This Week in Tea

Teas of the Week

Well into the fourth week of ’09 and the tea hits just keep on coming!

First of all, the Year Without Coffee is progressing brilliantly. My affection for tea, which was more a hope than a certainty a few weeks ago, has been cemented for all eternity. I have quickly come to love the ritual of preparing, seeping, and consuming my cup (or sometimes pot) of tea.

One critical factor in this journey has been the kind and quality of tea that I’ve been drinking. As I mentioned in my last TWiT post, Zhena had been a constant companion in the first weeks of The Year. This week, I faced my first empty tea tin, which was both sad – no tea! – and fantastic – buy new tea! I’m no expert and neither did I consult one, so my choices of new varie-teas was based on a) experience and b) package design.

I strolled into Whole Foods and headed for the tea section. I saw Zhena’s area and wanted to sample more of her delights, but decided that before I head further down that path, it’d be best to dip into some other alleys first. So, I got:

• Rishi White Peony organic loose leaf tea. I actually have some other Rishi black tea at work. But this white tea is absolutely wonderful. It is gentle and aromatic. If over-seeped, it does become pretty bitter. But properly done, it is delectable. The only issue I have is measuring two tablespoons accurately. Suggestions?
• Republic of Tea Holiday Chai comes in packets, like the Zhena’s chai. Oddly, the container says it’s caffeine free. Really? Regardless, because of my love of Chai in the morning, this has been my morning tea for the past week. It is gentler than Zhena’s, but just as flavorful and sweet. A real treat.

I’m totally sold on the tea thing. One aspect of drinking tea that I have quickly come to appreciate is that, totally unlike coffee, I feel free to make a cup of tea whenever I feel like it. There is no sense of mounting guilt through the day, or of concern that it might be too late to make some (bedtime tea!). And I really like having different teas during different parts of the day. To top it off, I feel good about having left behind some of the less desireable side affects my coffee habit induced.

Yay Tea.