What is your favorite flavor of tea and why?

[Quinton O'Connor]

Kind of an odd question to make a topic out of, granted. I've been having difficulty with my writing (original works of fiction; a hobby of mine) lately; writer's block, I guess.

A while back I used to drink tea all the time and that seemed to help keep me focused. Sipping it, absorbing the aroma... soothing and other cliches.

It's been a long time since I pursued that fine art so I'm looking for suggestions on flavors, brands, home brews... so on, so forth. Thanks in advance, Brits.

 

[Jadzia]

earl grey, hot.

My cupboard has the following:
eary grey (clipper) - possibly my favourite. A lot of brands taste bitter or will have almost no bergamot.
ceylon (twinings) - the nicest plain black tea I know of.
darjeeling (twinings) - a milder tea with an almost creamy flavour. Nice for relaxing.
green (Qi or aldi) - another favourite. Both Qi and aldi brands are rich and flavoursome.
lady grey (twinings) - more lemony than earl grey. Equally enjoyable, but I get tired of it quicker.

Being vegan I don't use milk, and I've gotten used to having my tea without. Even though I have tried use soy milk, I find it just detracts from the taste of the tea.

Occasionally I enjoy some fruit flavours/ scented teas, but I have none in at the moment.

I dislike normal black teas, and I'd rather not drink it. I feel it tastes harsh and bitter and has too much tannin.

 

[Zulu Romeo]

I've recently controlled my anarchistic tendencies, so I'm no longer going to use the "anarchists drink only herbal tea as all proper tea is theft" joke in these sorts of threads.

I've become a convert to Chai (specifically Twinings Chai) in the last few months, and on occasion a tall Earl Grey, but usually with no milk or sugar.

Personally, however, I don't really mind what goes in my cuppa, as long as it isn't coffee. (I still remember that one occasion when I had a tall Americano at lunchtime and couldn't stop laughing for half an hour... I think I've mentioned that incident before here. )

 

[Tora Ziyal]

My favorite is peppermint herbal tea (I know, not technically tea.). It's cool and refreshing and has no caffeine. Celestial Seasonings is a good brand. I also drink some other herbal teas, including Yogi Peach DeTox. I have no idea whether it lives up to its health claims; I just like the spicy taste.

As for the real stuff, I like Silver Needle white tea, which is very delicate and naturally low on caffeine. And I have a package of Twinings decaf Earl Grey in the cupboard, but I'm not crazy about it.

 

[Quinton O'Connor]

Thanks for the varied and flavorful replies, you three. I'll check out several of those varieties over the next few weeks and may even post my thoughts since I'm sure the entire forum is holding its breath for the reaction of one member to different types of tea.

Jadzia, I'm vegan as well!

 

[Alidar Jarok]

I've become a convert to Chai (specifically Twinings Chai) in the last few months, and on occasion a tall Earl Grey, but usually with no milk or sugar.

I actually feel Twinnings Chai to have a very week flavor. It really needs more spice.

Anyway, I usually drink Earl Gray. I also enjoy White Tea.

 

[Quinton O'Connor]

Alidar, have you tried Twinnings Extra Spice Chai? I haven't but I saw it at the store the other day.

 

[Kirby]

I like just plain ol' green tea. Specifically Tazo Zen green tea which has some sort of botanical in it for flavoring, but I'm too lazy to go look.

I don't always drink tea, but when I do, I drink Tazo...

 

[Marten]

I usually drink Liptons Blackcurrant tea.

 

[trampledamage]

For every day I drink Tetley's tea - what I called "teabag tea" growing up but have since learned is technically "Orange Pekoe"

For the really good stuff, I drink Fortnum & Mason Royal Blend - the nicest tasting tea I've ever had. And now my sister lives in London I have a reasonably regular supply too

When I want something different to black tea - I really like Safeway Organics White Tea with Jasmine. I drink that without milk and it's a lovely flavour.

 

[6079SmithW]

Earl Grey is the only tea I drink. It is the only kind I can stand. If there is no Earl Grey then I can withstand some of Lipton's generic lemony tea but Earl Grey all the way for me.

 

[PKTrekGirl]

I'm one of those who believes coffee to be it's own essential food group at the very top of the nutritional pyramid, so I don't drink tons of tea. However, the two flavors of tea I keep in my pantry as staples are Twinings Earl Grey (which I drink hot, w/a touch of milk & sugar) and Green Tea (which I drink hot, without anything added).

I will also typically have some small amount of herbal tea around - usually left over from the last time I had a cold, as that tends to be the time I crave herbal tea and buy it (coffee tastes terrible when you have a cold).

 

[Lindley]

My favorite is Mighty Leaf English Breakfast.

However, on a recent trip to Dubai, I discovered that Lipton Yellow Label---which I haven't been able to find the US---is actually really good. Yes, I was as surprised as anyone that Lipton could make good tea.

 

[Admiral_Young]

Twinnings Earl Grey.

 

[MetalPants]

I prefer my tea to come from Long Island. Quite tastey and relaxing. Best served with ice.

 

[TheGodBen]

As a tea addict who drinks 7-8 mugs per day, I don't really know. It's black, it comes in teabags, you mix it with milk, drink it and the headaches go away for another few hours. What more do I need to know? I think it's officially known as Irish Breakfast tea, which is slightly stronger than English Breakfast tea, but I'm not sure. Different brands have different qualities, some are a bit too sickly for my liking, but if it's "real" black tea then I'll drink it.

I've tried different types of black tea over the years and I have difficulty adjusting to them because they're just not "tea".

I'm really disappointed with mint or fruit flavoured teas because they never taste as good as they smell. They can give off a great aroma that fills a whole room, but when you drink them they taste like hot water with very mild flavouring. When I smell mixed berries wafting up from the mug I want the rich, sweet flavour of fruit in my mouth, not a mug of hot water with a lone raspberry at the bottom somewhere. That's like having amazing foreplay but when you get to the deed your partner just lays there, barely moving, staring at the ceiling and humming "O Canada".

 

[SmoothieX]

This.

http://www.tenren.com/hibspicroste.html

Ten Ren Hibiscus Spice tea. Fragant, and sweet and tart at the same time.

Got turned onto it at a tea shop I used to go to in NYC Chinatown.

 

[Quinton O'Connor]

Goodness, I've opened a bag of tea with this one.

 

[Sheepwash]

Chocolatey Chia! I LOVE it! Not only does it have the delicious chia that I have always loved. It is chocolatey!!!!! love chocolate? love chia? CHOCOLATEY CHIA! MMMMMMMM

 

[Quinton O'Connor]

Chocolatey Chia! I LOVE it! Not only does it have the delicious chia that I have always loved. It is chocolatey!!!!! love chocolate? love chia? CHOCOLATEY CHIA! MMMMMMMM

MMMMMMMM