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[18 May 2009|03:53pm] |
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Hello, everyone!
I am new to this community (and having only started to love tea recently, I'm still a noob, so I apologize in advance for any questions or comments that seem painfully obvious). I just have a question that hopefully somebody here can help out with:
My grandparents have a hibiscus plant they bought at a garden store (It might be more than one, the trunks of the plant are twisted together). It has big red flowers, but I'm not sure exactly what genus it is. I've seen "hibiscus" as an ingredient to many teas, and I wondered if I could make some homemade hibiscus tea without harming the plant. I looked online and read that you're supposed to simply pour boiling water over a fresh flower (I've also used freshly fallen flowers). It certainly worked, but the tea was a little bitter (however, my opinion might be skewed since I've never had store-bought hibiscus tea).
So my question is: Does anybody know a good homemade hibiscus tea recipe?
Some related questions: Should I dry out the flowers? Is it better iced? What about the plant's leaves? Is there another common household or garden ingredient I should add?
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| Favorite Jasmine Dragon Pearl Tea? |
[11 May 2009|08:26pm] |
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Hi there... I'm new to this community, and a long-time tea drinker. I'm looking for some Jasmine Dragon Pearl Tea that is both delicious and affordable. Has anyone tried Adagio's? If so, what did you think of it? Any other online sources are welcome. Thanks very much.
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| tea in Chapaign, IL |
[01 May 2009|12:21am] |
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Utada - Kremlin Dusk |
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So, I'll be moving from Minneapolis, MN to Champaign, IL in two weeks. Among the many things I'll be sad to leave behind is my favorite tea shop, TeaSource. So, to anyone who lives or has lived in the Champaign-Urbana area, do you have any recommendations for a new store to fill my tea needs? So far, it's looking like Walnut Street Tea Company will be my best option, but from the descriptions I've been able to find online it doesn't look like an ideal place. (Then again, it just might surprise me.)
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| Brewing tea leaves with a French press? |
[27 Apr 2009|09:16pm] |
Hi everyone!
I was wondering whether anyone here brews tea using a French press. If you have any opinions or recommendations on this method of brewing, I would really appreciate it. Thanks!
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| Teabags in the news and honey recs |
[15 Apr 2009|04:43am] |
Hello, all. Hope you're doing well.
So I tend to go in and out in terms of paying attention to the news. I used to be a news junkie, read 17 newspapers a day, etc. But since coming to grad school (to study a subject that doesn't require one to stay on top of all the news, just the relevant circles), really the only news I know about are those published in trade journals and the fact that the First Family (of America) selected a new dog and calls him Bo. But I've been seeing references to "teabags" a lot lately, especially in Facebook statuses, and so I ask you fellow tea fanatics, did I miss something?
Secondly, the farmers' market in my town is going to start up this Saturday and I just heard that several of the farms that come carry honey as one of their specialty food products. I've been weaning myself off sugar in my tea, because I was concerned about the large levels of sugar I'd been taking in. Instead, I've been drinking my teas plain, with milk, or with a bit of honey. I remember reading past posts/comments with fellow members mentioning the type of honey they use in their tea, and I thought this might be something to explore for myself. So teach me! What tastes good? In what kind of tea, etc. Right now, all I know is that the stuff I buy from the supermarket is honey because it tells me so in bold letters across the front.
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| Tea gift certificate |
[10 Apr 2009|08:41am] |
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I hope this is okay. I just wanted to share. I've become addicted to Adagio Teas. I just posted this over in my Twitter, but I thought I'd share here as well. :) It's always fun to get a gift certificate!
Adagio Teas is allowing me to tweet a $5 gift certificate. GC: 4941619739. Expires in 24 hours. Adagio.com.
If this isn't allowed, please feel free to delete my post moderators. Thank you! :)
*goes back to sipping on her Citron Green tea from Adagio. YUM!*
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| Blended Teas and Free Sample Problems |
[21 Mar 2009|11:12pm] |
I've got a question. I know that different types of teas need different water temperatures and steeping times...but what do you do with a tea that's a blend of 3 different types?
I just tried making a cup of Tazo's Joy tea (bagged version), which is a blend of black, green, and oolong teas. For two teabags in a 14oz mug, I used boiling water, and steeped for 4 minutes, as per the instructions on the box. The resulting brew smelled and tasted like strong black tea...rather like a breakfast blend of some sort. I ended up having to add milk to it, which brought out a hint of something, I guess one of the other teas. I can't really identify it.
The thing is...when I first tried this tea (I got a free sample at Starbucks a while back), it was fairly mild and light tasting. Pretty drastically different from what I ended up with today. So I wonder...what did I do wrong? Should I use a lower temperature? If so, what? What about steep time? Was 4 minutes too long?
This also reminds me...has anyone else had the experience of being offered a tea sample from Starbucks, then trying to make the same tea yourself and being utterly unable to replicate the results? I've had this happen twice; with both the Joy and the Earl Grey. Each time, the sample was delicious. The Joy was light and refreshing, and the Earl Grey actually tasted citrusy, rather than bitter. But when I try it at home (or even at Starbucks), I cannot for the life of me get those results. The bergamot in the Earl Grey is overpowering, and bitter rather than citrusy. The Joy tastes like a black breakfast tea. I've tried a load of variations on the Earl Grey; different number of bags, steeping times, etc. No dice. And I'm just now poking the Joy again.
So I was hoping that maybe someone could offer some advice on these two subjects. Anyone else have this happen to them? Or know what I'm doing wrong? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks guys!
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[13 Mar 2009|12:36pm] |
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can you recommend a good cast iron tea pot?
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| Samovar Tea Lounge III Grand Opening |
[06 Mar 2009|01:59pm] |
This is for those of you who live in San Francisco.
We've been open for a little over three months, and we've got most of the kinks ironed out. To celebrate, we're having a grand opening party this Saturday, March 7. Yes, that's tomorrow. There will be a Zen Door Opening Ceremony from 1 to 1:30, followed by tea tastings and snacks. In addition, we will be serving our regular menu for those who want something a little more substantial.
Also, be sure to check out our new website! We just did a site redesign and are preparing to launch a new educational video series. (I got to watch Jesse shooting for the first video last week, it was fascinating and I think the videos will be really cool).
I do work at Samovar, but I was a customer before an employee, and expect to continue to come in to Samovar if I ever leave.
Hope to see you there!
~Yoshi
(x-posted to ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) teafortwo)
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| Green Tea Questions |
[25 Feb 2009|02:12am] |
First of all, I want to say thanks to everyone who commented on my last post. I got a lot of very helpful replies, and am now on my way to enjoying rooibos. <3
But, I have a few more questions, this time about brewing green tea. Nothing fancy, just your basic bagged green tea. I tried some jasmine green the other day, but it turned out a good deal weaker than I'd expected. (The fragrance was lovely, but it didn't taste like anything. I've heard that jasmine teas are delicate, but geez!) I heated the water to 160 degrees, then steeped for 3 minutes. Does that sound right? Most of the instructions for making green tea that I've found are for the really fussy loose greens; so I have no idea if the same rules apply to bagged tea or not. (And this is probably a stupid question, but does it matter if I only heat the water to 160, or should I let it boil, then cool to 160? I've heard people refer to the latter, but I'm not sure if it matters either way.) Also, do I need to treat the jasmine green differently from a regular green? If so, how?
I can think of at least three things I could do differently (hotter water, longer steep, additional teabags), but I don't know enough about handling green teas to know which would be best. And I'd rather not waste half the box trying to figure it out. So, any ideas?
And once again, any help is much appreciated! Thanks guys!
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| Rooibos Questions |
[20 Feb 2009|11:54pm] |
I just tried rooibos for the first time recently, and I have a couple of questions. I didn't care much for it, but I wonder if I did something wrong. Or, maybe the type I tried just isn't a good one. (I'm using a bagged version, for the record.)
Before I made it, I looked for info online; it said to make it with boiling water, and steep for 5 minutes. But now I'm finding pages that say I should steep for 10 minutes? So...which is it? Would a longer steep make it turn out better, or did I get it right?
I've also come across some people saying that the one I tried (Tazo's African Red Bush) just isn't any good. So, any opinions? I tried it with a little sugar, then with more, then finally with milk, and nothing worked. I've also had the vanilla rooibos latte from Starbucks (which is made with the same kind of tea), and didn't care for it much, either.
So, I ask. Is the Tazo rooibos a good representative of the type? Or would it be worth trying a different brand? If so, which one? I think the only other rooibos I remember seeing in the store is the Madagascar vanilla one by Celestial Seasonings. (Is it any good?)
Any help is appreciated!
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| Tea Expires? |
[18 Feb 2009|10:37pm] |
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Hi everyone!
I have a question about expired tea, is the date/expiration factor THAT important? I finally went through my stuffed tea cabinet and found a LOT of expired tea. What I am wondering is if the dates on the bottom of the can/box are really all that important to go by? Ive done a little searching on the internet about this and I got some mixed answers, and how some people test it to see if its "stale", but I am not sure what that would mean, I guess I could tell, but I am not sure. I feel like I still have enough not-expired tea to drink, so its not that terrible if I need to compost these, but yeah, just wondering what you all know/think about this subject.
Thanks in advance!! :-D
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| Tea Source? |
[08 Feb 2009|04:59pm] |
Does anyone have any good sources to find an excellent white or red Chinese tea? My friend is extremely discerning and is having a probelem finding something that sates his palate ;-)
He also would love to find some good gunpowder.
Thanks :-)
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[22 Jan 2009|08:57pm] |
Hello I'm new to this community. I usually drink green teas (sencha is my absolute favorite), black teas, yerba mate and herbals (except chamomile). But I have a question.
First, does anyone have a recommendation for a good brand of matcha? I've been meaning to try and make myself a cup of matcha, but first would like to hear from anyone else's experience.
Thank you very much!
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| Ineeka |
[15 Jan 2009|08:29am] |
Having heard good things about it here, I finally picked up a box of Ineeka Darjeeling when I saw it on sale. I am impressed:
- I've been brewing it at work, so I occasionally forget about it for longer than five minutes, and I've yet to overbrew it badly enough for it to be undrinkably bitter.
- The metal box is really cool. The lid recesses maybe five millimeters into the container, rather than fitting onto and over the top, and the snug fit creates a much more airtight seal than I've seen on most other metal tea boxes.
- It's a full leaf tea in little pouches.
- The little pouches are a kind of wacky, innovative design. I'm not sure how I feel about them. They don't play well with the lid of my travel mug.
- It's quite good tea.
- It's 100% organic.
- Did I mention how cool the shiny box is?
I apologize: I bought it a while ago, so I don't recall how much it cost. I do remember it being kind of expensive.
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| Starbucks. |
[02 Jan 2009|07:48pm] |
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I work at Starbucks and I wanted to tell everyone about our new drinks! They are tea infusions. We have London Fog, Berry Chai, Apple Chai, and Vanilla Rooibos. I highly reccomend the London Fog. It tastes like flowers ♥
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[25 Dec 2008|01:19pm] |
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For those who have access to it, I highly recommend Biglowe's Eggnogg'n tea. I got a box for Christmas and I've already had three cups of it, with and without milk. I love it! I'm going to take half home with me and stash it in my tea caddy and leave the other half here so I'll have some in reserve.
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