Thursday, September 6, 2007

perhaps a cup of tea will suit your fancy?

With colder weather just around the corner I've decided I'd like to start drinking hot tea in the evenings. The thing is, I don't drink tea. I have drank tea in the past but it's been so long I can't remember what kind. So, I need your help internet.

What kind of tea do you like to drink? Why? What's so great about it?

17 comments:

Bob said...

Whenever I drink tea I get terrible headaches. I don't know why.

physics girl said...

Hi Pixie! I used to see you a lot at Y!F in the old days. Then I stopped reading. The other day I got back into blogs and read ALL your posts from the last year. WOW! Congrats on the baby and I'm so stoked you are having fun with him. I read so many amazing posts, and the one I'm finally replying to is the one about tea. I love tea. It's tasty and cozy. I like a good black tea like an Assam, and I like some herbal stuff. The loose leaf tea is the best. If you want to know more I can recommend my favourite shop.

The Ferryman said...

I like Long Island Iced Tea, but I don't think you should be drinking that in the morning.

Tim said...

Does iced count?

Holly {ArtistMotherTeacher} said...

nobody—Are you sure you aren't drinking the Long Islands?

erin—Hey! Welcome back to the world of blogging. I'm impressed that you read all those posts. Thanks on the congrats and all that good stuff. Please tell me more about the Assam (flavor, etc.) and the shop.

mr. fab—I'm looking for an evening tea, but I think I'll pass anyway.

tim—umm...no.

Anonymous said...

Ok. I have two. I like a White Tea. It's very similar to Green Tea, but tastes a lot better. I do that with a little honey. My other option is a nice black tea (my faves are Earl Grey, or Darjeeling) brewed pretty strong, with milk and sugar. People always think that tea with milk and sugar sounds wierd, but that's how it's drunk around the world. It's like a cup of coffee that way, although, in my opinion, much better. Just don't use cream. Milk (I like 1%) and sugar (not Splenda, etc.) is best.

Holly {ArtistMotherTeacher} said...

tf—That's exactly the kind of opinion I was looking for. I may try the white tea and the Darjeeling. I don't think the milk and sugar sound weird at all—for some reason it reminds me of Fuzzy Muffin. My MIL thinks Earl Grey is oily. Do you find that to be the case with the Darjeeling or the EG?

Anonymous said...

You're in luck. I'm about to post my Spiced Tea recipe, handed down from my mother, by a neighbor who made it for us one Christmas. See if it works for you!

Nickle said...

I love anything by celestial seasonings. My favorite is orange tangerine. It tastes really good in ginger ale. Just pour some ginger ale in a glass, add the tea bag and let it sit for a few minutes. Take the tea bag out and drink.

Anonymous said...

Oh, and I was thinking (and this backs up Nicole's suggestion): It's very hard to find, but Celestial Seasonings makes, or used to make, or sometimes makes a Cranberry Zinger tea, which I love. It's been a while since I've had any, but it's the only flavor of theirs that really stands out for me as a tea that I LOVE and actually CRAVE. The others... they're ok, but I'm not attracted to them in any special way. Other than that, I usually drink Chammomile (might want to ask your doctor about that as some people are allergic and it CAN also produce other reactions as it's a medicinal herb and all... some people it knocks right out, or slows them down TOO much). It makes me sleepy at bedtime, or I drink it when I'm agitated and unable to calm myself down in the normal ways. I also second the "cream and sugar" suggestion. I add milk to mine. It's something I've done since I read about it in a book as a child. Back then they referred to "tea with milk and sugar" as "Cambric" tea... I don't know if that applies anymore or not, but that's how I think of it now.

Holly {ArtistMotherTeacher} said...

shades—The spiced tea sounds like it would be a great holiday type recipe—I love spiced cider. I'll check it out when you post it.

nickle—That sounds really refreshing. I may try that too, although I'm looking more for hot tea suggestions.

shades—The Cranberry Zinger sounds good too. I want something to help me unwind at night before bed so the Chammomile might be good for me.

Beebers said...

vanilla tea and peppermint tea - not together. but actually that does sound good to try together...

Anonymous said...

Lots of people are suggesting herbal tea (Celestial Seasonings), to which I say, yuck! Peppermint tea is ok, but I only used to drink it for a stomach ache. That stuff is just odd. Too many flavors, and it just reminds me of having a cold and staying home from school.

To answer your question, I don't find the EG oily. In fact, if you brew it nice and dark, with the milk and sugar, it is way better than any cup of coffee. Darjeeling is supposed to be brewed kind of weak, and adding milk and sugar to it is only sometimes appropriate. It's good all by itself. Leaves a nice aftertaste.

physics girl said...

Ok back, same girl, different nick. My favourite shop is http://www.teacentre.ca/
where they sell a whole lot of high quality whole leaf tea. Now since you're new to tea I understand you might just want to start out with the cheap stuff, but if you want to move up to whole leaf this is a really good shop. The black tea I like is the Assam Dejoo listed here: http://www.teacentre.ca/blacktea.htm
I like it because it's relatively sweet and doesn't have much of a bitter aftertaste. Black tea is definitely great with milk and sugar. My other fav right now is a green tea spiked with herbs called Moroccan Mint:
http://www.teacentre.ca/flavouredtea.htm
it's lemony and minty but without tasting like Neo-Citran.

Cupcake Blonde said...

In the mornings I love English Breakfast but at night I usually have either Camomille (oh my, how ever do you spell that word?) or Sleepytime. But I have discovered White tea and Green tea lately, both taken with a bit of honey. My massuse told me to drink the White Tea to help with my Charley Horse problem and the Green teas with a local honey will help with my allergies. And darn it if I don't feel better and haven't had a Charley horse in weeks.

Anonymous said...

I like most kind aside from the fruity tastes (except citrus, I like those).

My current favorites are Rooibos tea with honey flavor, Green tea with orange or lemon flavor and Lady Gray!

Anonymous said...

PG tips!!!!! With just a little milk until it's orange. That's how my mum drinks it but she only ever drinks half a cup while she's watching Coronation Street and when I was little I used to drink the rest cold.

That's the most english you can get, a cup of tea in front of coronation Street. When a big storyline comes to the conclusion they have to do something with the electricity (I don't know what)because in the ad break there's a massive power surge when everyone goes to put the kettle on.

I drink earl grey occasionally to feel posh. I have it the same as my PG tips.

Oh and my grandad used to drink green tea black and it got rid of his psoriasis (I have no idea how it's spelt!)