"teas" news and stories

Different teas last for varying amounts of time. Find out the best way to buy and store tea so that you can enjoy its unique taste longer.

Tea Spot in NYC's Greenwich Village has a relaxed cozy environment that is perfect for escaping the infectious urban anxiety that often characterizes Manhattan. Tea Spot provides a fascinatingly aromatic treasure chest of teas from which to try. Since every tea has its own ritual, the staff is excellent at explaining how it should be drunk and how long the tea should remain in the pot. For example, with chamomile tea, they suggested leaving the tea in the pot for at least 7 minutes.

One of the most important ways to fully experince tea is to be sitting in the right atmosphere, one that is not overrun with people. One of the best parts about Tea Spot is that it's usually easy to find a seat. There are two floors. The bottom floor has few windows (it's mostly underground) but it's spacious and has several tables. Not only can you purchase tea to stay, but you can also buy it, along with tea pots and filters, to go and drink in the comfort of your home.

This past week, I tasted one of their many rooibos teas that seemed to soothe every neurotic bone in my body with its bright euphoric floral aroma and its sweet slightly nutty flavor. There is something wonderfully calming and meditative about the mere act of sipping tea. I poured just a dash of milk into my cup and was transfixed by the change in color from maroon to light red. For me, the experience of tasting tea seems to begin with a visual response. Then, my olfactory senses dominate my gastronomical perception; it's all about the aroma. And finally, the sensations on my taste buds allow me to become fully absorbed by the tea's unique flavor.

We continue our gift guides with some ideas for the person in your life who is addicted to legal stimulants. Namely, coffee and tea!

I've been seeing ads for Gevalia coffee and coffee makers for years but I've never tried either (let us know in the comments below how they are). They have a lot of gifts like coffee, coffee makers, chocolate, and biscotti. B & D has a good selection of gourmet coffee at their site (as well as 20 holiday drink recipes). Gloria Jean's has a lot of great holiday coffees too. How about something from Charlie Bean?

I recently asked all of you fine readers for suggestions on buying either a tea infuser and/or a tea pot, since I wanted to switch from store bought tea bags to loose tea. Everyone gave me great ideas, and I'm going to try several of them and report them to you here.

First up: this funky-looking infuser from Tovolo. I got the red one. It works well. I mean, I have nothing to compare it to since it's the first one I've ever tried, but I did notice some tea (Twinings Earl Grey) did get into the cup. Is that to be expected? Do you tea drinkers out there just find that this is something you have to live with for good tea or are there infusers out there that don't have this problem? I do like this infuser. It comes with a cool stand to keep the infuser in. It made a great cup of tea.

One thing that struck me when I was at the Fancy Food Show was that there were a number of products that were marketed at women. Some of them, like chocolates, seemed just to feature girly packaging and slogans, but others touted potential health benefits. In this latter category were two new products that were the result of a collaboration between The Republic of Tea and LUNA: Nutritional Iced Tea for Women and LUNA Tea Cakes. The collaboration was a natural one considering that the companies - both of which endorse healthy lifestyles - have similar values and goals.

Nutritional Iced Tea for Women is the first iced tea designed with women in mind. Brewed, lightly sweetened and packed in resealable plastic water bottles, the all-natural teas have just 50 calories per 12-ounce serving, are made with 70% organic ingredients. On top of that, the teas are fortified with folate, calcium and vitamins B and D. They come in five flavors: Ginger Currant Black Tea, Lemon Blueberry Decaf Black Tea, Kiwi Strawberry Green Tea, Mandarin Orange White Tea and (caffeine-free) Cherry Vanilla Red Tea. They are truly delicious and very refreshing. The fruity flavors really come through (my favorite was the Ginger Currant), with no sugary sweetness to dull them.