290697 Thu Oct 31 14:53:37 -0800 2002 33 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1578991 Can someone recommend a great tea bag tea? I like English Breakfast, some Jasmine's - open to new ideas that would go well with milk and sugar. What's one that's easy to find and doesn't taste like moldy cardboard? Thu Oct 31 14:53:37 -0800 2002 0 Michele Cindy 1 1578994 I love PG Tips for teabag tea--it is a delicious hot tea with a lot more flavor than Lipton's and stands up well to milk and sugar. I have seen it at the Fairway and in giant boxes at the Indian grocery stores in Curry Hill. Mmm--just thinking about it is making me want a cup right now! Thu Oct 31 15:02:35 -0800 2002 1578991 0 CatherineC in NYC 1 1578997 PG Tips is good agreed. also Barry's makes good tea. nice and strong Thu Oct 31 15:29:15 -0800 2002 1578991 0 SLAP 1 1579000 Bigelow is good. They offer a wide variety of flavors. I like the mint tea the best out of the ones I have tried. Thu Oct 31 15:33:39 -0800 2002 1578991 0 M. Allen 1 1579001 My favorite is Swee-Touch-Nee tea bags - Orange Pekoe - goes well with milk or cream and sugar. Comes in the red box which looks like a treasure chest. I've tried many others, including every available Twining variety, but I always come back to my old standby. Thu Oct 31 15:49:24 -0800 2002 1578991 0 Morris Malken 2 1581782 My husband has fond memories of Swee-Touch-nee tea and swears it was the best tea available in tea bags that he's tasted. Now, my question is where, oh where, in the East Bay of California can one buy them? We're willing to order them from the Internet if they're available only on the East Coast. Let me know your connection, OK? And thanks Thu Dec 26 17:13:24 -0800 2002 1579001 0 Nina Shoehalter 1 1579006 While Twinings is the English standard, Safeway Select is a pretty good substitute (about the same price). I wouldn't be surprised if they are the same. My preference is Earl Grey...but it is, after all, a matter of taste. Thu Oct 31 16:50:40 -0800 2002 1578991 0 jIM h. 1 1579007 Twinings Black Currant The Republic of Teas British Breakfast peace, jill Thu Oct 31 16:53:22 -0800 2002 1578991 0 jill 1 1579012 I like Barry's. Thu Oct 31 17:56:17 -0800 2002 1578991 0 Fluffy 1 1579015 Good Earth Chai tea. Smells and tastes delightful. Thu Oct 31 18:25:06 -0800 2002 1578991 0 Shaebones 1 1579019 If you really want tea that stands up well to milk, I like Taylor's of Harrogate's Yorkshire Tea (the red label, not the Yorkshire Gold). I always think of is as tea for Yorkshire coal miners -- so strong you imagine you can stand a spoon up in it -- but wonderful with milk or cream. If your tea tastes like moldy cardboard it's stale. Toss it and buy fresh (and look for any dates on the package that will indicate how fresh it is: tea is an aromatic -- the fresher the better). If you don't use it quickly, transfer the bags out of the box and into a metal or ceramic (not clear glass or plastic) cannister. Finally, if you are really interested in good tea, get away from the bags and start exploring loose teas. Fancy teas sound expensive when the price is quoted by the pound, but since you probably only buy a quarter (or less) of a pound at a time, you don't have to spend a lot of money. Thu Oct 31 19:25:14 -0800 2002 1578991 0 Ruth Lafler 2 1579026 I wholeheartedly agree with loose tea- it's sooooo much more fun than bagged, and usually considerably higher quality to boot. It's very inexpensive too- The Republic of Tea's most expensive teas like the Imperial Republic Jasmine Pearls (at 36 dollars for a 3 ounce can!) work out to costing less than a dollar a cup, and most brands work out to being about 15 cents a cup. It's a *very* affordable luxury. Thu Oct 31 20:37:30 -0800 2002 1579019 0 JK Grence (the Cosmic Jester) 3 1579065 It becomes even more affordable if you buy from people who don't make their dollar off their stupid T-shirts and cute containers. The Republic of Tea is more expensive than just about any other tea merchant I know of, but they have those cuuuuuute labels (and names) that some people just can't resist. (Don't even get me started on their ultra-cutesy, absolutely repulsive copy, with their "Ambassador of Leaves" and blah blah blah. Yecch!) A consistently excellent source of great teas is www. specialteas.com. If you're in the NYC area, try Ten Ren, the T Salon, or Chinatown. The Pearl River Mart has some pretty decent Yunnan at a very low price. Fri Nov 01 10:10:29 -0800 2002 1579026 0 Katerina 3 1579066 Compare: Jasmine Pearls by Republic of Tea - 3 oz for $36 Jasmine Pearls by Plymouthtea.com - 3 oz for $11.25 Now I have tried the latter, and it's EXCELLENT. But of course, they don't come in that collectible tin with a cute label. Link: http://www.plymouthtea.com/jaspearfingr.html Fri Nov 01 10:15:39 -0800 2002 1579026 0 Katerina 4 1579074 And the quality was the same in every way? That sounds like a fantastic price if the quality holds up. Great tip. For those of you in NYC, there is a new tea shop in Chinatown that has some really marvelous green teas. The shop is called Ten Ren Tea and on Mott Street off Canal--I believe they also have a web site. I don't agree that drinking loose leaf tea at the office is a hassle; you just need to plan ahead. I keep a spoon/strainer, cup and a tin of my favorite tea so when I feel like having some tea I measure, pour the water and voila a far superior cup of tea than any bag could deliver. Fri Nov 01 11:32:42 -0800 2002 1579066 0 Maria 5 1579076 Well, I don't buy the Republic of Tea stuff as a matter of principle. I gave them a shot a few times when I was new to America; their teas are AVERAGE, while prices are hugely inflated. Their teas are marketed cleverly to people who want to try something "new and special" but know nothing about tea (and are too lazy to find out on their own), who have no idea how much it should cost, who buy their tea at the UPSCALE SUPERMARKET and who think the beauty of the label is as important as the taste. As I have been drinking high-end tea for many years, I know enough to be pretty sure that the jasmine pearls from Plymouth are no worse, and probably better, than the R. of T stuff. Maybe I should do a blind taste test to prove it though... Fri Nov 01 11:45:47 -0800 2002 1579074 0 Katerina 2 1579041 "Finally, if you are really interested in good tea, get away from the bags and start exploring loose teas." I'd be careful of this statement which I have heard quite a few times. We believed in it very strongly at one time...until our visit to our friends in Winchester. Our friends in Winchester insist on bagged tea, and their Harrogate Irish Breakfast is as strong and good as any tea we have had. We then made the mistake of asking our hosts about loose tea. Apparently a very strong contigent of English people believe that loose tea is pretty close to uncivilized - too many grounds, inconsistent flavor, escaping flavor, etc. We were completely caught off guard. This does not stop us from having tea at a place which serves loose tea exclusively in Tyngsboro, Massachusetts. (U.S.A.) Anyone from Great Britain/Ireland have an opinion on this? Scott Thu Oct 31 22:33:34 -0800 2002 1579019 0 bunnyr 3 1579062 Bagged tea is only good if you drink certain blends (like English breakfast, etc.), not high-quality single-estate teas, which are simply NOT AVAILABLE in bags. What you get in tea bags is fannings, the lowest grade (finely ground/broken leaves that steep very quickly and have a strong but somewhat coarse taste - hence the necessity of adding milk). If you are serious about tea, you want to see what the leaves look like; Keemun leaves are long, wiry, almost black. Darjeeling is silvery, with jade-like specks. High-quality Yunnan is a downy gold. Assam is an orange-golden-brown. And then you have oolongs, green and white teas, each with a different appearance, all beautiful in their own way, but you can't appreciate it if you only drink blended teas (even loose) or bagged teas. (If you want to see what different teas look like, check out www.uptontea.com.) When the leaves are cut or broken, their flavor becomes coarser and stronger and you lose some of the finesse only found in whole-leaf tea. But if your thing is a hearty English-style cup with milk, than it doesn't matter because it's precisely the briskness and strength that you want - many British-style Indian teas are processed in a method called CTC, which stands for crush-tear-curl, which produces tiny dark beads of intensely flavored, strong tea. Some of the British-style fannings blends are available as either loose tea or in bags, and IMO there's not a great difference; so your British friends are right in a way, but only about their particular kind of tea. (Taylor's of Harrogate is a good example - their loose teas are fannings grade, which I think really is meant for the teabag and is dusty and messy in the pot, and nothing to look at.) Also, many Brits also dump loose tea directly in the pot and then just leave it there - that is a messy procedure indeed and the tea becomes very bitter towards the end; it simply wouldn't work for many fine teas. My preferred method of steeping loose tea is using a large, very fine mesh filter (available from www.specialteas.com), which allows for the leaves to expand properly. You remove the filter after the correct steeping time for your particular kind of tea has passed. This sounds complicated but it isn't at all, not any more than making a decent cup of coffee. It's absolutely worth it. Bag tea is to single-estate loose tea as Johnnie Walker is to single-malt scotch. There are times when Johnnie Walker will do, but once you try the better stuff it's hard to go back. Image: http://www.uptontea.com/shopcart/images/items/ZY94-@DFL-DRY+LEAF+IMAGE.GIF Fri Nov 01 10:02:54 -0800 2002 1579041 0 Katerina 4 1579071 Personally, I use a strainer or tea ball. However, a friend of mine uses tea bags that she fills herself (with the better tea that one can buy loose). I'll have to ask her where she gets them the next time I see her. Fri Nov 01 11:05:17 -0800 2002 1579062 0 Lori D 5 1579115 You can find those fill-it-yourself bags at most Asian tea shops or Asian groceries with a good tea selection, and also at places like Whole Foods. Fri Nov 01 15:26:11 -0800 2002 1579071 0 Caitlin McGrath 2 1579061 I agree that loose tea is superior, but there are times when it is impractical (say, when you want a cup of tea at work). That being said, I loved Bewley's Irish Afternoon tea. Strongest tea I ever had and I'm sure it would stand up to milk (though I don't put milk in my tea so I wouldn't know). Don't know how easy it would be to get in the US though. Fri Nov 01 10:00:15 -0800 2002 1579019 0 Stephanie L. 3 1579127 I use tea bags at the office, too. But I also have a fine mesh plastic (nylon?) insert for brewing loose tea in a cup. I've pretty much given up on tea balls, because once the tea gets wet and swells, you don't really get the proper water circulation through the tea. This insert, which is a cylinder about two inches in diameter and two inches tall with a lip that rests on the rim of the mug, does a much better job. Fri Nov 01 19:17:20 -0800 2002 1579061 0 Ruth Lafler 4 1579196 Where can you buy them in the NYC area? Mon Nov 04 07:53:53 -0800 2002 1579127 0 Michele Cindy 5 1579242 I knew someone was going to ask me that when I posted [vbg]! I'm afraid I can't help, since don't even remember where I bought it, and I live in the SF Bay Area. I think I may have bought it at Peet's, but it didn't see one on their web site. I did a search and came up with one that's the same general idea, but a little fancier: Link: http://www.bandbtea.com/accessories/teapot/chatsford.htm Mon Nov 04 17:30:35 -0800 2002 1579196 0 Ruth Lafler 6 1579258 Thanks Ruth - that looks perfect for my needs. I'm going to buy one and toss the tea ball! Tue Nov 05 07:30:05 -0800 2002 1579242 0 Michele Cindy 5 1579274 You can buy fine wire mesh screens of a similar nature at most markets in Chinatown that have that kind of stuff. They come in a variety of sizes, and they're much cheaper too - maybe $3 tops. Tue Nov 05 13:36:23 -0800 2002 1579196 0 Caviar 1 1579022 My favourite is Typhoo teabags, my grandparents and parents drank it, so it is a lot of conditioning. However, if you are looking for a strong cup of tea - 'engine driver's" tea my grandmother used to call it, ie a strong cup of tea, dark amber which you can actually only really enjoy with milk (and sugar), then it is excellent. PG Tips compares very well. You can get both through British Aisles in NH somewhere, I have lost their number but you can find them on the web somewhere, try google. Typhoo is what I have first thing in the morning (6.30am) , with milk but no sugar, before coffee at about 10am. Sets you up for the day Thu Oct 31 20:17:35 -0800 2002 1578991 0 anglo-estonian 1 1579049 stash lemon spice Fri Nov 01 06:46:40 -0800 2002 1578991 0 joe 1 1579051 I am a big fan of Tetley English breakfast tea. I also like Typhoo but can't get it where I live. I let the tea brew for over 5 minutes in the cup. I like it strong and tetley comes through every time! I have had Taylors of Harrogate and enjoy that too but that's another I can't get in my area of CT. Fri Nov 01 07:00:54 -0800 2002 1578991 0 Richie 2 1579064 sorry,it's called Tetley British Blend. Fri Nov 01 10:07:41 -0800 2002 1579051 0 Richie 1 1579113 For easily available teabags, I like Constant Comment (by Lipton?). It's orange flavored black tea, is great with milk and sugar. A great herbal teabag is Twinings Lemon Ginger. It's been a little tough to find, but adding honey brings out a strong ginger flavor Fri Nov 01 15:14:33 -0800 2002 1578991 0 Dumpling 2 1579118 Constant Comment is a Bigelow product. I normally take all my tea au naturel, but in college (where the dining hall stocked Bigelow) someone taught me that adding sweetening to it brings out the orange and spice flavors, which without sugar are just aromas, not flavors. Fri Nov 01 15:55:49 -0800 2002 1579113 0 Caitlin McGrath 1 1579128 I buy my tea bags from 101 Tea Plantation. These are special because they use full tea leaves in the bags, made out of a nylon-like material, and individually sealed in airtight bags. They sell teas from Taiwan and offer several varieties as tea bags, including oolong and jasmine. I haven't found an online source and the only stores I know of are in the SF Bay Area. Fri Nov 01 19:50:52 -0800 2002 1578991 0 Yvonne 1 1579191 I love any flavor of Tazo tea & now that Starbuck's has bought them can be found affordably in many groceries and even Target stores. I also love Ten Ren in Chinatown for some of the best teas ever--some loose teas are almost as expensive as illegal drugs but they have affordable varieties as well as bagged. Yogi Tea is also good but I am still mad at them for promising a a free tea of the month club in 2000 and cheating all of us. I got 3 months my friends none. Sun Nov 03 20:40:39 -0800 2002 1578991 0 WellFedRed