328220 Sat Sep 23 00:54:16 -0700 2006 51 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1896313 Prefer bags, and general super market availability is a plus. Any suggestions? Sat Sep 23 00:54:16 -0700 2006 10134 David Kahn 1 1896315 Just for the fun of it, try a green Earl Grey. Not for the purists, but what the hey? Sat Sep 23 00:55:17 -0700 2006 1896313 23583 EclecticEater 2 1897100 I really like green Earl Grey. Have also enjoyed some of the green teas from WF - can't remember the names right now - one has rosebuds in it as well. Sat Sep 23 16:48:21 -0700 2006 1896315 10985 MMRuth 1 1896422 Most less expensive bagged green teas don't taste very good (e.g., the 20 bags for $3-4 range). Mighty Leaf is good, but very pricey. Yamamotoyama is good, but difficult to find. If you don't mind buying in large quantities, the new Costco green tea is good. See: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/325507 Sat Sep 23 02:01:13 -0700 2006 1896313 17958 Jefferson 2 1896432 I like the Yamamotoyama (could this name be any longer?) as well. It has a fresh green taste, and is also organic. David, in LA you can find it at the Mitsuwa market, I go to the one on Centinela. The Trader Joes organic green tea is weak, but will do in a pinch. Will have to try Costco, thanks Jefferson. Sat Sep 23 02:08:56 -0700 2006 1896422 10191 Kishari 2 1897289 I too like Yamamotoyama. Also Tazo Zen green tea. It's flavored with lemongrass, lemon verbena, and spearmint. Sat Sep 23 18:48:03 -0700 2006 1896422 27312 lvecch 3 1899196 I don't like the Tazo green tea for the addition of the other flavors. To me it overpowers it. Sun Sep 24 22:25:18 -0700 2006 1897289 27873 gyp7318 4 1899212 Although I generally prefer the clean, bright flavor of a plain green, I happen to like this particular mix of lemon, mint, and tea. Sun Sep 24 22:33:40 -0700 2006 1899196 27312 lvecch 1 1896436 I'm really impressed with Harney and Sons. They have beautiful bright green sencha that is delicious. Check their website for prices, etc. http://www.harney.com/sencha. Sat Sep 23 02:10:58 -0700 2006 1896313 10926 mnosyne 1 1896455 I know that by saying bags and supermarkets you're not necessarily asking for connoisseur level stuff - but green tea is one item that really, really sucks, until you do get into some fairly decent grades of tea. In particular, green tea in tea bags is incredibly bad. It's well worth the effort to try decent loose tea. There are easy ways to do it without spending big bucks or using tea pots - this little one-cup infuser, for example: http://www.uptontea.com/shopcart/item.asp?from=catalog.asp&itemID=AI20&begin=0&parent=Accessories%3ETeaware%3EInfusion+Aids&category=Infusers&sortMethod=0&categoryID=82 My favorite green teas are Japanese Sencha's. They can be quite expensive. This is a sencha grown for the Japanese market in Vietnam - it's very flavorful and not super expensive: http://www.uptontea.com/shopcart/item.asp?from=catalog.asp&itemID=TV01&begin=0&parent=Teas%3EGreen%3EVietnam&category=Green&sortMethod=0&categoryID=165 Upton Tea sends very quickly - 3-5 days tops. They're strictly a mail order shop, and do tons of orders every day - with lots of satisfied customers. I don't think you could go wrong stepping up to this quality. Sat Sep 23 02:31:56 -0700 2006 1896313 10312 applehome 2 1897098 It's more of a convenience thing than a cost issue. I like the way green tea tastes, and I'd like to be able to drink a couple of cups of green tea during the day while I work. I'd like something that has good flavor, but that I can keep at the office and prepare without too much trouble. I asked for bags, because, at my office, using a strainer and loose tea is just too hard in the chaotic setting of my office. I asked for a supermarket brand so I can find the stuff; a high-end tea bag available over the Internet would be fine too. Cost is not really a big concern. Just want something that's good and not too complicated to prepare. (Fwiw, I have a good electric kettle and bottled that I use to make tea.) Sat Sep 23 16:47:10 -0700 2006 1896455 10134 David Kahn 3 1898835 I would recommend buying a good quality loose tea then making your own tea bags. They sell them at Japanese markets such as Marukai, Mitsuwa and Nijiya in the LA area. I usually make my tea in a pot, but when I'm lazy I use the tea bags that I filled myself. It only takes a few minutes to make a dozen then you can take them to the office with you. Here's an internet site that you can purchase that bags at if you don't want to bother going to a store. http://www.houserice.com/diteaba.html Sun Sep 24 19:03:08 -0700 2006 1897098 10122 BombayUpWithaTwist 3 1903101 Although I like loose tea at home 50% of the time, convenience calls for tea bags the other 50%. At work, I drink MAEDA-EN green tea (sencha), which I prefer to Yamamotoyama. http://www.maeda-en.com/store/product_category.cgi?category=Sen-cha Good luck! Tue Sep 26 16:25:04 -0700 2006 1897098 12873 OCAnn 4 1916891 I was @ Marukai (Gardena) this weekend. They carry MAEDA-EN sencha. A bag of 100 for $15. Mon Oct 02 19:31:19 -0700 2006 1903101 12873 OCAnn 1 1896711 Why does it have to be available at the supermarket? As someone who really knows green tea, I can tell you that you will find, with few rare exceptions, only the mediocre at your local supermarket. Life is too short for mediocre green tea, especially when, for the fraction of the price that you would pay for good wine, you can find a sublime green tea. If you must have tea bags, go to http://www.itoen.com/ and order their green tea in bags. It's very pricey (you are paying for the packaging and the bag) but is superb. If you must have supermarket tea, go to Whole Foods and get the organic Rishi green tea. However, it is loose, not in a bag. It's the best "supermarket" tea I have had. By the way, my vote for the greatest invention of the century (so far) is the "T Buddy" which you can order at www.tzu-the.com. It's basically some kind of plastic thermos (but doesn't taste of plastic - I think they are using some kind of high-grade material.) You can either brew tea the traditional way at home and then pour it into the T Buddy and take it with you (it has a nifty carrying strap and I take it with me when I walk my dog so I can sip tea in the park) or you can take it to work with you and brew loose tea at work. You just stick the tea in the bottom part of the cannister which contains the leaves and then pour the hot water in the top part. It really brews great tea - tastes as good as tea brewed the old-fashioned way. Sat Sep 23 06:31:00 -0700 2006 1896313 27951 omotosando 2 1897341 omotosando - please tell me more about the T Buddy. I can't really tell from the picture, but how do you remove the tea when it is done steeping, or does it steep for the entire drinking time? Are the ounce-sizes referring to the actual liquid, or do you lose some space in the bottle with the infuser? Thanks for further information. Also, have you tried their T bars? Good? Sat Sep 23 19:48:56 -0700 2006 1896711 14014 liu 3 1897461 The bottom of the T Buddy contains the tea infuser. When the tea has been brewed to your satisfaction, you can twist off the bottom, empty the tea from the infuser and put the bottom lid back on. I'm not sure about the ounce sizes. I initially started with the small size and liked it so much, I ordered a larger one. The larger one is probably more practical. I am about to order another large one to keep at my office. I have not tried the T bars. Sat Sep 23 21:05:12 -0700 2006 1897341 27951 omotosando 4 1897676 Oh, the other thing I forgot to say about my T Buddy (and no, I don't work for them - I just happen to love their product) is that every morning I'll brew a huge pot of tea and pour what I don't drink into my T Buddy and stick it in the refrigerator. Then later in the day, I'll pour the refrigerated tea over ice and have heavenily ice tea - much better (and much cheaper) than bottled ice tea. Sat Sep 23 23:27:34 -0700 2006 1897461 27951 omotosando 4 1897733 Wow, the T-Buddy looks as though it should come with a hot mitt. How do you carry that thing? Sat Sep 23 23:49:21 -0700 2006 1897461 17958 Jefferson 5 1902695 It comes with a carrying strap, of course. Tue Sep 26 12:49:40 -0700 2006 1897733 27951 omotosando 2 1898274 Wouldn't a metal travel French press work equally as well? Bodum's version (available online through bodumusa.com or on Amazon) is safe, VERY well-insulated, and won't warp, crack, break, etc.; these are, by the way, all problems I'd had in previous years with other transportable tea-things. Sun Sep 24 10:24:13 -0700 2006 1896711 17463 PseudoNerd 3 1902703 I have the Bodum travel press and much prefer the T Buddy. It is slimmer, easier to hold, pour and transport and just generally more elegant. Also it feels to me that it is made from higher quality materials. Tue Sep 26 13:00:05 -0700 2006 1898274 27951 omotosando 1 1896781 if you have an asian supermarket nearby, they usually carry green tea bags with little flecks of brown rice in them. the brown rice gives the tea a subtly sweet, almost nutty flavor. really good! Sat Sep 23 10:11:12 -0700 2006 1896313 26657 bijoux16 2 1897727 Yes, roasted brown rice green tea -- genmai-cha / genmaicha -- should be pretty familiar to anyone who has eaten at a "sit down" Japanese restaurant. I think the flavor varies less than other types of green tea, presumably because the grade of tea isn't as important when there is another strong flavor in the mix. Genmai-cha often is a great bargain for "everyday" tea. Sat Sep 23 23:45:31 -0700 2006 1896781 17958 Jefferson 3 1897818 Another reason genmaicha makes a good everyday work green tea is that it is designed to be brewed with boiling or near boiling water. Sencha should typically be brewed at 170F-180F and gyokuro even lower, which can be inconvenient at work. Even better is matcha genmaicha, which is genmaicha that had been dusted with a layer of matcha, the powdered green tea used in the japanese tea ceremony. Ito En makes a reasonably priced version, although there are plenty of others. Sun Sep 24 00:42:13 -0700 2006 1897727 14674 ahclem 1 1897189 Have you tried the tea cups with the lids and ceramic strainers that sit right in the top? Have seen at most Asian markets, and at Cost Plus World Market. If you use loose green tea tthey stay caught in the strainer which you remove. Very simple. Sat Sep 23 17:49:33 -0700 2006 1896313 17682 torty 2 1903122 This is my preferred method. No messier than bags, brews my loose tea of choice, looks elegant. If I have to use a bag, I like Revolution, but I'm not crazy about their green or rooibos varieties. Tue Sep 26 16:32:10 -0700 2006 1897189 10846 themis 1 1897379 Though expensive, really superb sencha and gyokuro tea bags made from fresh first harvest teas can be had here: http://www.japanesegreenteaonline.com/teabags.htm They ship from Japan, but very quickly. But for maximum flexibility, this cup infuser from Upton's is really quite convenient for work and gives you the option of trying all sorts of good tea: http://www.uptontea.com/shopcart/item.asp?itemID=AS91&similarto=AS11&from=catalog.asp&begin=0&parent=Accessories%3ETeaware%3EInfusion+Aids&category=Infusers&sortMethod=0&categoryID=82 Sat Sep 23 20:16:00 -0700 2006 1896313 14674 ahclem 2 1897482 Thanks for the reference to japanesegreenteaonline. Looks like a superb alternative for when you absolutely must use a tea bag, such as on an airplane or at a restaurant. My personal pet peeve is when you go out to an expensive restaurant and spend a small fortune on dinner and then order tea with dessert and they bring you (usually with great flourish) a box of the most mediocre tea bags to choose from. This seems to be more of a problem in L.A. than New York where I've found that most high-end restaurants will bring you loose tea. Sat Sep 23 21:21:29 -0700 2006 1897379 27951 omotosando 1 1897701 Stash premium green tea is my choice for widely-available green tea (supermarkets). Sat Sep 23 23:37:35 -0700 2006 1896313 20128 morebubbles 1 1898205 I enjoy the strong flavors of Starbucks' China Green Tea (not the Chai), Peets' Genmai Cha, Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf's Genmaicha, and Seattle Best's Japanese Green. Peets and Coffe Bean offer different variations of the green tea. You can buy packets of them online or in store. Sun Sep 24 06:57:05 -0700 2006 1896313 11006 chica 2 1898233 Starbucks carries Tazo teas, which also are available at major grocery stores. Although frankly, it might be easier to get to a Starbucks -- since they are everywhere -- and the lines probably are shorter, too! Sun Sep 24 07:45:33 -0700 2006 1898205 17958 Jefferson 1 1898277 There's a new tea place in the Fairfax district (between Canter's and Supreme, across from Largo) that carries only organic, fair-trade teas and organic, vegetarian (with lots of vegan options) foods. The to-go cups are equipped with hand-packed (done there in front of you), unbleached tea bags that are sealed using heat INSTEAD of adhesives. Who wants glue in their tea? If you want, you could probably ask them to make bagged teas for you, and there'd be even greater variety-- the tea menu is pretty extensive, and it just opened, so the tea ought to be very fresh. Sun Sep 24 10:25:49 -0700 2006 1896313 17463 PseudoNerd 1 1898889 I like Adagio teas. The brewing pot included in their starter kit is as easy as tea bags. Also kind of fun trying different types of teas. Alot of different greens. Shipping is very fast and reliable. Sun Sep 24 19:30:29 -0700 2006 1896313 39222 f2bfaus 1 1899417 It's 90 degrees outside and I'm in an air-con cafe sucking down an ice tea brewed to order with Numi organic jasmine green tea. Wonderful. Mon Sep 25 00:44:11 -0700 2006 1896313 10039 Melanie Wong 1 1899420 Sobe Green Tea Extreme... what says Japanese authenticity more than Sobe? Mon Sep 25 00:47:58 -0700 2006 1896313 21236 Danimal n Hustler 1 1899859 My favorite green tea is Uji Cha but they are hard to find outside of Japen. In our office, we have Tazo China Green Tips which has a delicate fragrance that I really like. Also, Itoen tea bags are available in some asian stores. Less expensive is Dynasty green tea ($1.60 at most asian marts but harder to find). This seems to be as good (if not better) as the Yamamotoyama regular green tea and has a really nice scent if you don't add too much water (I haven't tried Yamamotoyama's premium or super-premium. Anybody?). Mon Sep 25 06:39:59 -0700 2006 1896313 27302 rotiprata 2 1899884 Yamamotoyama isn't really objectionable at all; of course, it isn't all that wonderful either, but it's solidly consistent and widely available at Asian markets. I think we have the premium around somewhere, and it's fine for when one doesn't really have the time/energy/attention span to taste the tea. It falls flat in comparison to...say, a good gyokuro. Then again, what doesn't? Mon Sep 25 08:57:32 -0700 2006 1899859 17463 PseudoNerd 2 1901587 You're lucky. My office has Lipton. Mon Sep 25 22:08:37 -0700 2006 1899859 27312 lvecch 1 1900183 I enjoy hoji-cha, the roasted green tea. It is a great coffee subsitute and also makes a good ice tea. I believe it was invented during or post war to extend lesser quality tea. If you are ever in the OC -Ebisu in Fountain Valley serves it up gratis. But I buy the Yamamotoyama bagged. Mon Sep 25 14:30:19 -0700 2006 1896313 14086 kare_raisu 1 1900199 I second that hojicha recommendation. You can find the teabags at lots of asian markets and some health food stores. Genmaicha from Upton Tea Imports (http://www.uptontea.com) is one of the staples in our tea cupboard, but we buy that loose. Mon Sep 25 14:35:22 -0700 2006 1896313 12341 vanillagrrl 1 1902950 If you are looking for inexpensive, easily located, grocery store selections, I would recommend the following based on my experiences. Many groceries sell Republic of Tea, which I think far preferable to Tazo. They have several varieties, both flavored and unflavored, and loose and bagged in round bags. www.republicoftea.com Most major cities have a mall with a Teavana in it. They, too, have a good selection of green and white teas. Not sure about the bags, though. Also preferable to Tazo. www.teavana.com Twinings also packages green teas, including a gunpowder. Even this is preferable to Tazo. www.twinings.com I sympathize with the teabag thing. At work I just don't have time to savor the ritual of loose tea brewing, and ritual it is. So - teabags. I save the puer and other exotic loose-leaf teas for at home. You might have noticed that I don't think much of Tazo. Tastes like zinc. I don't think they do a good job of controlling their tannins. But some people are genetically predisposed to not tasting it, so they love the stuff. The best bet is always to try things out for yourself. You may make some great discoveries that you can share with us! Good luck. Tue Sep 26 15:22:48 -0700 2006 1896313 13136 Loren3 2 1903949 Although I love both Republic of Tea and Twinings especially, I've had bad green tea experiences with them. With Twinings, it was Jasmine Green Tea. Too strong and too bitter - it completely lacked any subtlety and overpowered the floral notes. With Republic, it was Grapefruit Green Tea. I swear the stuff smelled and tasted like liquid reefer. Truly disgusting. Tue Sep 26 21:02:37 -0700 2006 1902950 27312 lvecch 3 1906672 I'm with you on the grapefruit green from RoT. Too bad it didn't work like liquid reefer! I also agree on the jasmine. That's hard to get right. But, all in all, for relatively inexpensive and easily available greens, their other offerings make good choices. Wed Sep 27 21:54:55 -0700 2006 1903949 13136 Loren3 4 1909765 That's good news and makes sense, because they're great brands. Thu Sep 28 23:41:40 -0700 2006 1906672 27312 lvecch 1 1903120 Give Two Leaves and a Bud a try: www.twoleavesandabud.com They were just included in an article in the NY Times about the trend towards putting whole leaves into tea bags rather than the remnants of chopped up tea. Also notable is the new design in teabags moving away from the old paper bag and more towards a mesh type pouch. http://select.nytimes.com/search/restricted/article?res=F40C10FA3E550C708DDDA00894DE404482 Tue Sep 26 16:31:32 -0700 2006 1896313 13094 chowcito 1 1904947 This place had some of the best green tea I ever tasted. They only sell tea. They have an interesting background (life story). http://www.phillyblog.com/philly/archive/index.php/t-8779.html Their site is: http://www.houseoftea.com/ They really know their teas and have many different grades of green tea that they will sell, loose. You might try some from them or else call them and tell them what you're after. I met Nat Lit who founded the place, an interesting raconteur, and I'm sure his daughter who runs the place is just great at helping people find the kind of tea they want. Wed Sep 27 04:53:39 -0700 2006 1896313 23583 EclecticEater 1 1917596 My wife has tried them all, and she always goes back to Ito En. Mon Oct 02 23:08:13 -0700 2006 1896313 10786 calabasas_trafalgar 1 2448764 I would suggest green tea by this company called Tzu-The http://www.tzu-the.com . Their production process emphasizes maintaining the highest levels of EGCG which is the magical "cancer fighting" component of green tea. There are two types of green tea they sell, one is the traditional loose leaf green tea, and the other comes in pancake shaped tea bags called t-pods. From my research, green tea also loses its nutrients fairly quickly as it oxidizes. Tzu-The's green tea bags are preserved in air tight containers to prevent oxidation. Wed Apr 04 03:30:51 -0700 2007 1896313 88431 jimskillet 1 2452810 try www.franchia.com great korean green tea Thu Apr 05 06:07:39 -0700 2007 1896313 25014 jpr54_1 1 2453248 >> Yamamotoyama (could this name be any longer?) Yes, how about Yamamotoyama Lite? Seriously, I need to look for some of this. I have been trying various grocery store brands of green teas and most make me think of brewed grass. Thu Apr 05 08:23:20 -0700 2007 1896313 18981 Jimmy Buffet 1 2455080 I tend to agree with the notion that you wont find anything good in the supermarket. I order from Upton Tea Imports a lot because everything they sell is available in a sample size. My vote for best green tea goes to O-Cha.com. I've tried several of theirs and wasn't disappointed. Thu Apr 05 15:56:17 -0700 2007 1896313 44908 teaguy