Tea

[akaAK]

I have had two cups of tea a day for the last 15 years. Coffee is bad for my digestive system so limit it to a cup a month (usually with dessert if I do have it).

I am not so picky but am a fan of Twinnings English breakfast. Other wise I will take what I can get.

Intersting that it is said the industrial revolution was fueled by tea. it had the benefit of allowing workers to work longer hours and kept them healthier (boiling water before plumbing and clean water was a given)

[kbuzbee]

Thanks Paul. That is the one I've been thinking of. I'm a fan of their English & Irish Breakfast so here's hoping, eh?

Ken

[JD Spydo]

I'm not generally fond of herbal teas, but I've had Twinings Rooibos and, while I don't know about the health claims, it's quite good tasting.

I don't know what brand of Rooibos Tea you got ahold of DEAC but like I've told a couple of Brothers I PMed is that Rooibos Tea is one of the most immitated and counterfeited Teas out there in the health & organic sector of the health food market. Mainly because the real stuff is not cheap>> actually it's pretty pricey if you get the good grades of it. If you guys can manage to get some from the source in South Africa itself you won't regret it. Also when you get a taste developed from drinking the Real McCoy, authentic, South African Rooibos Tea you will be able to spot a fake or counterfeit immediately. Because nothing comes close to it in flavor and health properties.

There is one major tea marketing company that has genuine Rooibos tea which is above average, good grade stuff. They are known as "The Republic Of Tea" >> they also have a great selection of "white teas" as well. But do be careful where you get Rooibos Tea from because the real stuff is only sold in select places here in the USA unfortunately.

I'm surprised that more of our BRethren from the British Isles haven't chimed in>> because I've always heard that the Brits, Irish and Scots are some of the biggest tea drinkers on the planet.

[The Deacon]

I'm not generally fond of herbal teas, but I've had Twinings Rooibos and, while I don't know about the health claims, it's quite good tasting.

I don't know what brand of Rooibos Tea you got ahold of DEAC but like I've told a couple of Brothers I PMed is that Rooibos Tea is one of the most immitated and counterfeited Teas out there in the health & organic sector of the health food market. Mainly because the real stuff is not cheap>> actually it's pretty pricey if you get the good grades of it. If you guys can manage to get some from the source in South Africa itself you won't regret it. Also when you get a taste developed from drinking the Real McCoy, authentic, South African Rooibos Tea you will be able to spot a fake or counterfeit immediately. Because nothing comes close to it in flavor and health properties.

There is one major tea marketing company that has genuine Rooibos tea which is above average, good grade stuff. They are known as "The Republic Of Tea" >> they also have a great selection of "white teas" as well. But do be careful where you get Rooibos Tea from because the real stuff is only sold in select places here in the USA unfortunately.

I'm surprised that more of our BRethren from the British Isles haven't chimed in>> because I've always heard that the Brits, Irish and Scots are some of the biggest tea drinkers on the planet.

As I mentioned in my post, Joe, the brand I've had is Twinings. They claim theirs is 100% rooibos. I have no way of proving that but, at the same time, I have no way of disproving it, although I'm confident they could get in trouble with one or more government agencies - federal, state, or local, if they were found to be fibbing.

As for the rest, call me a skeptic and a cynic, but in my experience heath food stores, and especially those specializing in natural supplements, tend to charge exorbitant prices for the products they sell and make exaggerated claims regarding their heath benefits.

[Doc Dan]

Yes, be very, very careful of health food stores. Some things are okay, but there have been many and numerous accounts of people's health being ruined, or worse, from supposed "health food". Also, they over charge (look at Chia at a health food store and look at it at Walmart, for example).

As far as tea goes, I am skeptical about many of their teas. Some places do sell okay tea, but it mainly seems to be low quality repackaged as healthy or organic (I thought all tea was organic and not man made...funny that).

As for Rooibos, it is not Tea but you can make tea from it, just like you can from Sassafras. It is from the Calicotome villosa plant, while actual Tea is from the Camellia sinensis plant. Rooibos does have a lot of anti-oxidants but is also missing some that are in Tea. Both have health benefits.

[Pinetreebbs]

But tea can have a complexity of flavors, and flavor layering that coffee cannot attain.

I have to disagree... Good coffee, properly roasted and well brewed is easily as complex as the best tea I've tried. I'll find citus, floral and berry layered over carmel, chocolate and oak. I find coffee to be fuller and bolder with a deeper level of flavors than any tea. IIRC science bears that out with coffee being one of the most complex "foods" on the planet, with something like 230 flavor components. While I don't claim to have THAT discerning of a palate, I do appreciate it's complex profile over that of tea.

Of course the vast majority of coffee consumed in the USA is horrible (as is the vast majority of tea) It's so old it's beyond "stale". I find coffee only holds it's flavor profile for a week to 10 days after roasting (and only 15 minutes after grinding!). Most coffee you'll find is closer to 7-10 MONTHS old. Ugh! And buying ground coffee from a grocery store... Just say NO!

Even "speciality" coffee tends to be 1-3 months old unless you get it directly from the roaster, and the vast majority of those are over roasted, cooking out all the subtle flavors trying for a slightly longer shelf life. There's a reason one well known roaster has come to be known as Charbucks

Of course it's just as easy to under roast coffee and fighting the "over roasted" label, some roasters have gone down that path. I find these coffees too lemony and "bright" with little bottom end to balance the high notes they are so proud of.

But if you can find a local roaster (or, ideally, roast your own) and get your coffee the day it's roasted', preferably (to me) to a nice City Roast, nothing compares.

Brewing matters, of course and here is where your preferences really kick in. I have 15 different methods to brew coffee (did I mention I really like coffee ?) For the first 1-3 days after roasting I'll typically make espresso in my La Pavoni. Nothing gets the flavors out of coffee like that gem. But it also accentuates the negatives, so if a coffee is over or under roasted, or is past it's peak the LP really points that out. After that I'll move on to something like a Brikka or an Aeropress (wonderful little device, by the way) to finish off the bag.

I'm sure tea suffers from many of the same problems that plague a truly great cup of coffee but you're not going to convince me the a great cup of tea will ever compare. It's "why" I can't seem to stick with tea for more than a couple days.

Ken

Agree, I really enjoy coffee. Green beans last for years, but roasted coffee deteriorates very quickly. I solved the freshness problem by roasting my own coffee. I buy green beans from The Coffee Bean Coral.

http://www.coffeebeancorral.com/" target="_blank

For Tea lovers that enjoy a lighter tea and naturally sweet tea I suggest trying the only domestically grown tea, American Classic Tea from the Charleston Tea Plantation. It also makes fantastic ice tea.

https://www.charlestonteaplantation.com/" target="_blank

[kbuzbee]

(I thought all tea was organic and not man made...funny that).

Organic as in no chemical fertilizers & pesticides etc, I'm sure. Not in the chemical sense of the word.

Ken

[Doc Dan]

(I thought all tea was organic and not man made...funny that).

Organic as in no chemical fertilizers & pesticides etc, I'm sure. Not in the chemical sense of the word.

Ken

In the words of Foghorn Leghorn, "That's a joke, I say that's a joke, son."

[kbuzbee]

(I thought all tea was organic and not man made...funny that).

Organic as in no chemical fertilizers & pesticides etc, I'm sure. Not in the chemical sense of the word.

Ken

In the words of Foghorn Leghorn, "That's a joke, I say that's a joke, son."

Excellent. Online, it CAN be hard to tell (or, it could just be me )

Ken

[Doc Dan]

Has anyone heard of a tea company from South Africa called Five Roses?

[PayneTrain]

I drink tea much more than coffee. I prefer greens and whites, as well as yerba mate. I'll take them with some kind of flavoring too as long as it's light and subtle like lavender, jasmine, or rose petals. Currently I have a can of a variety called Lung Ching which is great because the same leaves can be brewed 3 or 4 times. I use a really cool mug that includes a screen to brew the tea directly in the mug. After 3 or 4 12oz cups of green tea, I can definitely feel it working. I find tea gives a much cleaner energy boost than I feel with coffee, and it wears off gently too.

I definitely believe there are some health benefits to drinking tea because, if nothing else, I just plain feel better when I'm drinking it regularly as opposed to long stretches without it. I know there are a lot of confounding variables that can affect how I feel (placebo effect being one of them, as well as little lifestyle changes concurrent with getting back on tea), but I'm fairly certain it's doing something in there. I swear it counteracts beer guts and hangovers, and actually goes pretty darn well with an added shot of one of these otherwise brutal cinnamon whiskeys that are getting popular around here. Great for walking the dog on a chilly afternoon!

[bearfacedkiller]

I make pretty big mugs of tea so this morning was a mix of one of each of these with some milk and honey. Mmmm....

[kbuzbee]

Even though we already laughed about it, I'm wondering... Does "organic" matter where tea is concerned? I tend to buy mostly organic fruits and veggies as (IMO) they have higher nutrient levels and fewer whacky chemicals etc have been applied to them.

Ken

[bearfacedkiller]

I have no idea how much pesticides or what fertilizers are used in tea but it largely comes from places with little enforcement and few regulations. I eat almost entirely organic. My wife and I are kind of super health nuts and you may have been able to tell from some of my other posts that nutrition is a passion of mine. I choose to be cautious and buy organic whenever possible and tea is no exception. I can afford to do so and for that reason I believe it is better to be safe than sorry.

This is sort of useful but still leaves a lot of it up in the air.
http://foodbabe.com/2013/08/21/do-you-k ... -your-tea/" target="_blank

http://belighttea.com/reaction-to-foodb ... esticides/" target="_blank


Interesting documentary. It is mainly about fair trade and worker conditions but it does talk a bit about pesticides and shows them using quite a bit of them.
http://www.cultureunplugged.com/play/11 ... ste-of-Tea" target="_blank

[bearfacedkiller]

Well, just found this. Gonna take me a while to sift through it but it seems to contain a lot of information including information about specific brands.

http://ecowatch.com/2014/08/11/clean-ch ... -free-tea/" target="_blank

http://www.greenpeace.org/india/Global/ ... rewing.pdf" target="_blank

Unfortunately there is a lot of fear mongering in the food world so honest information can be hard to come by.

[kbuzbee]

Thanks Darby! I love Vani's posts. She really digs into stuff like this, but I'd missed that one.

I agree with your philosophy and we follow along the same lines. Tea has never been a big comsume here, but I'm giving it another go.

Ken

[araneae]

I have about 25+ different kinds of tea on hand at any time- literally an entire kitchen cabinet- loose tea, bagged, sachets. Mostly blacks, but I do enjoy a nice oolong and an occasional green. Harney and Sons makes my favorite- Hot Cinnamon Spice. The perfect tea for a cool autumn night or a cold winter day. Lemon Lift is an old favorite my dad always drank when I was young. I drink a lot of iced tea in the summer- nothing like a cold peach tea for quenching your thirst. I also love Earl Grey prepared the proper way with no sweetener.

As far as storing tea- do not put in in the freezer unless you vacuum seal it. Putting it in the freezer allows it to take up the flavors from whatever is in there with it. The same with coffee- never store it in the freezer. Keep it somewhere cool and dry. Tea shelf life has many varying opinions- I have heard 6 months to several years if stored properly.

https://www.harney.com/" target="_blank

[Doc Dan]

When we were kids my mother would make what she called "Russian Tea" every year during winter. It was black tea with orange and spices. (We kids would cheat and get instant tea and Tang, mixing them together with spices like cinnamon).

I miss summer evenings with fresh brewed black iced tea with a sprig of mint in the glass. Aahhh! :)

[PayneTrain]

Well, just found this.

Yikes. Yeah, I'd be pretty afraid of pesticides used on tea, as the pesticide to actual product ratio is much higher than say pesticides on a piece of fruit. Ick. I just read that lead can be a problem too from pollution in the area, but isn't likely to make it into the brew. I guess it's just like anything else these days in that you need to be pretty vigilant in finding out what you're getting and where it comes from. Scary world out there.

I believe the brand I buy from the quirky little lady down the road is called Harney and Sons. It's loose leaf tea, which I prefer for whatever reason. I used to go up to the mall to Teavana. They had good stuff and a huge variety. If I grab a box of bags, it's Bigelow. They're organic, and I believe they're a CT company too.

[kbuzbee]

I just read that lead can be a problem too from pollution in the area,

Not "just" from random pollution. 10-15 years ago demand for Chinese tea was so high the farmers couldn't keep up with it. To speed drying, which was traditionally done over several days in the sun, they drove over it, letting the warm exhaust gas dry the tea in a few hours. At the time (maybe still?) they still used leaded gas in China and the lead levels of teas dried this way was off the charts. I assume this is no longer a common practice, but I don't really know.

Ken