The Tea & Infusion Thread.

[PTree15]

I have seen a lot of seasonal teas coming out in stores for the holidays. Does anyone have any they absolutely love and have to buy each year, or tried for the first time and recommend?

I wish I could remember the Christmas spice tea I got at the duty-free shop in Vermont a few years back. It was really good. I do remember that it came in red box and that it might have been a company from Canada. Oh, and I love Earl Grey tea...and many others.

 

[GingerFoxx]

I don't like Earl Grey...I wonder if the bergamot is why.

Trader Joe used to sell an air freshener with lemon and bergamot. I loved the smell.

I think it was coriander bergamot. I used to have the same one and I loved it as well.

 

[KLS52]

Yes I think that was it!

 

[Moll Flanders]

I use this

I bought this Metaltex tea infuser in the end but it hasn't arrived yet.

I bought some loose leaf Earl Grey tea too.

 

[ledboots]

I bought this Metaltex tea infuser in the end but it hasn't arrived yet.

I bought some loose leaf Earl Grey tea too.

Oh I like that, it looks easy to empty afterwards!

 

[GingerFoxx]

A month or so ago my friend bought me a tin of this amazing cinnamon tea. It tastes just like a non-artificial version of those cinnamon heart candies I remember from Valentine's Day as a child. I looked it up online and it's really pricy to order here. I have to ration what I have carefully...

Harney and Sons Tea - Hot Cinnamon Sunset - 20 count

 

[Amy SF]

Cults, conspiracies and the utterly bizarre history of Sleepytime tea

 

[MHC]

I've been drinking a lot of herbal tea lately and decided I'm going to start drinking loose tea instead of bagged tea. I'm looking at buying a strainer like this.

I have really gone off green tea as it tastes bitter in comparison.

Did you ever get this? I have one or two tea brewers like that one Moll and they work quite well. One advantage relates to the bitterness you said you get with green tea. You may be over brewing it and with a device like this you can more easily see and gauge the level of brewing that will give you taste but no bitterness. But it also may be the kinds of tea you are brewing. Many green teas being sold today are just awful quality with the sellers trying to capitalize on its supposed health benefits. Look for a better quality loose tea and for a country of origin. Also many Japanese or poor quality teas are more vegetal tasting or bitter than naturally sweet. . Good quality "green" Oolongs are often quite sweet and smooth. I put green in quotes because Oolongs they are not fully or technically green, they have been slightly oxidized but the color of the leaves is an emerald green and the brewed tea is a pale yellow. It is quite healthy (although I personally drink tea for the taste not health). I'd suggest trying a high mountain (LiSan or AliSan) Taiwanese Ooolong. Also unlike black or cheap green teas, you get at least three or four brewings out of green oolongs. Each cup should be brewed for about 30 seconds adding 10 15 seconds for each successive brew. The second and third cup are the most flavorful.

 

[Moll Flanders]

Did you ever get this?

I can't remember if it was the exact one, but I did buy a tea infuser and I really love it. I stopped buying bagged green tea, but I haven't tried a loose leaf green tea yet. Oolong might be the next tea I try.

 

[Andy_T]

Some time ago I fulfilled a lifelong dream I have always had and got myself a Samowar

As it is too big to use at home (there are small ones and big ones, but the ones you find cheaply on eBay are typically the very large ones. The smaller ones of the same design sell much higher, used, likely as they are more convenient) I have put it into our office pantry at the company. We normally buy Turkish tea that does not mind if you let it sit in the teapot for a long time (normal one would likely go bitter).

I also bought a small new one from Amazon, but when it arrived, the workmanship was so poor (cheap plastic material instead of porcelain etc.) that I just sent it back after looking at it once.

That is the very one we have in the office...

Costs about 500 EUR new, however, you can find lots of the big ones (~5 liter water reservoir) on eBay around 100 EUR, the one I got was 80 EUR in like new condition

This is the cheap small one (3 liter water reservoir) that sells on Amazon for around 100 EUR ... but everything in the picture that is black is really cheap plastic

If you have not used a samovar yet, the way they work is that you fill water into the lower, big pot, that is then heated to a boil and kept at near boiling temperature. You fill the smaller teapot at the top with a lot of tea to make a very strong tea essence (let the tea leaves in for at least 10 minutes).

Then, when you want to drink your tea, you fill your cup about a quarter with the tea essence from the top, and dilute it with the hot water from the bottom. So basically you have fresh tea immediately when you want it. Sounds strange, but the tea tastes really nice. That was and is the standard way to drink tea in Russia and large parts of Asia (Turkey, Iran etc.).

Best regards,
Andy

 

[MHC]

Andy, I have wanted a samovar for sooooo long. And looked at them in stores and on line longingly, haunted Russian neighborhood stores, browsed at A La Vielle Russie. I came close several times. But as much as I want one, I know it just doesn't fit in with my life. They were made for large families/households where people were drinking tea throughout the day. They could come into the room at any time, pour some of the strong brewed tea from brewing pot and add hot water from the samovar water reservoir. I live alone these days and don't drink that much. Sometimes in the morning or over the weekend I'll gongfu style brew several tiny Chinese Yixing pots but they don't amount to more than a cup and a half for the regular American or British tea drinker. I work and if I do drink a cup or two in the afternoon, it's while at work, not near my samovar.

I wish that I lived in a Tolstoy novel. Or entertained more. But even when I do, most people I know want coffee or espresso, so my samovar would still go unused.

Or I'd spend my day trekking from the dining room to the bathroom with more frequency than I already (at 67 yrs old ) do.

 

[Andy_T]

MHC, I also like to drink my green tea gongfu style, with two small cans.

How to make gong-fu tea?

Basically you use a much larger quantity of tea (maybe 4 teaspoons full of green tea) than you would typically use for a teapot of the size (rather small, possibly 150 ml).

Then you fill the teapot with boiling water, let it sit for 10-15 seconds (!!!), and pour the tea into the second can that you use to serve the finished tea. (If you would let it in the can with the tea leaves longer, it would become bitter)

You do not throw out the tea leaves, rather you can use it some more times to make tea. Every time you pour the water, you let it sit for 5 seconds longer, as the tea gets weaker with every consecutive use. You can pour it maybe 5-6 times. Typically, you also do not drink the first can, but flush that down the drain, in order to remove any residual pesticides, dust, dirt that might still be in the tea.

The bamboo box that is featured is used to keep hot water that you do not need, e.g. if you warm your teapot and cups before drinking by pouring boiling water over it. In Chinese households, there would typically be a drain fitted so the waste water can be collected in a canister.

However, as it is a bit of a hassle, this is what I use in the office:

The built-in filter has a little valve in the bottom that can be actuated by pressing the button on top. So you pour water in the top, let the tea steep for the required time, then push the button to let the tea drop to the bottom of the can.

 

[Moll Flanders]

Oh yes, I think I've seen one of those containers in a Turkish restaurant.

 

[MHC]

The tea brewer that Andy uses is actually, I'm pretty sure, made by a Taiwanese Company, Kamjove, although there are many knockoffs available in the market. It is very convenient for Chinese style and in particular Oolong tea brewing, since the brewer holds only about 250-300 ml. Thus one only brews a small amount at a time, similar to the way you would in Gong Fu style. That brewer is used in many Chinese tea shops to brew samples for buyers. It's easy to use and clean and in a pinch the bottom can be used as a cup.

I too have one in my office, although lately it has been supplanted by my Lin Ceramics "Executive" mug with the insert brewer, saucer and cup. The sturdy handle of the cup and the surface grooves are satisfying in the hand and I love the earthy weight and feel of the clay, the perfect width and shape of the cup lip and the way the cup retains heat without ever burning my lip.

 

[ledboots]

Some time ago I fulfilled a lifelong dream I have always had and got myself a Samowar

As it is too big to use at home (there are small ones and big ones, but the ones you find cheaply on eBay are typically the very large ones. The smaller ones of the same design sell much higher, used, likely as they are more convenient) I have put it into our office pantry at the company. We normally buy Turkish tea that does not mind if you let it sit in the teapot for a long time (normal one would likely go bitter).

I also bought a small new one from Amazon, but when it arrived, the workmanship was so poor (cheap plastic material instead of porcelain etc.) that I just sent it back after looking at it once.

That is the very one we have in the office...

Costs about 500 EUR new, however, you can find lots of the big ones (~5 liter water reservoir) on eBay around 100 EUR, the one I got was 80 EUR in like new condition

This is the cheap small one (3 liter water reservoir) that sells on Amazon for around 100 EUR ... but everything in the picture that is black is really cheap plastic

If you have not used a samovar yet, the way they work is that you fill water into the lower, big pot, that is then heated to a boil and kept at near boiling temperature. You fill the smaller teapot at the top with a lot of tea to make a very strong tea essence (let the tea leaves in for at least 10 minutes).

Then, when you want to drink your tea, you fill your cup about a quarter with the tea essence from the top, and dilute it with the hot water from the bottom. So basically you have fresh tea immediately when you want it. Sounds strange, but the tea tastes really nice. That was and is the standard way to drink tea in Russia and large parts of Asia (Turkey, Iran etc.).

Best regards,
Andy

Oh wow I haven't seen one of those since I was a kid! My Lithuanian grandfather used it, and his Irish wife rolled her eyes and admitted the tea was great.

 

[Andy_T]

The tea brewer that Andy uses is actually, I'm pretty sure, made by a Taiwanese Company, Kamjove, although there are many knockoffs available in the market. It is very convenient for Chinese style and in particular Oolong tea brewing, since the brewer holds only about 250-300 ml. Thus one only brews a small amount at a time, similar to the way you would in Gong Fu style. That brewer is used in many Chinese tea shops to brew samples for buyers. It's easy to use and clean and in a pinch the bottom can be used as a cup.

Indeed, I bought the first one in Taiwan and was very proud to show it off to my colleagues in Malaysia, as they had not seen such a high tech device yet Of course, 3 months later, they were also available locally. I have checked, and as the ones I have all to not have the "Kamjove" logo, they are obviously copies. (Too bad I only find this out now, as my wife returned from Taiwan on Saturday. Maybe the Kamjove ones are higher quality than the ones I have and would make sense to try out...)

I also like the earthenware ones, but I always found that cleaning the small holes in the filter from tea leaves stuck there took away much of the fun. And for the gong fu style, the possibility to push the button so the hot water is flushed out makes a lot of sense (you could also, of course, take out the insert, but my experience is that this causes some dripping)

 

[Calliegirl]

Just a word of warning to the tea connoisseurs, my post will probably be like nails on a chalkboard, so be prepared, or maybe skip it to preserve your sanity.

I'm not a big fan of tea other than Lipton's Ice Tea ( ...and there go the nails), but my roommate bought a few types in k-cups (oh, there they go again), so I thought I would give it a try.

The first one was called sleepytime and had chamomile, spearmint, and some fruity stuff. Except for the spearmint, it wasn't bad at all once I added some Truvia (sorry). I liked the fruity flavor, but the spearmint made it taste like I was chewing gum while drinking it.

The second one said it was Earl Grey flavored black tea. This one was awful, no matter what I added; Truvia, almond milk, it was like drinking perfume. I hate wasting things, but I couldn't get more than a third of it down. Drank a glass of chocolate cashew milk after, but still couldn't get rid of the taste.

The third, and last one, was called awake or something similar, but it was just black tea. This one was okay, nothing special but nothing terrible either. It was a little bitter plain, Truvia and a bit of almond milk helped.

The verdict: I wouldn't mind trying something fruity, minus the minty chewing gum flavor.

 

[KLS52]

I've had the Twinnings English breakfast decaf in the kcup a few times. I think it's good. I drink black teas with Silk creamer and sugar. I have not had any herbal teas in kcups.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Moll Flanders]

The second one said it was Earl Grey flavored black tea. This one was awful, no matter what I added; Truvia, almond milk, it was like drinking perfume. I hate wasting things, but I couldn't get more than a third of it down. Drank a glass of chocolate cashew milk after, but still couldn't get rid of the taste.

I think Earl Grey is an acquired taste.

 

[MHC]

It's not so much nails on a chalkboard, Calliegirl, as it is more like the reaction seeing an iceberg lettuce and desiccated shredded carrot "salad" at MacDonalds; kahki colored canned spinach or over-steamed broccoli at a lunch time buffet line. Of course people whose only exposure to veggies are things like that say they don't much like them or they just can't bring themselves to eat them or only eat them if drenched in some artificially spiked dressing or fake cheese sauce.

The difference is, how much easier it is to brew a cup of loose tea than it is even to steam fresh broccoli or sautee tofu.