teas)

I know that doesn't really narrow down a lot, but I'm looking to get one from every listed category. I've looked at David's Tea for the time being, and have noted the organic buttered rum, genmai hojicha, and dragon pearls.

Does anyone have comments about the teas I've listed, or have any suggestions?
 
D

Deleted member 12837

Unconfirmed Member
nakedsushi said:
I have a Zoji thermos and it's great. I got a red one of these:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003VSWZZQ/?tag=neogaf0e-20

It's the perfect size for me for 1 day's worth of tea. You can either brew the tea and strain it directly into this container, or do what I do when I'm feeling lazy which is add boiling water into the container and put in about half as much tea leaves. Then I just leave the tea leaves in there for the whole day and sip from the bottle. The insulation is wonderful and I've burned my mouth so many times, hours after I put the hot water in.

One word of warning though: if you plan to use this for tea, do NOT put coffee in it. I made the mistake of putting coffee in it one morning and it took forever and lots of washing to get the coffee smell out of it.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the recommendation! I'll check it out.

In general, if I'm planning on brewing and drinking hot non-tea beverages, should I plan on getting a separate thermos and french press, or is that only an issue with that particular thermos you suggested?
 
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