Author Topic: Drink all the Tea in 2024!  (Read 6889 times)

meadow lark

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Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« on: December 30, 2023, 09:12:03 AM »
  I have decided to drink all my tea before buying anymore.  I know, crazy, right?  Who wants to join?  I appreciate having a wide variety which leads me to having tea that is older than I would prefer.  So my goal is to drink it all and start fresh with beautiful new tea!  I’m also trying to drink more fluids in general.

 I am doing 2 categories, caffeinated and not, because I will probably drink all my herbal first.   I have 9 types of herbal tea,  and I’d estimate 90
cups worth.  I have 10 types of caffeinated.  Probably 150 cups worth.

This morning I had ‘Winter is Coming’ from The Annapolis Tea Co and decided I did not like it.  So I threw it away (no tea obsessed friends to share with).

Currently drinking chai.

Herbal:
Revolution Southern Mint 20
Tazo Glazed Lemon Loaf  28
Celestial Seasonings Cinnamon Apple Spice 2
Hayley’s Lemon & Ginger 2
Twinnings Heartea 5
Tazo Passion 7
C.S. Sleepy Time 12
Spice & Tea Exchange Gingerbread Cookie 2 oz
S&T Bourbon Chestnut 2 oz

Caffeinated:
Benner Chai 12
Darville’s Earl Grey 20
Revolution Bombat Chai 20
Earl Grey 20
Twinnings Lady Grey 15
Tazo Vanilla Bean Macaron 8
Bigelow Caramel Apple 6
Sogo Crème Brûlée Green 1 oz
S&T White Tropical Tea 2 oz
True Brit Jasmine 25

Dee

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #1 on: December 30, 2023, 09:29:42 AM »
I commented on your journal about wanting to emulate chucking yucky tea and separating herbal from caffeinated and I'm happy to cheer you on on using up your current teas before getting more tea, but I don't think I want to join challenge despite also having a lot of teas. So I'll just watch and cheer from the sidelines ; )

Metalcat

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #2 on: December 30, 2023, 09:37:05 AM »
I'm definitely working my way through my herbal tea collection.

I bought A LOT of very good herbal tea when I quit drinking alcohol, but now that I do intermittent fasting, I rarely drink it because I just don't drink anything other than water in the evening.

However, it's VERY good tea, so I'm trying to get in the habit of drinking it with/after my meals, which has been really nice. I have no idea how many servings I have, it's all loose tea.

I drink black caffeinated tea every morning, so no issues ploughing through that stuff.

sonofsven

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #3 on: December 30, 2023, 09:40:17 AM »
That's funny, I just threw away two very old boxes of tea bags that were stuffed in the back of the tea cabinet. They were at least seven years old. I couldn't find any date but it did make me wonder how long tea lasts?

I'm too much a creature of habit to get out of my tea routine; I usually have licorice, ginger, turmeric, and various chais, all herbal, that I cycle through. A mix of loose leaf and bags.
My partner makes me all kinds of chinese medicinal brews as well, sometimes the taste is somewhat challenging on those, but a little honey pleases me.

Good luck in your quest!

meadow lark

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #4 on: December 30, 2023, 10:17:34 AM »
I applaud your throwing away 7 yo tea!  I don’t know how long it lasts, but I imagine it’s best within a year or so, like spices.

I drink a mix of loose leaf and bagged.  I enjoy the experience of loose leaf more, but as there are no tea shops in the town I live in, I mostly buy what I have easy access to.  I like the idea of drinking it after meals.  That’s the real point of this thread - getting myself to drink more since I enjoy it!

In the summer I drink a half gallon of iced Tazo Passion (hibiscus based) every day.  It’s only winter that I drink much hot tea.  My favorite is Lady Grey.

Metalcat

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #5 on: December 30, 2023, 10:36:56 AM »
That's funny, I just threw away two very old boxes of tea bags that were stuffed in the back of the tea cabinet. They were at least seven years old. I couldn't find any date but it did make me wonder how long tea lasts?

I'm too much a creature of habit to get out of my tea routine; I usually have licorice, ginger, turmeric, and various chais, all herbal, that I cycle through. A mix of loose leaf and bags.
My partner makes me all kinds of chinese medicinal brews as well, sometimes the taste is somewhat challenging on those, but a little honey pleases me.

Good luck in your quest!

Smart, old tea is shit, like making a beverage from sawdust.

meadow lark

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #6 on: December 30, 2023, 03:39:12 PM »
Tea is definitely a Gazingus Pin for me.
I am currently drinking my mint tea and it is lovely.

You have an excellent collection of Rooibus.

eyesonthehorizon

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #7 on: December 30, 2023, 06:26:03 PM »
I applaud your throwing away 7 yo tea!  I don’t know how long it lasts, but I imagine it’s best within a year or so, like spices.
Depends on the tea!! Cheaper teas are likely to lose their character. Good green teas benefit from aging, but it is more difficult to get right. Most more-oxidized teas, like dark oolongs, black tea, & puerh teas, are good for years - puerh is often intended to be aged for a decade or more in their compressed cakes (limits oxygen), like wine! Much of my collection is between three & fifteen years old on purpose.

In short, always try it first!

When tossing, remember tea is compostable. No sense putting biomass, let alone from such high-quality soil, in landfill.

Edit: I have never bought from this company, so this is not a recommendation, but I like the way they explained the topic. They cite one of their top sellers is aged fourteen years. https://mansatea.com/blogs/learn/aged-tea
« Last Edit: December 30, 2023, 06:32:39 PM by eyesonthehorizon »

meadow lark

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #8 on: December 30, 2023, 10:02:45 PM »
You have taught me something!

ZiziPB

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #9 on: December 31, 2023, 12:02:21 AM »
I'm doing a dry January which means I will definitely make a dent in my tea collection :-) 

Actually since I significantly limited my alcohol consumption last year, I've been drinking a lot more tea, especially herbal teas, in the evening.  But I always buy more....

rosarugosa

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #10 on: December 31, 2023, 04:59:20 AM »
I really like the idea of downsizing my herbal tea collection and was thinking of making a pitcher of herbal iced tea for an evening drink.

Green_Tea

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #11 on: December 31, 2023, 05:27:23 AM »
Joining!

meadow lark

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #12 on: January 01, 2024, 03:14:24 PM »
Yay Green Tea!  I can’t wait to hear about your tea collection!

RosaRugosa - have I ever mentioned how much I love your name?  I always imagine the beautiful bushes at an abandoned orchard I used to walk through in the mountains outside of Albuquerque.  You’ve inspired me.  Currently cold brewing a half gallon of Tazo Passion Rea (my favorite iced tea).  Tazo Glazed Lemon Loaf is also good cold.

ZiziPB, I buy more too!  Which means my favorites are always fresh, but my less favorites just live in my cabinets for years.

I am brewing a cup of Bourbon Chestnut Herbal that I bought last year while visiting @Cherry Lane.  It’s very fragrant but too mild flavored, so I am trying to brew more for longer and see how it does.

rosarugosa

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #13 on: January 02, 2024, 04:14:20 AM »
Yay Green Tea!  I can’t wait to hear about your tea collection!

RosaRugosa - have I ever mentioned how much I love your name?  I always imagine the beautiful bushes at an abandoned orchard I used to walk through in the mountains outside of Albuquerque.  You’ve inspired me.  Currently cold brewing a half gallon of Tazo Passion Rea (my favorite iced tea).  Tazo Glazed Lemon Loaf is also good cold.

ZiziPB, I buy more too!  Which means my favorites are always fresh, but my less favorites just live in my cabinets for years.

I am brewing a cup of Bourbon Chestnut Herbal that I bought last year while visiting @Cherry Lane.  It’s very fragrant but too mild flavored, so I am trying to brew more for longer and see how it does.

Thanks, Meadow Lark!  It's funny because I am an avid gardener, but I don't grow any roses.  I do live near the coast though, and I love the smell of the ubiquitous rugosas.
DH and I went through our tea collection, and we really don't have too much of an excess, but we now have a pitcher of herbal iced tea in the fridge for an evening drink with no caffeine or sugar.
We had a couple of free sample tea bags from Republic of Tea that we tried and poured down the drain.  Life is too short, and tea is too inexpensive to drink a cup of tea that one hates.

meadow lark

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #14 on: January 02, 2024, 07:34:00 AM »
I ended up throwing away the Bourbon Chestnut Herbal.  Even with a higher amount of loose tea plus a longer brewing time, it wasn’t something I enjoyed.  I. Changing numbers on things I can remember off the top of my head, but not being obsessively accurate.

Currently drinking Bigelow Caramel Apple - very good.

Herbal:
Revolution Southern Mint 20 19
Tazo Glazed Lemon Loaf  28
Celestial Seasonings Cinnamon Apple Spice 2
Hayley’s Lemon & Ginger 2
Twinnings Heartea 5
Tazo Passion 7 4
C.S. Sleepy Time 12
Spice & Tea Exchange Gingerbread Cookie 2 oz
S&T Bourbon Chestnut 2 oz

Caffeinated:
Benner Chai 12
Darville’s Earl Grey 20
Revolution Bombat Chai 20
Earl Grey 20
Twinnings Lady Grey 15
Tazo Vanilla Bean Macaron 8
Bigelow Caramel Apple 65
Sogo Crème Brûlée Green 1 oz
S&T White Tropical Tea 2 oz
True Brit Jasmine 25

tygertygertyger

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #15 on: January 02, 2024, 08:55:59 AM »
Joining here for fun. I have (just counted) 36 different kinds of tea. Many are favorites but some were experiments that are ... less than delicious.

This will be a good reminder to finish up some favorite loose leaf teas that are close to gone (but I've been saving them for I don't know what... obviously a silly plan). 

meadow lark

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #16 on: January 02, 2024, 01:54:05 PM »
Welcome Tygerx3!  36?  Very impressed!

As one does, I have gone backwards on the challenge.  Today my SIL gave me 2 containers of tea she just bought that she didn’t like.  The funny thing is that it is Caramel Apple, which
I had just commented on liking!  Seems like magic. I would also like to put out to the universe I would enjoy a million dollars (with the caveat that I do not want any of my loved ones to die so I can have an inheritance). 
This one is Republic of Tea.

Herbal:
Revolution Southern Mint 20 19
Tazo Glazed Lemon Loaf  28
Celestial Seasonings Cinnamon Apple Spice 2
Hayley’s Lemon & Ginger 2
Twinnings Heartea 5
Tazo Passion 7 4
C.S. Sleepy Time 12
Spice & Tea Exchange Gingerbread Cookie 2 oz
Republic of Tea Caramel Apple 38

Caffeinated:
Benner Chai 12
Darville’s Earl Grey 20
Revolution Bombat Chai 20
Earl Grey 20
Twinnings Lady Grey 15
Tazo Vanilla Bean Macaron 8
Bigelow Caramel Apple 65
Sogo Crème Brûlée Green 1 oz
S&T White Tropical Tea 2 oz
True Brit Jasmine 25

Metalcat

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #17 on: January 03, 2024, 05:40:49 AM »
I still haven't touched my teas, haven't made it part of my routine yet. That's largely because DH typically makes my tea for me in the morning, so if I want my herbal teas later in the day, I have to get in the habit of making it for myself.

Vashy

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #18 on: January 03, 2024, 08:15:49 AM »
Ooops, I ordered new tea at the year-end sale so the challenge will be to drink all that. I’m in.

tygertygertyger

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #19 on: January 03, 2024, 09:15:41 AM »
I had about two cups left of one super-delicious loose leaf tea... and I made one yesterday. I will enjoy the final one today and then move onto the next-almost-gone tea.

meadow lark

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #20 on: January 03, 2024, 08:35:06 PM »
Okay guys, I want specifics!  What teas are you drinking?  How am I supposed to know what to buy when I’m out of tea if you don’t say what you are drinking?

Currently drinking CS Apple Cinnamon.  Delicious.

Herbal:
Revolution Southern Mint 19
Tazo Glazed Lemon Loaf  28
Celestial Seasonings Cinnamon Apple Spice
Hayley’s Lemon & Ginger
Twinnings Heartea 5
Tazo Passion 4
C.S. Sleepy Time 12
Spice & Tea Exchange Gingerbread Cookie 2 oz
S&T Bourbon Chestnut 2 oz

Caffeinated:
Benner Chai 12
Darville’s Earl Grey 20
Revolution Bombat Chai 20
Earl Grey 20
Twinnings Lady Grey 15
Tazo Vanilla Bean Macaron 8
Bigelow Caramel Apple 65
Sogo Crème Brûlée Green 1 oz
S&T White Tropical Tea 2 oz
True Brit Jasmine 25

Serendip

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #21 on: January 04, 2024, 03:13:59 PM »
I have a cabinet with lots of loose-leaf herbs, roots & petals (lavender, hibiscus, chamomile, etc)--and have been feeling exceptionally dehydrated lately.

I'll join this challenge with the goal of making and cooling large amounts of tea for daily drinking to help me increase my water intake.
Off to boil the water :)

Today's mix will be nettle, mint, chamomile & lemonbalm

StarBright

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #22 on: January 04, 2024, 03:33:09 PM »
Joining!

I don't have a ton, but I have enough that I should finish it off before I buy more.

ETA the teas (don't know how much of each I have, but it is a lot of loose leaf):

Caffeinated:
Bird and Blend Great British Cuppa
Bird and Blend Toffee Bonfire
Bird and Blend Apple Strudel
Bird and Blend Enchanted Narnia
August Uncommon Violet Metallic
August Uncommon Southern Sugar Bourbon (or something like that)
Good Earth Sweet and Spicy
Bird and Blend Builders Brew
Tazo Early Grey


Herbal:
David's Tea Mother's Little Helper
David's Tea Valerian Nights
Bird and Blend Fruit Salad
Bird and Blend Mistletoe and Wine (My favorite! and it was discontinued last year and I'm almost out)
Vermont Artisan Coffee Hibiscus
Vermont Artisan Coffee ginger lemonbalm
David's Tea Chamomile Dreamland
David's Tea 911
Celestial Seasonings Apple Cinnamon
Traditional Medicinals Throat Coat

I genuinely like Mother's Little Helper from David's Tea, and like almost nothing else from there. But I have to spend a fair amount for delivery since I'm in the States, so I keep trying others! Chamomile Dreamland is okay, but next time I should just order two giant bags of mother's little helper.

Ooops - I had more than I thought!
« Last Edit: January 04, 2024, 03:58:38 PM by StarBright »

PMG

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #23 on: January 04, 2024, 04:36:23 PM »
Hmm. I thought good earth sweet and spicy was caffeine free?  I had actually forgotten it existed. I used to really enjoy it and often got it practically free stacking coupons and those cashback apps.

I’m enjoying all the tea talk while sipping my Ahmad Ceylon brewed with a couple crushed cardamom pods.


StarBright

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #24 on: January 04, 2024, 04:49:45 PM »
Hmm. I thought good earth sweet and spicy was caffeine free?  I had actually forgotten it existed. I used to really enjoy it and often got it practically free stacking coupons and those cashback apps.

My box says "Black and Herbal Tea" and it doesn't say decaf anywhere?

I hadn't had it for years and then noticed it was on sale at the grocery store last week :) I just wanted a bagged tea and a break from loose leafs so I grabbed it. It is yummy!

PMG

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #25 on: January 04, 2024, 05:22:54 PM »
Maybe they make multiple varieties. I don’t want to derail this thread by saying I may look for it the next time I’m shopping, so I won’t say that…

Serendip

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #26 on: January 08, 2024, 02:43:13 PM »
I've been trying to up my tea (and consequently water) intake. Yesterday made a teapot or two of linden tea and today's mix was sarsaparilla, licorice root and dandelion root. Very tasty.

Sibley

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #27 on: January 08, 2024, 02:52:38 PM »
I like black tea. But I don't like American black tea, I like British black tea. This means that previously I was drinking Twinings tea, which is available in the US. Well, after the family trip to the UK where mom bought a bag full of tea (20+ boxes) and I drank my way through my share, I'm drinking Fortnum and Mason teas now.

Irish Breakfast
English Breaskfast
Countess Grey
Fortmason
etc..... (I forget all of them, I think I have 10 varieties right now).

So nearly every day, I have a cup of tea in the morning with my breakfast. I'm happy :)

fuzzy math

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #28 on: January 08, 2024, 03:48:24 PM »
What a fun thread!!! I've been telling myself lately that I need to get through some of my less preferred teas, in the meantime I just keep buying decaf Earl Grey and plowing through it in the evenings. I had a bunch of generic black tea bags but finally finished those off making tea for iced tea this summer


Republic of tea cranberry blood orange black 4
Tazo Energize (rated 5 star caffeine level) 10
Tisanes powdered Thai tea (barely qualifies) 3
Steep organic earl grey 1
Bigelow green 1
Choice green moroccan mint 2
Tazo wild sweet orange 1
Generic green 1
Choice organic decaf earl grey 5
Celestial seasonings blueberry 5  (OP BUY THIS)
Celestial seasonings raspberry zinger 11
TenRen Pu-Erh (DH's tea that I'm afraid to try) 19
Some unlabeled Mexican anise tea (DH's that I'll never try) 9
Some looseleaf tea I was given as a gift but can't currently find or name by type

« Last Edit: January 15, 2024, 05:08:10 PM by fuzzy math »

Linea_Norway

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #29 on: January 10, 2024, 06:15:07 AM »
On hiking and camping trips, I usually bring along a ziplock bag with different types of tea bags. I have done that for many years now, and some bags have survived for a very long time. Some time ago, I decided to not fill it up, but use up what was in the bag. That was not all positive, especially some obscure herbal teas. They just don't all taste so great. At current, the bag is filled up again with fresh tea bags that I like. On our last winter trip, I even found a few herbal bags that were called Sweet Chili, and liked them very much.

At home we usually drink loose Ceylon tea, that we drink faster than we can buy it. We cannot buy it anywhere close to where we live now. But we found it on sale in a online shop and bought a few large bags.

For when we don't have time or energy for making loose tea, we just drink the cheapest Lipton bags. Those do not taste as good as the loose Ceylon, but I like them better than other tea from bags.

Further, we have some old loose Lapsang Suchong tea (smoked tea), that is many years old. We recently drank it again, and it still tasted fine. I really liked it, drinking after a good dinner.

I also have a few green teas with tea bags. I like green tea with lemon, but we also have it with ginger, which is my least favorite herb to put in a tea. I bought some new Sweet Chili tea bags. And we have Apple/Cinnamon tea for when we want some diversity. I think we also have a herbal tea with ginger.

Metalcat

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #30 on: January 10, 2024, 06:23:43 AM »
I'm still failing to remember to drink any of my herbal teas.

I made one pot of a David's Tea I used to like, but I forgot that they put bloody sugar in some of their herbal teas! I'm off sugar right now because I can't digest it, so that was a disaster.

Thankfully I was never much of a David's Tea fan, so I don't have a lot of it, DH and I used to say that David's is to tea what sangria is to fine wine. There's a time and a place for it, but it's more for sweet, frothed milk lattes than for a nice pot of tea.

I have a PILE of really exquisite Tulsi and Rooibos loose tea, so I'll start digging into that on top of my morning black tea.

tygertygertyger

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #31 on: January 10, 2024, 07:54:34 AM »
I thought I would work on drinking down "peachberry jasmine sutra", which still smells amazing. It was shared with me by someone, so I don't have much information. But it's not to my taste. I'm moving on to something called "samurai chai mate" (also shared in the past, also not much info) which is delicious.

Hoping to drink my way through these mystery loose leaf teas before moving on to the backlog of my purchases.

Green_Tea

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #32 on: January 11, 2024, 04:22:46 AM »
Hey everyone, hope you're progressing well!

Here's my inventory:

- 122 bags of black tea, ordered by best before date, the plan is to drink black tea instead of coffee in the morning.
(Also I had planned to change to lose black tea after this challenge and got some as a present without them knowing, jay!)

Teas that are post, nearing or without best before date:
- Chai (10)
- Ginger curcuma basil (7)
- mint (18)
- rose (2)
- green tea mint (1)


StarBright

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #33 on: January 11, 2024, 02:11:53 PM »
Joining!

I don't have a ton, but I have enough that I should finish it off before I buy more.

ETA the teas (don't know how much of each I have, but it is a lot of loose leaf):

Caffeinated:
Bird and Blend Great British Cuppa
Bird and Blend Toffee Bonfire
Bird and Blend Apple Strudel
Bird and Blend Enchanted Narnia
August Uncommon Violet Metallic
August Uncommon Southern Sugar Bourbon (or something like that)
Good Earth Sweet and Spicy
Bird and Blend Builders Brew
Tazo Earl Grey


Herbal:
David's Tea Mother's Little Helper
David's Tea Valerian Nights
Bird and Blend Fruit Salad
Bird and Blend Mistletoe and Wine (My favorite! and it was discontinued last year and I'm almost out)
Vermont Artisan Coffee Hibiscus
Vermont Artisan Coffee ginger lemongrass
David's Tea Chamomile Dreamland
David's Tea 911
Celestial Seasonings Apple Cinnamon
Traditional Medicinals Throat Coat


I am so sad that the B&B Mistletoe & Wine is gone. It was a really interesting approximation of mulled wine and such a nice alcohol free warm holiday drink. Maybe they'll bring it back someday.

B&B apple strudel was fine, but would not reorder or pay international shipping again. Prefer good ol' Celestial Seasonings for a warm apple-y drink.

I wonder if I have weird tastes? Or just very american taste? All of my favorite B&B flavors get discontinued while ones that I think are weak tasting and meh seem to be perpetual best sellers?

Vermont Artisan Ginger Lemon tea is my favorite version of that flavor profile. I'll buy some more at some point.
« Last Edit: January 11, 2024, 02:16:27 PM by StarBright »

Serendip

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #34 on: January 11, 2024, 02:55:01 PM »

Thankfully I was never much of a David's Tea fan, so I don't have a lot of it, DH and I used to say that David's is to tea what sangria is to fine wine. There's a time and a place for it, but it's more for sweet, frothed milk lattes than for a nice pot of tea.

I like this comparison of sangria v.s fine wine. I remember someone gave me some David's tea before that had actual chunks of candy or caramel in it (quite surprising for me!). The ones i've had tasted like candy store tea although I'm sure they had more muted or regular teas as well.

Last night I made a pot of sage & hawthorn leaf tea, steeped it overnight. It is SO delicious. Now I'm happy to have a heap of dried sage from the garden.

Exflyboy

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #35 on: January 11, 2024, 04:35:21 PM »
As an Englishman (and therefore a tea snob). I am keeping my opinions to myself..:)

StarBright

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #36 on: January 11, 2024, 05:36:05 PM »
As an Englishman (and therefore a tea snob). I am keeping my opinions to myself..:)

Please share good teas! :)

pachnik

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #37 on: January 11, 2024, 06:00:27 PM »
As an Englishman (and therefore a tea snob). I am keeping my opinions to myself..:)

Yes, please share!

eyesonthehorizon

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #38 on: January 11, 2024, 07:39:26 PM »
... I am so sad that the B&B Mistletoe & Wine is gone. It was a really interesting approximation of mulled wine and such a nice alcohol free warm holiday drink. ...
I like to blend mulling spices in my teas for this same reason, & make my own chais - you can create many flavored teas from whatever loose leaf plus spices or fruit (or sometimes a dash of fruit juice or liqueur.) I’ve never had the tea you’re missing, but perhaps blend mulling spices, a little dried orange or lemon zest, plus plain honeybush for body & mild sweetness? As a bonus, most spices are good for at least three steeps.

Metalcat

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #39 on: January 12, 2024, 07:06:32 AM »
As an Englishman (and therefore a tea snob). I am keeping my opinions to myself..:)

I am also a hardcore tea snob to the point that I buy my tea from a local retailer who travels to the farmers annually and with many has exclusive contracts to buy entire small tea batches, so you literally can't even get most of the teas that I drink unless you buy from this one artisanal tea shop. I now have very specific regions I prefer for my green (Kagoshima, Japan) and black teas (Ratnapura District, Sri Lanka).

How's that for tea snobbery? lol!

This is where I get my tea, the shop used to be nearby, but since the pandemic, they're online only. Which is too bad because I used to spend hours in the shop smelling different teas. It was quite the experience.

https://shop.chayi.ca/

ETA: their herbal teas are phenomenal, that's what I'm trying to get in the habit of drinking more of, on top of my morning regular teas.

ETA 2: I got into tea when I quit alcohol, specifically wine, finding Cha Yi made tea an amazing substitute for wine because the experience of searching for regions and subtle notes was so similar and scratched that itch. Hence the wine vs sangria analogy. I compared the process of smelling teas to smelling wines and the owner at Cha Yi was the one who said that if tea was like wine, then David's was like Sangria. It has it's place for a good time, but it's NOT fine tea.
« Last Edit: January 12, 2024, 07:12:06 AM by Metalcat »

ptobest

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #40 on: January 12, 2024, 03:03:34 PM »
I am very interested in the “Drink all the tea” challenge. I already had a lot of tea (mix of caffeinated & herbal - mostly from Asian or eastern European groceries or local tea shops), then moved in with my partner who also has a lot of tea (mostly green teas, with some black), and then the wave of Christmas tea gifts, resulting in quite a collection. Some of his teas are of questionable age, so there may be some “tasting it to determine if it came from this decade (or century…) before chucking it out”. (In his pantry, I unearthed a baking powder that expired in 2001, so I’m assuming there may be teas out there that predate that.)

My recent bout with Covid has helped put a dent in the herbal teas, and they’ll go faster in general thanks to the cold Winter. The caffeinated teas are more difficult. I can’t drink anything dark after noon, and green tea cutoff is probably around 4pm, else I’ll take hours to fall asleep at night. I also really enjoy coffee - but with the new year, I’m trying to primarily drink tea as there is so much of it! Am seeing coffee more as a treat now, or something to get moving on particularly difficult mornings, but I know that can backslide real easy.

(As an aside, I seem to be doing an excellent job in the “Eat all the Sweets in 2024” challenge.)

Exflyboy

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #41 on: January 12, 2024, 07:06:42 PM »
As an Englishman (and therefore a tea snob). I am keeping my opinions to myself..:)

I am also a hardcore tea snob to the point that I buy my tea from a local retailer who travels to the farmers annually and with many has exclusive contracts to buy entire small tea batches, so you literally can't even get most of the teas that I drink unless you buy from this one artisanal tea shop. I now have very specific regions I prefer for my green (Kagoshima, Japan) and black teas (Ratnapura District, Sri Lanka).

How's that for tea snobbery? lol!

This is where I get my tea, the shop used to be nearby, but since the pandemic, they're online only. Which is too bad because I used to spend hours in the shop smelling different teas. It was quite the experience.

https://shop.chayi.ca/

ETA: their herbal teas are phenomenal, that's what I'm trying to get in the habit of drinking more of, on top of my morning regular teas.

ETA 2: I got into tea when I quit alcohol, specifically wine, finding Cha Yi made tea an amazing substitute for wine because the experience of searching for regions and subtle notes was so similar and scratched that itch. Hence the wine vs sangria analogy. I compared the process of smelling teas to smelling wines and the owner at Cha Yi was the one who said that if tea was like wine, then David's was like Sangria. It has it's place for a good time, but it's NOT fine tea.

Wow! Snobbery indeed.. Are you sure you're not related to the "landed Gentry" of old England?..:)

Cherry Lane

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #42 on: January 13, 2024, 08:20:13 PM »
Not a tea snob here! I'm not specifically part of this challenge, but @meadow lark knows I can't add more tea until I clear space in my tea cupboard.

I drink lose leaf Earl grey at home and bagged when I travel. I'm out of bagged earl grey so I'm using up some English breakfast on trips now.

Saw this at a discount grocery the other day and was sooo tempted. It actually jumped into my basket but I put it back.

(That's 50 bags for $2.50)

« Last Edit: January 13, 2024, 08:21:45 PM by Cherry Lane »

meadow lark

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #43 on: January 13, 2024, 08:58:58 PM »
Wow, that’s a great price!

Herbal:
Revolution Southern Mint 19 (13 now)
Tazo Glazed Lemon Loaf  28
Twinnings Heartea 5
Tazo Passion 4 (1 now)
C.S. Sleepy Time 12
Spice & Tea Exchange Gingerbread Cookie 2 oz

Celestial Seasonings Cinnamon Apple Spice
Hayley’s Lemon & Ginger
S&T Chestnut Bourbon

Caffeinated:
Benner Chai 12
Darville’s Earl Grey 20
Revolution Bombat Chai 20
Earl Grey 20
Twinnings Lady Grey 15
Tazo Vanilla Bean Macaron 8
Bigelow Caramel Apple 65
Sogo Crème Brûlée Green 1 oz
S&T White Tropical Tea 2 oz
True Brit Jasmine 25

crocheted_stache

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #44 on: January 13, 2024, 09:42:25 PM »
Posting to follow for recommendations, and to report that we gave away on Buy Nothing a selection of the (still relatively fresh) teas that we'd tried that weren't our cup of tea. The recipients seemed to appreciate most of them, from what I can tell.

I think most of what's left is recent and stuff at least one of us likes and uses. I suppose we could do to have another look through it and make sure nothing is hiding in back or hanging around because we both thought the other liked it.

Favorite black tea:
Ahmad Earl Grey

Favorite herbal teas:
Good earth original sweet & spicy rooibos/caffeine free
Stash licorice (which is odd, because I cannot stand licorice candy)
Pukka licorice and cinnamon (seems to be a European-only thing, alas)

englishteacheralex

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #45 on: January 13, 2024, 10:09:24 PM »
How did I miss this? I've been getting back into tea lately, and actually just acquired two tins of herbal tea from Lupicia, which is a fancy Japanese tea store where I like to buy a tin or two of ridiculously expensive loose tea every winter with the goal of finishing before the evenings get too warm for hot drinks--generally in March. So I am on a mission to finish the two tins of tea:

1. Ginger&Lemon Myrtle
2. Peach Melba

I actually just got rid of around 20 bags of a nice black "Christmas tea" that was gifted to me by a student--but I still have 15 to go of that particular tea. I started Pride and Prejudice with my students and marked the occasion with the Christmas tea (I had them bring their own mugs and used my classroom electric kettle to boil the water). I also made shortbread to go with the tea, which is technically Scottish but it's easier to make than scones and goes well with tea. The tea and shortbread was a nice entry point to a lecture about the "landed gentry" and how English class hierarchy worked during the Regency period, so I'm all ears about English tea snobbery, @Exflyboy.

Also: QUESTION

Can you make iced tea out of just any tea? I'm wondering if I don't finish up my herbal tea during the short period of somewhat colder temps on Oahu, if I can make it into a nice iced tea...and if that's possible, how best to do it?

Cherry Lane

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #46 on: January 14, 2024, 07:37:34 AM »
Favorite black tea:
Ahmad Earl Grey

This is my current favorite, too, and what I'm drinking at home.

Also: QUESTION

Can you make iced tea out of just any tea? I'm wondering if I don't finish up my herbal tea during the short period of somewhat colder temps on Oahu, if I can make it into a nice iced tea...and if that's possible, how best to do it?

Sure can. Just brew a pot then put it in a pitcher with ice and put that in the fridge.  I'll brew it stronger because the melting ice will dilute it.  I know Meadow Lark does this with Tazo Passion, so herbal works, too.

draco44

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #47 on: January 14, 2024, 07:01:21 PM »
Also: QUESTION

Can you make iced tea out of just any tea? I'm wondering if I don't finish up my herbal tea during the short period of somewhat colder temps on Oahu, if I can make it into a nice iced tea...and if that's possible, how best to do it?

Sure can. Just brew a pot then put it in a pitcher with ice and put that in the fridge.  I'll brew it stronger because the melting ice will dilute it.  I know Meadow Lark does this with Tazo Passion, so herbal works, too.

I like to make herbal iced tea in the summer. While I appreciate indulging in the finer points of tea on occasion, I also enjoy low-end stuff too, and for a summer quencher in bulk, do the "cold sun tea" method of just putting a few bags of herbal tea in a pitcher or big mason jar, adding water, and sticking it in the fridge for 12 or so hours until it's steeped enough. Adding fresh lime juice to hibiscus tea is especially nice.

crocheted_stache

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #48 on: January 14, 2024, 07:43:29 PM »

Also: QUESTION

Can you make iced tea out of just any tea? I'm wondering if I don't finish up my herbal tea during the short period of somewhat colder temps on Oahu, if I can make it into a nice iced tea...and if that's possible, how best to do it?

Yep.

I like Pukka Blackcurrant Beauty as iced tea in summer, possibly better than I like it hot. Many "berry" flavored herbal teas are hibiscus and/or rosehip, so probably any variation on that theme would work nicely. I'd guess the citrus teas would, too.

Worst case, you'll discover a flavor you don't care for as iced tea.

eyesonthehorizon

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Re: Drink all the Tea in 2024!
« Reply #49 on: January 14, 2024, 08:56:41 PM »
Good malty black teas are wonderful iced (unsweetened) - almost like a driver-friendly beer.